I'll freely admit that I'm here primarily because someone lit a fire under me--in terms of a DIY with a deadline. In other words, the fine folks at QVC offered some fun DIY rug kits in exchange for feedback-- naturally, I had to give it a try!
Specifically, the product is the Vecco Design Your Own Rug Set. In the kit, everything is provided to make one 18"x30" rug for your home. Here's what the kit and all the little bits look like:
I'm totally a sucker for nice packaging, so I was pretty happy with how the rug and the supplies were displayed upon opening the box. It's nice to have a DIY project where you don't have to go and gather your supplies (because mine tend to be in a disastrous and disorganized state the majority of the time) and everything is already set up for success.
The kit I used is called "Geometric" and it came with lovely pea green and sky blue paints for the rug. Truthfully, the hardest part of the project was designing how I'd make it my own. In true Tristin style, I ditched the included stencils and made my own monogram template with Contact paper.
Surprisingly, it went pretty well, and once I got over my painting anxiety, I was pleased with the results.
My westie just couldn't resist photobombing--and can I blame him? He looks especially dapper with his fancy short haircut (which for the record costs way more than my own haircuts).
All in all, I was happy with the project! It was definitely different than anything I've done before, but it's not rocket science so almost anyone could be successful. There were a lot of stencils included, but I really had a hard time finding anything that felt "right", which is why I took the slightly more complicated road of making my own stencil. Is that surprising? I try to customize everything--even rugs that come with tools for customizing, lol.
One thing I'll point out is that the paint colors can be quite deceiving--I actually made two rugs and when the spray paints dried they were both significantly lighter than the color of the initial application. Doing a second layer of paint is not recommended in the kit (though it's not advised against either) so perhaps a second layer of paint would be beneficial. Also, the paints tended to be drippy/runny at the beginning of application--once I'd sprayed for a few seconds it seemed to fan out as was intended (and yes, I shook the cans as the directions said to do). I'd recommend spraying a little paint onto your drop cloth until you get the good "fanning" action that's desired for optimal spraying.
All in all, the Vecco DIY Rug Kit was super fun to try! Wouldn't it make a cool gift for your DIY-lovin' friends and family? You realize that Christmas is around the corner...right?!
Oh, and guess what? I have like a million projects to share. Seriously, in my long hiatus, I've made a LOT of things. Come back soon... I'll have some new things to share!
-Tristin
P.S. The Vecco DIY Rug Kit will be featured on QVC on Wednesday night @ 7pm (8/28/13) on "You're Home with Jill". Tune in if you're interested!
About You’re Home with Jill: Watch You’re Home with Jill Wednesday’s at 7:00pm ET. Hosted by Jill Bauer, an active working mom with a keen eye for design, she’s been serving up simple solutions for a busy lifestyle on You’re Home with Jill since 2000. Inspired by simplicity, Jill shares creative decorating ideas, entertaining inspiration, delicious dishes from the kitchen and more!
Disclaimer: The products mentioned in the above post were received free of charge; opinions are 100% my own.
