Scrap Yarn Rug / Hot Pad / Potholder

My sister made me a gorgeous crocheted throw out of this super soft hand spun yarn. I love it - but it sheds like crazy. She told me it was because of the tassels, and that if I took them off it wouldn't shed anymore. I removed the tassels and came up with this huge pile of beautiful, soft yarn, but my sister said she had no use for the little snips. I tied the yarn scraps together, but this was a mistake, because the plan was to braid them. The more I braided the more the ends tangled. Long story short, I re-cut all the yarn into snips and just added lengths about 1.5 feet at a time instead.

Once all the yarn was braided I started spiraling the yarn, stitching it in place with a regular needle and thread.

I'm pretty happy with the way this turned out, and now I'm toying with the idea of making one from old t-shirts, plastic shopping bags, fabric scraps I don't want to throw away, or a bunch of clothes (all the same color) from Goodwill cut into strips.