Have you noticed, all the home decor stores pretty much carry the same ol’ stuff? I hunted high and low for a new mat to match this one I bought last year. It’s absolutely cheery. Once I get a vision in my head, I can not be deterred and refuse to settle for something else. Does that happen to you?
That’s when I turned to trusty Pinterest. Lots of clever crafting out there.
I’m always seeing cool DIY’s and they make it look so darn easy. **
** This is where I should tell you to SAVE yourself. Just go buy some tacky, plain-Jane beige or brown mat at your local Target. But what fun would that be? Full disclosure, this project threw me a few curves, but in the end I like the results and it’s really cheery on the front porch. So I decided to share what I learned making my very own work of art DIY door mat.
First stop, my local Ikea for a plain mat. This one was $7.00.
Tip 1
Ignore cute Pinterest pictures and consider a mat that IS NOT Sisal (read on).
Because everything I love is aqua, I thought I’d use some left over paint I had from the chair in my craft room. It’s a shade called Ocean.
Tip 2
Plan for more than one can of spray paint if you are spraying Sisal. I spent the good part of one afternoon shopping for another can in the same colour 😦 Sisal just sucks up paint like crazy.
I already had a bunch of painters tape at home and used that to mark my lines.
Tip 3
Did you ignore Tip 1 and bought a sisal mat anyways? Consider using duck tape. The painters tape will not adhere firm enough and bad things happen.
If you end up with wavy lines, I’d recommend the new ‘Oil Based Sharpies’ and a yard stick. They come in plenty of colours, I used gold and white. I actually like how it emphasized the plain stripes.
Tip 4
Best not to expect perfection or the store bought look. Boomdee says,
“embrace imperfection”!
I left room for a message and using 4″ letter die cuts at my local Scrapbook store, made stencils to spell HELLO
Tip 5
Most scrapbook stores have large die cuts for use for a small fee (I’m a member so it’s free!)
Bonus, you’ll also get letters to use on another project. Just be sure to have the right of your paper down on the die cut as they are reversed.
I traced the stencils on to the painted mat with my gold ‘Oil Based Sharpie’ then hi-lighted them with white. I thought they looked so much better than the flat letters.
Tip 6
Consider outlining your stripes and hi-lighting your letters. It will give your flat mat some dimension. I used oil based Sharpies.
Our new mat has been gracing our front porch for three weeks now. I’m pretty happy with how it’s holding out in all the rain we’ve had. While not a family heirloom, I’m confident it will last for a couple of seasons and it’s a nice way to greet our guests with a colourful and cheery “HELLO”!
That looks like it was a lot of work but it sure does tie in nicely with your porch flower colours! and ITS ONE OF KIND!! gotta love that! excellent colour combo! You are really keeping your neighbours on their toes now! LOL!
LOL, it really was a comedy of errors but happy I forged ahead to finish as I quite like it. Thanks for cheering me along and it’s nice to have a ‘one of a kind’ even if it’s not a work of art 😀
I think that your mat turned out amazing! It really is a cheery welcomer to your cozy home, and I think that it is so much more amazing just because of the fact that YOU made it… way to go Boomdee! 🙂
I thought I’d start small and do some giant thing but that probably will not be in the cards LOL. I’m glad I finished it though because it does really brighten things up out there. Many thanks for cheering me on Kathryn.
Embrace imperfection, I love it! And you did a fantastic job, in my opinion. The double letters to make them stand out was a really good idea!
So nice of you to say. These new Oil Based Sharpies are really wearing well thru the weather too. Thanks so much
Wow, brilliant! It’s so true all the decor stores carry the same stuff these days. The lovely, smaller, unique ones that used to be around have all shut down around my area since Homesense and other large box stores have homogenized all of our selection at throw-away prices.
However, I suppose that crafting is the solution!
Thanks for a lovely compliment. You’ve said it well, homogenized. My dear sister-in-law used to carry all types of art and giftware but now does just flowers because people want nice stuff but at Homesense pricing. The small business person can’t match the pricing on the commercially made stuff. Kinda sad, now we have less selection.
It really is so sad. Not only less selection in the end, but junkier, throw-away things instead of something of a reasonable quality.
