Hand Painted Welcome Doormat
Spring is here and I am so happy! One of the easiest ways to refresh your home is to start with the your front door. A simple yet inviting doormat is a small way to make a big impact!
This design is hand lettered by yours truly. You can grab the design here in my Etsy shop, and of course feel free to follow my tutorial below with your own design!
You’ll Need:
Blank coir doormat (I used this one from Target!)
Craft cutting machine (I have this one!)
12” x 24” machine mat (like this one from Cricut)
Black paint (preferably outdoor quality, but I used Craftsmart acrylic since we have a covered porch)
An medium-large craft paintbrush
Step One: Design
I started by hand lettering my design in the Procreate app on my iPad Pro. (For tips on iPad Lettering & designing on the iPad, check out this blog post and for even more detailed info, I have a 20+ page manual and workbook in my Etsy shop!)
Sometimes I’ll take a photo of the actual object I’ll be designing for, and add a layer on top of the photo in Procreate to letter on. Since this project is a simple rectangle, I just turned my iPad horizontal and decided to use the standard canvas as my template. I hand lettered the word “Welcome” using my favorite customized BrittanyLettering brush - you can grab it here. It’s smooth as butter and transfers beautifully to your Cricut and Silhouette software!
Step Two: Send It
My favorite way to send designs is to save them as PNG files and send them to my computer (make sure your background layer in Procreate is unselected so that it is transparent! If you leave it checked you’ll have a white background and will need to manually erase in Cricut Design Space. See my iPad lettering blog post for more details on this).
The iPad allows you to airdrop directly to a Mac computer without having to jump through hoops. I love how simple it is.
Step Three: Cut
Upload your new design to Cricut Design Space. If you’re using my design, it’s saved as an SVG file so you won’t have to remove any background. If you’re using your own design, you’ll need to upload it and you might need to manually remove the background.
Choose “Simple” for high contrast photos like hand lettering. Then select and “erase” the white spots to create a vector (transparent) image. You’ll know it’s transparent when you have a checkered blue and white background.
Once you’ve successfully removed the background, save & upload it to your Canvas.
Resize the image in your Canvas. You won’t be able to cut larger than 23.5” on a 24” mat. I resized mine to be right at 18” wide. This made the design about 10.5” tall.
You can resize by clicking the little lock icon at the bottom left of your design. Then use the arrows at the bottom right to drag your design to the size you want. I usually lock it again once it’s all set.
Once you’ve measured your mat and sized your design accordingly, click “Make It” in the top right corner!
You’ll be prompted to make sure you’re using a 24” mat instead of the standard 12” x 12”. Select “Ok” & “Continue”.
Measure and load your vinyl onto your 24” cutting mat. For this project I prefer using regular adhesive vinyl, NOT permanent adhesive. You’ll be messing with it a bunch to get it just right, so I’ve found that using an old roll of whatever color you have extra of will work just fine!
Once you’re all set your little C button will flash on your Cricut and you can begin cutting. Enjoy watching your Cricut work her little magic!
Step Four: Weed
Use the weeding tool to remove only the vinyl letters, leaving the background. We will be using the large background space as a painting template on the doormat.
Here you can choose to apply transfer tape and move it all together to your doormat, or you can choose to wing it and basically just peel and stick it on your own. I will be honest and say that the transfer tape is the most solid way that works for me! But you can choose what you feel most comfortable with.
Place the vinyl centered on the doormat. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect, the vinyl is very forgiving! Keep adjusting until it looks right to you. Peel away the transfer tape to reveal your stencil on the doormat. Now it’s time to paint!
Step Five: Paint!
Use your paintbrush to gently dab the paint into the letters. I’ve found that you’ll have the best luck simply dabbing the paint straight down into the bristles of the doormat rather than using a brushing motion.
Once you’ve got it all painted, gently peel away your vinyl template to reveal your design!
Touch up any spots that need a little more paint.
And you’re done! Three cheers for the cutest welcome doormat on the street!
If you try this DIY I’d love for you to share a picture over social media using the hashtag #brittanylettering! For even more ideas, follow @brittanylettering , @officialcricut, @myvinyldirect and @expressionsvinyl over on Instagram!
Be sure to head over to the Etsy shop to find even more designs for your fun spring projects!
Happy lettering & crafting!
XO Brittany