DIY Rope Welcome Mat #PAW2014

DIY Rope Welcome Mat



Make Your Own Welcome Mat

I will get to the instructions to make your own Rope Welcome Mat but first I want to introduce you to a store called Tractor Supply Company.

Tractor Supply Pet Appreciation Week Logo

If you have never been to a Tractor Supply Company store you are missing out! And that is coming from a city girl. Tractor Supply is so much more than farm supplies and tractor equipment it is full of pet supplies! Your favorite pet brands are carried by Tractor Supply Company. I know what you are thinking because I thought the same thing before I moved to the mountains and they opened a new location in the next town over in Fall of last year. Why would I go into the store in the first place? If for no other reason because at TSC they are our neighbors. At TSC they care about what happens in my community and do what they can to help make our community a better place not only for the people that live here but for that animals too. On a regular basis your local TSC will invite the shelters and rescues in your community to come and hold adoption days at the store. It might not get any pets adopted that day but it brings awareness to the situation and helps raise much needed funds and food 😉 for the animals. They also do vaccination clinics and bring in farm animals experts to share information with the community. They are big into helping out the local 4-H club so that the children in the community have the supplies and support they need in order to become successful. In fact Tractor Supply Company celebrates you and your pets every year during their annual Pet Appreciation Week which is taking place this year between September 17th – 21st with a special in store event on the 20th. Leashed pets welcome. Visit your local store to enter the raffle they are offering for some great prizes from event sponsors including a TSC Gift Card, Rebate on your next vet visit, and other goodies!

And that bring us to my post for today. Tractor Supply asked us to come up with a project to help our local shelter that uses supplies found at Tractor Supply. Armed with a spending budget of $25 I thought long and hard about what I could do that might make a dent of difference at our local shelter. I thought about the shelter the physical space, the location, the layout and one thing stuck out in my mind. There is absolutely nothing inviting about it. When you think stereotypical animal shelter this is the shelter that pops into your mind. It is tucked away far off the main road behind the Fairgrounds in a tiny little building. The staff does what they can to help the animals in their care but their resources are few and far between and the shelter is regularly bursting at the seems overcrowded.

What would $25 do when everything about the shelter needs help?

I could help the shelter become more inviting more welcoming that way if on the off chance someone finds their way to the shelter to adopt an animal and not dump one – yes I see the issue they can find it to get rid of an animal but not to adopt one into the family. My first idea was to paint giant yellow paw prints from the main road all the way to the shelter – leading people back there. I would need county permission to paint the roads and since the fair grounds is being used for the county fair at the moment I didn’t see that being approved quick enough. So my next thought was I needed to do something that would welcome people to the shelter once they got there.

I would make a Welcome Mat! Something colorful and fun. So I ran out to our local Tractor Supply and picked up some rope. For purposes of this tutorial I picked up the brightest color rope I could find knowing that the wider rope that should be used for this project was already being used in a project for this campaign. Not that it I mind the colors I got to use hot pink and purple are very bright and exciting colors but in truth the rope really isn’t thick enough for an industrial welcome mat which is what they need at the shelter. Even if the majority of in and out are the dog catchers going out on an call or bringing in strays and runaways.

DIY Rope Welcome Mat



Materials Needed for your Rope Welcome Mat

Braided Poly Rope – the thicker it is the better it is for this project
Glue Gun – you will need a lot of glue for this project!
Duck Tape and or caulking

To get started you will want to clean a large workspace. I used an outdoor table so that the glue would be able to dry in the sun but you could do this project inside if you have a large enough table. Cover the table with plastic or paper so that the hot glue doesn’t get stuck to your table. (I might have missed that step. Good thing I was using a glass table so it was easy to pull up). Once your table is covered and clean unravel a large portion of the rope. You could go with all one color or you could use multiple colors of rope.

Step by Step Guide Make Your Own Rope Mat

Start coiling the rope as tight as you can make it around itself. To start you should be able to coil about 4 inches of rope before you need to start gluing it. Place the glue between the coils and push together gently. At this point you can switch colors or continue on with the same color. If you are using multiple colors you will want to match end to end old color to new color.