I am late to this party…and you are amazing! 🙂 Thanks for brightening my night.
Never, you’re right on time my dear Julia and thank you for your message today. I’m so glad it brightened your evening, you’ve done this for me too 😀
Thanks for sharing details about the lessons learned in making this mat. I love the finished mat.
Thanks Sheryl, one of those “should I or shouldn’t I” finish this but alls well that ends well 😀
I love your quote…embrace imperfection!!! Your mat is sooo cute!
Thank you for that Laurie. If I crafted for perfection, I’d never finish anything, HA. Cheers.
Really cute!
Thanks Stacey, it’s getting a real workout…another giant rain storm this morning, thunder and lightning at 4:30am. If anything, it’ll float away b4 it wears out.
This is Gorgeous Boomdee! Nice work, looks very professional.
Hi Gj, so nice of you to say. I probably will have to retouch the hot pink next year but either than that, It seems to be holding out. I’m glad I finished it anyways.
Wow, what an ambitious undertaking, with beautiful results. Thanks for the tutorial. I always want to know “how” people do stuff! You are quite talented ;0)
Hi Sharon ! I see the gorgeous cards you’ve sent and would send that nice compliment right back to you. I never imagined it would be so finicky, but I think I might try again with different tape and a different type of rug. It was a good experiment though HA. Thinking of you with love, xoK
Thank you, my dear!
What a fabulous project! I just love it…….!!
Pam
Thanks Pam, it was a challenge but happy I went ahead and finished it. Hugs to Sammy too.
Love all your Tips! Made me chuckle! Mostly, just glad to see your post ‘ cause as you know, I’ve been thinking of you!
The rug looks great!!!
You’ve been so kind to keep in touch, thanks so much for your support and visits here too. It’s truly been a mix of sun and rain but looking forward to rest of the summer. Hope your weekend includes and awesome ride somewhere’s great, looking forward to catching up!
I had a morning client so I missed this post until now. Wowser that turned out well. I love what you’ve created and agree with all the other post-ees above, definitely pin-worthy. I’m glad to hear it is standing up to your heavy rain. I couldn’t bear it otherwise.
Great tutorial, as always. You’ve amassed quiet a collection of them here at Boomdeeada. Move over, Martha!
xox
xo I think Martha’s empire is safe, LOL All the Martha demo’s I’ve seen are an exercise in perfection. I’ve always wanted to make a sugar cube house (instead of Gingerbread House) she’s shown on her program, but you need rectangular cubes which I’ve never been able to find.
Thank you for your sweet compliments and as always, your support and love xoK
I bet Martha sells them (wink, wink).
I’ve missed you. So glad to see you back in Boomdeeland. xox
OMgosh you’re probably right LOL, Martha would have all the bases covered wouldn’t she.
Boomdeeland 😀 is so lucky to have such good friends, I feel so lucky xoK
What a coincidence…I feel lucky too! Mwaaaaa
Well done!
Hi Daryl, thanks for stopping by and for the encouragement, hope you’re having a great summer! I’ve been thinking of you guys 😀
Hi Boomdee – the entrance to your home should feature in a home decor magazine! It’s sooo lovely. The flowers were beautiful enough, but now your gorgeous hand decorated rug is the icing on the cake. It made me smile. I, too, live by the motto “embrace imperfection” – if everything was perfect it would be a dull world indeed! Funny thing is now the rug’s in place you wouldn’t think it caused you one hassle. And yes, life happens and at times I’m not so good at it either – sending you heaps of hugs and best wishes. xxx
You are a dear, I’ll gladly take all those hugs and wishes, xo. Life and Rug projects…..both can be messy at times. Thanks for your message T&T, as always, you’ve brightened my whole day by just being adorable as ever. Hope your garden isn’t suffering too badly over winter, we’re enjoying the fruits of summer full on now. Gardens are bursting, flowers are rioting and the sun is shining….you just gotta feel good about that!
I think it looks amazing! Great project and post 🙂
So nice to say, thanks a whole bunch. I’ve seen girls doing intricate stencilling on Pinterest but I’m afraid straight lines was enough of a challenge for moi 😀
I think you should be very proud! Your efforts are more than Pinterest-worthy! 🙂
Bowie says “Meow!” We missed you Boomdee!
