How to Decoupage a Floor Cloth

A floor cloth, or floor quilt, is a durable piece of art you can use as a throw rug or a crumb catcher under the table. Using decoupage, you can make a floor cloth with no sewing. Use a quilt pattern from a book or magazine or create your own design. As with any quilt project, you can make your floor cloth with fabric scraps leftover from other projects or your favorite designer fabrics.

Cut the canvas to the desired finished size of your floor cloth. This will be the under-surface of the finished piece. Use a pencil and ruler to make a square or rectangle. To make a circle, tie a string to a pencil. Cut the string to measure half the width of your finished piece. Hold one end of the string at the exact center of the cloth and draw a perfect circle with the pencil.

Cut your fabric into pieces and place on the canvas to form your intended design. Rearrange your fabric pieces until you are satisfied. You can overlap the pieces or leave some of the canvas showing. Folding and hemming is unnecessary because the fabric decoupage glue will prevent fraying.

Affix the fabric pieces to the canvas, one at a time. Apply fabric decoupage glue to the back of the fabric with a paintbrush and place on the canvas. Do this in an order that will help insure all the pieces end up in the correct place. Either affix larger pieces first or start on one side of your canvas and work across it to the other side.

Seal the floor cloth by coating the entire surface with fabric decoupage glue. Be sure to coat the edges of the canvas. If your floor cloth will be placed in a high traffic area, you may wish to add a coat of varnish 72 hours later, when the decoupage glue has fully dried.

Allow the decoupage glue or varnish to cure. Set your decoupaged floor cloth aside for two to three weeks. This will allow the glue to become completely durable before it is put into use.