Wooden Doormat – Quick Make
If you’re looking for something a bit different for a doormat, how about a wooden one?
If you’re looking for something a bit different for a doormat, how about a wooden one?
The deep spaces in this mat give grip for footwear and somewhere for mud to drop in, you can then lift it and sweep the dried mud away easily. Use 50 x 25mm prepared teak (Tectonia grandis) or iroko (Milicia excels) for their toughness in outdoor conditions. They are slightly waxy feeling woods, but be careful of the wood dust as it can be an irritant.
1. Cut enough pieces to length; six to eight slats are needed to make the doormat wide enough and the length needs to be between 520–600mm
2. Improve the look of the ends by chamfering them with a block plane at a roughly 45° angle. Sand the long sharp edges with a sanding block to avoid nasty splinters
3. At about 90mm in from each end make a mark and use a trysquare to draw a line right across all of the pieces. Now mark the centre of each face on the pencil line, so you can drill in the middle each time
4. Drill through each slat with a drill slightly larger than the rope size. Use a piece of sacrificial board underneath to protect your bench
5. Use natural fibre rope, as it knots easily without coming undone and it looks more in keeping with the wood. Tape the end to keep it small enough to feed through the holes
6. Make a tight knot at the outside edge and knot between each slat, working at both ends each time. Finish off with a tight knot when you get to the other end. Now you can give your old doormat the boot!
