How to Make an Entrance Mat

The entrance of your home is the first thing people will see when they visit. Instead of having a mat that looks like everyone else’s, you can use your DIY skills to make your own. You need a good entrance mat anyway to keep fall leaves and snow from coming into your home along with your visitors, so why not have one that really shows other people who you are?

Stenciled Doormat

Want to completely customize your own message or doormat design? It's petty easy to do. Start with a plain mat with nothing on it. You can easily find one at just about any big box or home improvement store. Next, get a sheet of poster board so you can make your own stencil for the mat. Place the poster board on top of the mat and cut the excess poster board so that it's no bigger than the mat itself.

Take a pencil and draw your own design if you're artistic. If you're not, print out a design on plain white paper and glue it to the poster board. Place the design on the poster board exactly where you want it to appear on your mat. Once you're certain the design looks the way you want it to look, go over your pencil marks with a black marker or felt tip pen. With scissors, cut out all the marked areas. When the design is cut out of the poster board, place the poster board right on top of your mat.

Take the mat and the poster board outside and spray-paint it with the color you want to put the design on the mat. Play around with the design by using multiple paint colors. Let it dry for 24 hours, and start using your mat.

Paint Your Own

If you're feeling especially artistic, you can always paint right on your blank coir mat. Get acrylic paint and small paint brushes, and freehand a design right on the mat. Work carefully so you don't end up with more paint on your clothes than on your mat.

Have More Fun with Spray Paint

You don't have to use a plain coir mat to make your own custom door mat. Inexpensive rubber doormats are widely available as well. The problem is, they're mostly available in plain black. Choose a vivid, bright color of spray paint to cover your rubber mat and give it a completely fresh, fun look. This is a super simple way to make a custom doormat.

Coiled Rope Mat

Get some rope and a hot glue gun, and you can make your own DIY doormat from scratch. Starting with one end of the rope, begin to coil the rope to create a flat, round disc. Use the glue gun to keep the rope in a coiled position. Work slowly and methodically to make flat coils in multiple sizes and glue the edges of the coils together to make a mat in the size you want. You'll end up with a fun, completely unique design.

DIY Door Mat

Make an entrance mat for your home that tells the world who you are, and make your home feel as welcoming as you want it to be. Get creative and give your home an entrance that’s practical and pretty.