DIY Holiday Doormat

You will need:

• DecoArt Americana Multi-Surface Paint (We used Black Tie, Cotton Ball, Red Barn, and Green Beret)
• DecoArt Extreme Sheen (We used Ruby for Rudolph’s nose)
• Paintbrushes
• Doormat
• Optional: stencil or cardstock to create a stencil

Step 1: Choose your design.

This might be the hardest step. Do you want to stick with something classic? Or maybe a witty quote? We're going to start out with a classic "Merry Christmas" doormat!

Step 2: Create your stencil. 

This step is optional. In fact, we freehanded the whole “let it snow” mat which you can see at the end of this post.

For the other doormats, I created the patterns on Illustrator and uploaded them into the Cricut Design Space to cut out on cardstock. If you don't have a Cricut or Silhouette, you can print your design on cardstock and then use a utility knife to cut out the design. 

Step 3: Paint 

We started with all of our stencil work. Tape won’t stick to the mat when you place your stencil, so you will need to keep it in place with your hand. Then we moved onto the words. As you can see in the photo below, we had some trouble with our stencils for the words. Rather than trying to recut the stencil, we just lined one letter at a time with paint and then went back and thickened the lines.

While stenciling (and painting) your mat, the quickest way to get full coverage is to dab your mat using your paintbrush. Keep your paintbrush straight up and down for the straightest lines. If you use this method, one coat should be enough coverage! 

Side note: I’d highly recommend Americana multi-surface paints for this project over another acrylic paint. It gives great coverage and they are more durable than the standard acrylic version. With something that’s going to be touched constantly, durability is key!

Tips for freehanding 

If you’re going to freehand a part (or all) of your design, you can first mock it up using chalk on a piece of paper to get a feel for the spacing. Then you can line your paper up with your doormat and try to mimic the spacing using a light brush stroke. 

When freehanding, I recommend painting as you normally would (except much lighter pressure), rather than using the dabbing method to start with. This will result in a much lighter outline so that you possibly have the chance to tweak it before applying the full coverage.

Once you feel good about your design, then you can go back and trace over your design using the dabbing method. 

There you have it! A quick and easy Christmas DIY to get you into the holiday spirit (even when it feels like there is no time)! So tell me, what design are you going to use on your doormat?