Added to my short list of obsessions, after Cake, Smores and Tom Hanks, are our beloved dogs. They are often times a little evil, and have toots that smell like god knows what, but they are a part of our family and really make our house feel like a home. Which is precisely why I wanted to spruce up our almost done please don’t jinx it back patio with their likeliness!
We’ve got this awesome brick back step now off our back door (such an improvement from the super shady piece of plywood that we have been using for the past 6-8 months), and I was pumped to show it off.
First step was easy, I bought this plain, blank doormat.
Next, I drew a picture of one of my dogs. I chose Skipper, because he’s got a really cute silhouette. I like how he stands with his feet pointed out and his tail in the air.
I had him model for me, of course. Nice work, Skip!
Next, I transferred the drawing using tracing paper onto some tag-board, and then cut out a stencil from it. In order to make the transfer, I traced the original image on one side, then flipped it over and traced the reverse to add a layer of graphite, then flipped the image over a third time, placed the drawing over the desired area on my tag-board, and re-traced the original side. That creates a positive image of the transfer. A simple trick, but I remember when I found that out in high school (I was maybe a little late to the game) I was pretty amazed.
After cutting out my stencil with an X-Acto Knife, I placed my stencil on the area I wanted to spray paint. I picked a kind of off-left look, because I like asymmetry. Plus I didn’t want people standing on poor Skipper’s face all the time, he deserves better.
I blocked off the areas I didn’t want to get any overspray on (classy technique, using garbage bags!)…
…gave it a good spray…..
How come you didn’t use my picture, mommy? – Leo
Oh Leo, it’s because you’re too beautiful, it’s like staring into the sun.
And voila! Doormat!
I might still make one in the future that has both doggies, but I liked keeping it simple for now and not overwhelming the patio decor too much. Plus, I didn’t want to seem like the dog-equivalent of a crazy cat lady.
What would you put on your dream doormat? Dogs? Or am I the only one?
This is sooo cute – and teal goes very well with natural goldish colors! Hope Leo forgave you
Thank you! Leo is our resident diva, but he got over it. We’ve got his picture framed elsewhere in the house, so he gets adequate representation