As your welcome mat gets bigger and bigger you will find that you need to glue more often as for whatever reason it seems to want to unravel more often. This is actually why I had to stop last night and didn’t get to add another round of coils. I needed it to dry before I could move onto the next row. Burning my fingers with hot glue are not a part of the project. You do not have to worry f the back isn’t pretty. As you can see in my pictures the back is full of strings of glue and areas where the glue came out too fast. Don’t worry that is the back and you will be covering ti with duck tape. Once you have made your mat as big as you want it to be you have two options. You need to decide how high traffic the area is that you will be placing your welcome mat.

If your welcome mat is for indoors at your front door which is only used by visitors you can get away with placing duck tape across the back of the mat and you will have a secure enough mat. If on the other hand the area is very high traffic once you are done with the duck tape on the back and have cut off the edges you will want to flip the mat over and on the top of the mat follow the coils with a caulking gun. The caulk will help keep your mat together and make it more durable an tough for high traffic areas.



Welcome Mat - DIY Rope Welcome Mat #PAW2014

Be careful your dogs might think this is a new special mat for them!



This post is sponsored by Tractor Supply Company and the Pet Blogger Network. I am being compensated for helping spread the word about Tractor Supply Company, but Two Little Cavaliers only shares information we feel is relevant to our readers. Tractor Supply Company. is not responsible for the content of this article.

Amazon Native Ads – Pet Supplies

Comments

  1. ahhh. Hello to the girls. They make quite the models. Loving the rug craft. I love your ideas for bringing awareness to the shelter. (You should pursue the paw thing…very cute idea).
    Shelley Zurek recently posted..Top 10 Bacon VideosMy Profile

  2. Your girls are so adorable! Love this idea and the shelters in our area (as any area) are always looking for supplies like this. With winter coming it won’t be a lot of them but it will help get them off the floor a little bit and inexpensively. Thanks!
    Brandy M. recently posted..How to Organize a Pantry Like an ExpertMy Profile

  3. Thanks for this great idea. I think these would make great handmade Christmas gifts!
    Krista recently posted..Edible Plant Cell – Home Schooling Fun!My Profile

  4. Cute puppy and pretty mat!

  5. Cute idea! I was hoping someone would do a project with that rope. I walked around with it for a while when I was trying to decide on my project.
    Beth | Daily Dog Tag recently posted..DIY Treat Dispenser #PAW2014My Profile

  6. What a great idea! I think I have had more fun with this campaign than any other 🙂

  7. This is such an adorable and easy to make craft! LOVE IT!! And those little ones are too cute – such a great pair for all the photo shoots. – Katy

  8. That is a really great idea! Simple and functional is always on my favorite D.I.Y. projects!
    M. K. Clinton recently posted..Purina ONE PERKSMy Profile

  9. I love the pink and purple together. It will be a very lovely welcome indeed. My Tractor Supply is about 6 hours away and that makes me sad. It’s such a great store.
    Patty recently posted..Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy by Karen Abbott – Blog Tour and Book ReviewMy Profile

  10. That looks like a fun craft!
    katherine recently posted..Visiting the Lumberjack Feud #lumberjackfeudMy Profile

  11. Look at those adorable little faces! I think they definitely approve of your project to liven up your local shelter 🙂 And what a fantastic idea it is! This gives me some ideas for our local animal shelter here in Rockford.
    Kayla @ TheEclecticElement recently posted..Spice Up Your Life with #TexasPete Hot Sauces (& Help Feed America)My Profile

  12. Robin (Masshole Mommy) says

    That is such a cute idea. I love how easy it is to make.

