Hello Sweetie! DIY: Stencil a Welcome Mat!

Hello Sweetie Welcome Mat!

This is absolutely a Doctor Who inspired craft.

It's inspiration comes from River Song and her infamous line "hello sweetie"

It just had to be a door mat!

Step 1: Supplies

You will need:

Carpet Door Mat or tightly woven rug

Freezer paper

Iron

Hobby knife

pencil

paint and brush

If you are thrilled with making one just like this, you can get the Hello Sweetie image I designed from my blog Doodlecraft

Just right click to save off and print.

Step 2: Cutting Your Stencil

Cut a piece of freezer paper to fit the size of your image or desired stencil size.

Place it shiny side down on top of the printout. Freezer paper is magical. One side of the paper is shiny and the other is matte. The shiny side will iron on to fabric and create a perfect seal. It is perfection for stenciling. It is found in the "plastic wrap and bags" section of the store.

Use a pencil to trace it onto the freezer paper.

Use an x-acto knife to cut the words out.

You'll need to keep the negative space, that is the outside of the words you just cut.

including the pieces that fit inside the e's, s, l's, h...

Step 3: Iron Stencil in Place

Next...set the freezer paper on top of the mat.
And CAREFULLY iron it on.

Okay, I was not careful...and I melted part of the mat.

Learn from me and use a lower heat setting.

Iron on the little inside pieces too!

Depending on the complexity of your design the ironing can be tedious, but so worth it.

Step 4: Paint!

Then take some white paint...

and a stipple brush works the best for stencils, but even spray fabric paint would work here.
It uses a lot of paint!

The carpet just soaks it up!

Step 5: Peel Off the Freezer Paper

Once it's completely painted...but not dry,
Peel off the freezer paper.

And get the little pieces inside the letters...

Then let it dry completely.

Step 6: Enjoy!

Perfect for wiping shoes on!
Hello Sweetie!

If you haven't tried freezer paper stenciling, I hope you are inspired to try it!

I've done it on shirts with perfect success!

Check out my blog Doodlecraft for more daily awesomeness!

And don't forget to vote for me in the Rugs contest too! ;)

I'll be your best friend!