I’ve tried to sneak around here and there, but I’m afraid I just couldn’t manage too much for a bit. The sun is shining thru though and I missed you too. Thanks for being here Herman and Mr Bowie, means a lot to me. Cheers
Good to see you back. I was about to send out a search party.
Oh my, well, life sure does happen and sometimes I’m not the best at it. Thank you so much for that Steven and for saying hello too! Hope all is well in your corner of the world.
Great project – came out so beautiful!
Thanks Kat, I might try it again but will use what I know so it goes along more smoothly, LOL Darn Pinterest anyways.
Too fun! I also painted a rug recently and am gonna post about it soon. I painted a 9×6 berber rug and yup! the rug sucked up a LOT of paint! Sheesh!! Glad the results came out great and was overall an inexpensive project like yours. Lovely work and so Boomdee!
OMgosh, 9 x 6 !!!!! Leilani, you are a rug goddess 😀 I can’t wait to see what you’ve done, you’ve got such great tastes. I remember the very first post I read of yours was your wall stencilling project, I laughed like mad and in the end it was so darn awesome. Thanks for your message and for being here too! xK
It turned out great! Love the color
Thanks Christina, that’s so nice to say. I might have to redo the Pink next year, it seems to be the least durable but hey, I used what I had on hand so thrifty to the max. I guess you’ll be doing a baby room soon? Stay cool this summer!
First of all…..I am way jealous that you have an Ikea close to you! So jealous! Now, onto that fabulous rug – – – WOW is it super duper adorable! Can you make one for me too? Nice job on the beautiful rug that I will steal off your front porch when you’re not looking! (not to mention those aqua Converse tennis shoes!) Great job, LOVE it!
LOL, I go to Ikea like once every 5 years because I get lost in there and it takes an hour to buy a $7 mat. I’m surprised there isn’t one near you, they seemed to be everywhere’s when we travel. Needless to say, you’re in a gorgeous green community with lot’s of room and your yard is fab, so I’d trade you…..easy breezy. Thanks for your nice message Val. Ring the bell if you come by to steal it, I throw in a hug with the rug 😀
What a deal! A hug for the rug….awesome! Sending you a virtual hug your way right now! {{{hug}}} The nearest Ikea is about 2 1/2 hours away, bummer. Too far for us.
Totally get it about the 1 hour trip to Ikea to pick up just one item. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten out of there in less than 3 or 4 hours! When you throw in the free tea (or coffee) it’s just like going down the rabbit hole into Wonderland…
Oh, definitely the ‘rabbit hole’ LOL! I think some moms go there for lunch and playtime. There’s always buckets of tired babies being pushed around while mom’s window shop. I feel so sad for them, they’d be so much happier playing at home. My brother did his whole kitchen with some of their new cabinetry and it looks really nice but I’m not sure I could spend hours there planning one.
I was wondering where you were. You’ve obviously been quite busy. That looks like quite a project and it’s definitely welcoming. You are correct. All the stores have the same boring stuff. What a wonderful idea. I’ve just been rearranging my house and had to reduce the amount of space the sewing room takes so I could make room for guests. I’m trying to decide what project is next. Way too many and my pinterest page has even more. You’ve given me more to think about now. I really love your mat. It’s so you. 🙂
hi you sweet thing! I’ve been having really important things going on, but felt bloggy today 😀 So nice of you to wonder though, your visits are like a warm hug, thanks so much Marlene. How nice to have a place for guests stay over! We’ve managed a blow up bed once, but it’s hardly welcoming. That darn Pinterest can be so tempting can’t it? So many clever crafters out there, I couldn’t possible do all the ones I’ve pinned, but they’re fun to think about.
I spent 5 nights on the airbed which is why there are major changes in the guest room. 🙂 I’m not so bloggy these days either. With warm weather, we all get out do do things that have been left undone all winter. We’ll catch up soon.
Genious and rather lovely to boot!
You are far to generous with the ‘Genius’ part, LOL. I think I said OMG or O dear about a hundred times. Once I got it out with the planters, I thought…..”Ok, that’s cheery enough”. So I’m glad I finished it anyways.