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How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat

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We are back today with a fun project to spruce up your home for Spring! This has to be one of our favorite projects in awhile, we had lots of fun creating the Painted Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat!

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

You can certainly paint your Outdoor Mat any color, but since we are celebrating Rainbow Week, we decided to use a Rainbow of Colors! There is however, a little story behind this finished project…last year during Rainbow Week, I fell in love with the Wooden Floor Mat and then promptly ran out of time to give it a try. Fast forward to a few weeks ago when we were deciding what to share with you for Rainbow Week and I knew we just had to give the Floor Mat a try.

So we headed to The Home Depot, where we priced out the supplies…$70…yikes! We weren’t really planning on paying that much, and besides we thought it was a bit much for a Floor Mat. So we proceeded to do what we love…start thinking outside the box and hunt around the store.

And sure enough, we happened upon a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat and it was only $8…perfect!

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

But how would we paint it?

What kind of paint would work?

And what should we seal it with?

So we headed to the paint department, where we asked the helpful employee. At first he thought it was rather strange, why would we want to paint it, but I showed him a picture of the Wooden Floor Mat, and he quickly understood.

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

Here’s what we came up with…

Supplies to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat

  • Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat – available at The Home Depot
  • Paint – we used Acrylic Paint, it comes 24 jars in a box from Walmart in the craft department – these were much cheaper than buying sample bottles or quarts of paint, but if you are doing less colors you will need to buy larger bottles
  • Sealer – Rust-Oleum Paint Plus Ultra Cover Clear – available in the paint section at The Home Depot
  • Brushes – small foam brushes work perfectly – available at Walmart or craft stores

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

Now it was time to figure out how to select the colors. Doug, being the brilliant man he is, came up with a template. It did take some time, several hours in fact, but when it came time to paint, it was a breeze.

If you are interested, you can download the PDF for the Template.

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

Then each of the jars of paint were numbered. I told Doug, he was a little OCD with it, but honestly, it was perfect!

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

Then we just started painting, the foam brushes worked perfectly. It took a couple evenings to paint, but we just worked on it while we were watching TV. We wrapped the brushes in foil to keep the paint from drying and numbered them also so we didn’t get any of the colors mixed up.

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

We gave it 2 coats of paint and let it set for a couple days to dry completely.

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

Then a coat of the sealer.

How to Paint a Recycled Rubber Outdoor Mat :: Instructions on HoosierHomemade.com

Now we have a bright Rainbow Door Mat to welcome our guests! I think it will look great with the Rainbow Balloon Wreath hanging on the door. Now we just have to get rid of the foot of snow we have and some warmer temperatures!

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22 Comments

    1. Hi Susan, after moving, we haven’t used it.
      -Liz

  1. Hi! I’m curious how this held up, and if the sealer attracted extra dust, or was a good choice? So thankful that I’m not the first to wonder about this. I have a mat I love and a lot of acrylic craft paints.

    1. Douglas Latham says:

      Hi Cindy, the mat has held up extremely well. I would definitely use the sealant, it didn’t attract excess dust and I’m convinced that it increased the durability of the paint.

  2. I looking at painting my floor mats into car. Using this method will it last and not chip?
    Kindest regardsori

  3. I want to paint black car floor mats. Can you recommend a paint and would I need a primer and sealer to complete this project?
    Looking forward to hearing from you
    Lori

    1. Madeline from HoosierHomemade says:

      Hi Lori-
      I think the process should be pretty similar to the outdoor mat. I would make sure to do a few coats of sealer since they will get a lot of wear and tear!

  4. WOW looks amazing. Amazing idea. Am going to do this for sure.

  5. I’ve been searching for a way to paint on some flexible rubber. This looks awesome!
    How has the durability of the paint and clear coat held up?
    Thank you SO much!

    1. Hi Debbie, We have the mat outside, and while it has faded a bit, it’s still fine. Just be sure to add the coat of sealer to it.
      ~Liz

  6. from this site i’ve learn to do alot of things like painting a doormat,mine had birdhouses,sunflowers,stars and some other fun things on it.i’m going to put it my garage sale. how much do you ladys think i can sell it for? today i made a solar light from a mason jar. i have made birdhouses from coffee cans. i really love this site.

  7. I bought all my supplies I can’t wait!!!! I plan on doing this with my Girls as an Art Project. They are so excited. Thanks!!!

  8. How absolutely, positively creative. It’s really cute!!

  9. This is great! I can see painting this as a checker board for easy outside play.

    1. Thanks so much Lesa! That is a great idea…maybe one out on the deck to play during the summer.

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