Tutorial: Make a Logo or Initial Rug with Duct Tape

I wanted to have a really cool rug for my Jamberry Nails booth at the Holiday Bazaars this year.  I looked at some pretty awesome ones at IKEA, but I didn't want to spend that much money right now.  While shopping at Wal-Mart, I came across a small area rug in solid black for just $19.97.  I popped it in my cart and my head started whirling with the possibilities for making it awesome.

I thought about bleach dying.  I thought about making a stencil and using fabric paint.  I thought about hand painting it.  I thought about splatter painting it.  In the end, I thought too long and ran out of time!  So, I got a roll of neon pink duct tape and my x-acto knife and went to work.

 I started by rolling the rug out and smoothing the wrinkles out as much as possible.

Next, I grabbed an Application Kit so that I could "eyeball" the J from the logo.  I also repossessed a stick of sidewalk chalk from my older kids :)

Next, I sketched the J with chalk.  You can see it wasn't centered or large enough the first time!  (Help from adorable baby eating goldfish crackers while you work is entirely optional.)

After I started laying down the duct tape, I realized that the curved edges were going to need some TLC.  Here's a short video of how I did them:

At spots where there was a severe curve, I cut the tape and started a new strip.

Once I was done, I left it in this sunny room so that the wrinkles would smooth out better.

I think that it turned out pretty good!  If I were doing a second one, I think that I would do straight strips and free-hand cut the letter with my X-acto knife, but I also think that would take more time and patience!

Resources:

Rug at Wal-Mart