Pattern

As if painting a magnet board and making a piece of art wasn’t enough, I decided this was the perfect weekend to start mission rug redo. I bought a jute rug from a local thrift store recently and decided this would be the perfect chance to paint a rug. Martha Stewart did a segment on painting stripes on a sisal rug, so I used that as a starting point.

First, I created a template to use as a guide for my design. Starting in the dead center of the rug, I used painters tape to mask off a chevron design, placing my template down and taping around it. I also made a second template to use as a spacing guide. After I had my design completely taped off, I used the handle end of a screwdriver to rub the edge of the tape down.

I sent Ben off to the hardware store to get a quart of white oil based paint. He came back with this:

I started by ‘pouncing’ along the taped lines, just like stencling, to prevent the paint from seeping under the tape. Then Ev started crying, so I took a break to feed him. I let my first area of paint dry and peeled back part of the tape to check my lines.

Happily, the paint didn’t bleed under! So, I painted, and painted, and painted.

Then, I ran out of paint, so I bought a gallon. I returned home, full gallon in hand and painted some more. This was by no means a speedy process. It took about 4 hours to get everything painted. I let everything dry for 24 hours before removing the tape. Definitely do this outside, as the dry paint flakes off the tape, making one big mess.

I like the bold pattern. I think it’s just what this room needed.

In all honesty, I love the look of the painted rug, but not the feel. The paint does dry crunchy, BUT, a jute rug is never squishy and cushy, so it’s not that different than the unpainted rug. This would be much better in an outdoor setting, like a doormat or ourdoor living area. Until I can find a plush rug I can afford, this will stay in the boys’ room. I do think it will make an appearance outside at a later date.