DIY Office Chair Mat

One of my small projects from Pinterest was a DIY chair mat for under your office chair. I had a leftover rug from college that I've been using so my office chair doesn't ruin my wood floor. I was fine with that because it was free, buy my oh-so-cute little dogs have taken it upon themselves to pee on it.



 

We are so cute and innocent. We would never pee on items that our humans want to keep clean.

I was tired of breaking out the Bissell to clean it, so I threw it out and made this instead with a few of my own changes. If you make one like mine you will need a piece of plywood (mine as 2' x 4' which is pretty narrow for an office chair, most people will want a 4' x 4' piece),
shelf liner from the Dollar Tree (two for a narrow one, four for a normal sized one), a stapler and staples (like you would use for upholstering), and peel and stick tiles (you'll need 8 of them if you do a narrow one like mine or 16 of them if you do the standard 4' x 4').

Here are the steps:

• Pick the side of the plywood that you want to be the bottom. Unroll the shelf liner and line it up to one side. Cut of the excess (there won't be much) and use the stapler to staple it in place. Repeat process until your entire bottom of the plywood is covered.

 

• Turn the plywood over so the bare side which will be your top is up. Start with one peel and stick tile in the corner. Line it up and stick it on. Keep sticking the tiles on until your top is covered.

That is all there is to it. A cheap and easy way to protect your floor from the evils of the office chair wheels. I bought the plywood and peel and stick tiles at Menard's. I bought the shelf liner from the Dollar Tree. I already had a stapler and staples. Here is the breakdown of the costs:

1. Plywood (depends on which type and what size you pick) - $6
2. Peel and Stick Tiles (once again depends on what you pick) - $0.33 a piece x 8 = $2.64
3. Shelf Liner (cost is dependent on size of mat) - $2

The total cost of the project was $10.64 was is nothing compared what you would pay for one of the plastic ones from an office store. It would cost you a little more to make a standard 4' x 4' one which is what I would suggest if you have the money and space. I knew that I didn't need one that size since my office chair stays put most of the time maybe scooting side to side once in a while.