  13. This would be great for my classroom. I had no idea that rope came in those beautiful colors!
    Dede recently posted..Fashion Friday: Boots + Scarf = $32.95 shippedMy Profile

  14. I love this idea. It also seems like a simple DIY project that my kids could help with. Beautiful dogs too!
    MommaDJane recently posted..Document & Share Life Through Photos with Seahorse AppMy Profile

  15. I have never seen a craft with a rug made from these materials. This is super cute and I bet my teen daughter would like it.
    Kelly Hutchinson recently posted..Get Kids Outside: Throwing A Fit Made Fun PartyMy Profile

  16. What a fun project! It turned out so cute.
    Paula recently posted..Why we love the soft, huggable Mooshka dollsMy Profile

  17. That is a cute idea and it turned out great! Love the colors and the dogs appear to like it too!
    Mama to 5 BLessings recently posted..How to Make Busy Bags To Keep Your Little One BusyMy Profile

  18. This is such a great project for the animal shelter. Ours could definitely use some work to make it more homey.

  19. That looks and sounds awesome… I love the colors you chose and your pups are so cute… Will have to try to create that mat, myself

  20. This is so cute! I would totally use this for my kids rooms too!
    Aimee Smith recently posted..Secrets of a Successful Family Game NightMy Profile

  21. What a cute DIY! I bet my Ellie Bug would steal the mat to!

  22. This would be oodles of fun to make. I can’t wait to try it myself and pick out some fun colors.
    Liz Mays recently posted..Grilled Ribeyes with Beer & Brown Sugar MarinadeMy Profile

  23. How cute! I don’t have dogs, but if I did, I would for sure make this darling little rug.
    Deborah A. recently posted..Teaching Good Communication SkillsMy Profile

  24. What a great project. That mat is so cute!
    Dawn recently posted..3 Ingredient Sriracha Hummus RecipeMy Profile

  25. The mat is cool, but the pooches are awesome. They are so cute!
    Ben @ Cheap is the New Classy recently posted..Win Tix To See Paula Deen Live! Charlotte, NC: 9/24 {US Ends 9/18} #ad #PaulaDeenLIVE #PaulaDeenNetworkMy Profile

  26. I love this project. That mat looks really cool, and it seems fairly straightforward to make, too.
    Jennifer recently posted..My Son Smells Better Than Yours #Combos4SuccessMy Profile

  27. I think Pet Appreciation Week is an awesome idea. Nothing in this world will love you and accept you like your pets.

  28. Pet Appreciation Week is such a great idea. Pets bring such joy to our lives, they deserve special recognition.
    Marina recently posted..An American in France: Traveling DayMy Profile

  29. Someone sure did claim that mat as their own, LOL!
    Emma recently posted..My First Nose Work TrialMy Profile

  30. These would make great homemade Xmas gifts!! I really love the colors!

  31. This is a great craft! and I think your girl there totally took it for herself! 😉

  32. Your pup sure does look comfortable and I like the colors. I have a 5 year old who would love that in her room.

  33. How pretty! I am not crafty at all, but this looks something that I could even do!
    Mary Larsen recently posted..Why Shopping For A Home Is A Lot Like DatingMy Profile

  34. That is a great idea for a mat! Easy too. Adorable doggies you have!

  35. That is brilliant and darling!
    Rebekah recently posted..Black & White SundayMy Profile

  36. Such a cool idea! I think I actually put some of that very same rope into my cart, but couldn’t think of anything to do with it in the end. It could totally be used as a feeding mat too. Very creative!
    Ann Staub recently posted..The Rat That Started It All on National Pet Memorial DayMy Profile

  37. What a fab idea!!
    Lauranne recently posted..Holding my boys a little closer tonight!My Profile

  38. This is such a super cute idea. I love how it turned out. Your puppies are just too cute!
    Tiffany (Fabulous Mom Blog) recently posted..Mom’s Night Out DVD GiveawayMy Profile

  39. How adorable! I bet this is a craft that my toddler could help me with. Pinning it for later.
    candice recently posted..Crock-Pot® Cuisine Meal Ingredient Kits // Making Dinner Easy and EffortlessMy Profile

  40. What a cute mat! I love the spiral look, and it seems really simple to make. Great!
    Debi – Travel Blogger recently posted..Packing and Planning Checklists for TravelingMy Profile

  41. How cute is this?! I love the colors! It is so bright and cheerful and I know it will add a happy bright spot to the shelter. That’s if your girls can give it up! You may have to make them one too!
    Diane Holland recently posted..DIY Gourmet Pet Gift Basket #Paw2014My Profile

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