Monday, February 4, 2013

Painting a Rug

I am always one of the last to get on any decorating trend. I have been thinking about this one for a while and finally got on board after looking for a rug but not being able to find one. I needed a rug for the kitchen to catch water drips in front of the sink and those coming off of dishes going into the dishwasher.

stenciled rug 1

I started by drawing the shape that I wanted and then cut it out of copy paper.

rug stencil 1

Next, I traced this shape onto a file folder so that it would be stiff and used a an exacto knife to cut it out. Notice that I left a connector strip in the middle.

rug stencil 2

I decided to start in the center of the rug.

rug stencil 3

I didn’t even tape down the stencil. I just held it down with one hand and used a 3” foam roller to apply paint.

rug stencil 4

I went back and filled in the centers with an artist brush and quickly had a full row.

rug stencil 5

I then added a row on top and bottom.

rug stencil 6

Finally I went around the border with the foam roller.

stenciled rug 3

Pretty nice transformation for an inexpensive rug from Target and it eliminates a lot of water spots on the floor.

stenciled rug 2

I’ll be linking to Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch and to Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style.

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16 comments:

Unknown said...

Very nice! I have one of those rugs from Target too that I've been wanting to stencil. Now . . . to find the time. Thanks for sharing, Patti@OldThingsNew
http://patricia-krank.blogspot.com/

Liz @ Quirky Vistas said...

Okay, that's just too darn cool! Guess what, you are not the last to this trend. You beat me too it! I never get on board with anything until it's passé. I wish I had the guts to paint a rug. Fear of messing it up stops me. I'm a big wimp about such things.
Liz @ Quirky Vistas

Heather@http://southernabbey.com said...

That looks awesome! I have been looking for a kitchen rug and can't find what I want. Perhaps this is the answer...

Judy Biggerstaff said...

What a great idea to paint the mat. You did a perfect job.

Sandy said...

I have a large cream rug under my dining room table. No matter how many times I've cleaned it it's starting to show stains... this is a wonderful Idea and if I could find a space to lay and paint it I'm going to try this... let me go back to see what paint you used...
Beautiful work.
thanks for this tip
Sandy

Brooke said...

Wow! This looks amazing! I'm so intimidated with painting something like this, but you made it seem fairly easy, and it turned out so well. Thanks for the great tutorial! Have a wonderful day!

Wild Oak Designs said...

Wow, you are talented to create your own stencil! And the rug is simply amazing! What a great job.
Nancy
http://wildoakdesigns.blogpspot.com

Sonya@Beyond the Screen Door said...

This is a great idea! You're a step ahead of me. I haven't tried painting a rug yet but I've wanted to. You've inspired me! Love the way your rug turned out. You did a great job!

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

Great job!

Anonymous said...

Wonderful results! Little Bit from www.DecorateWithaLittleBit.com

Anonymous said...

Wonderful results! Little Bit from www.DecorateWithaLittleBit.com

Unknown said...

Just found you through Savvy Southern Style. This is great and you are not the last to jump on the band wagon because I decided last week I needed to do this, but I haven't even bought a rug yet!! Thanks for the inspiration and making it seem so easy.

Unknown said...

Quick question: did you just use plain latex painted with nothing added and not watered down? Thanks,
Julie

Pat@Life At Lydias House said...

I did use latex paint straight out of the can! It was a Valspar from Lowe's in a custom color and it happened to be semi-gloss. It has held up very well.

Unknown said...

Sweet - it's gorgeous!! I'd love to do something like that. Problem is, our rug shows water stains (our water softener is broken, so all we have is hard water right now). It always makes our kitchen rugs look dirty. So frustrating.

Jeannie Marie said...

Great step by step pictures! It looks great!