How To Stencil a Rug on a Floor
Looking to add color and style to a room in your home without breaking the bank? Have you ever thought about painting a rug on a floor?
Painting a rug on your floor is a simple, yet effective way to instantly elevate the look of any room without splurging on a brand new rug.
Not only is painting a rug on the a floor incredibly affordable, it’s also surprisingly quick and easy to do. With a few low-cost materials and a bit of creative freedom, you can transform your floor into a work of art.
I painted this rug on the mudroom floor in my previous house about 25 years ago. I called it my antique rug after about 15 years as it got a little worn.
I liked the way the painted rug looked in the room so much, that when it was time to refinish the hardwood floor in the room, I painted another more colorful rug in it’s place.
Why Paint a Rug a Floor ?
The room I painted the rug in was a mudroom where most friends coming to visit and family came and went through this space. There were three exit doors in the room and an area rug would have been a tripping hazard with people, little kids and pets in and out all the time. So instead of doing without rug to provide color and interest to the floor, I decided painting rug would be a good alternative.
After painting it, many people have actually wiped their feet on it, myself included. It is always a topic of converstaion.
The painted rug, did look real, even though there were no shadows painted on as you would see in a trompe l’oeil painting.
To paint the rug on my floor, I used a stencil I made for a floor painting project in a decorating book I wrote back in the 1990’s called, Instant Decorating.
You can also Paint and Stencil an Entire Concrete Porch or Patio to add color to it.
The Best Time to Paint a Rug on a Wood Floor
The best time to paint a rug on a floor is when the hardwood or flooring hasn’t been sealed or when you are having a floor refinished.
When we first moved into this house, the hardwood floor on the first floor of the house was laid uneven and the hardwood manufacturer came to re-do it.
The workman came and sanded the floor during the day, leaving the floor bare until the next day when they were coming back to put the polyurethane on it. I stayed up all night and painted the rug so when they came the next morning, they could poly right over it, saving me a step.
Stencil Design Free Printable.pdf
The stencil design I used to paint this rug is simply a repeat of the same block of little squares with a circle of leaves, a flower, and the center of the flower.
I used 5 different colors of craft paint and latex eggshell for the base color(green).
I drew the bound edge on the shoand tassels free-hand with craft paint and a fine-tipped paint brush.
You can copy and enlarge the actual design and tassels (below) to paint a rug on your floor, as well as print out the instructions taken from the pages of my book, Instant Decorating for you to download and print out.
Here is the Free printable instructions .pdf
Here is the stencil design to print: Floor Rug Stencil Design
- Customize the size of the printout by getting in made larger or smaller at a print shop.
More DIY Flooring Ideas
- How To Paint a Rug on a Hardwood Floor
- How to Paint a Vinyl Floor + Linen Closet
- How to Paint Plywood Subfloor
- How I Whitewashed a Brick Floor for $14
- How to Paint and Stencil a Concrete Porch or Patio
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