How to Make a DIY Wine Cork Bath Mat

Renovating your home can be a stressful and difficult time, and you may find yourself relaxing upon an evening with a small glass of wine to properly unwind. But why not save your wine corks to make something unique and personal for your home?

Wine corks come with their own unique markings and colorings, and can add a rustic touch to the room with a hint of their European heritage. 

You may have heard of using wine corks as a neat trim for your kitchen walls or repurposing them into stamps for your letters, but have you ever thought of making a bath mat out of them?

Stick your creativity cap on and let us show you what to do with your leftover wine corks. We have an amazing idea to create a DIY wine cork bath mat. This craft is super easy to do and provides beautiful, classy, rustic results. 

Turn those late night chills into a memorable accessory for your home with our step by step method of how to make a DIY wine cork bath mat. 

First, let’s think about some of the things you will need.

You will need:

• An anti-slip rubber mat for the base of the bath mat
• Lots and lots of wine corks
• Silicone adhesive
• A knife
• Rubber coating/sealant

And most importantly, this method requires lots and lots of patience. 

Try to save around 150-200 wine corks. If you need any help with drinking the wine for that part, please give us a call! 

Just kidding, but you will need quite a few to create a large bath mat. If you do not have that many lying around, then you can purchase recycled wine corks from vineyards or from Amazon, like these ones.

How to make a DIY wine cork bath mat

Step One

The first step is to cut your wine corks. This should be done vertically so that they are sliced in half. You can use a regular large kitchen knife or a box cutter depending on how tough your corks are.

You may benefit from boiling a few of your corks first and removing them from the water to cut them. This will soften them up greatly and will ensure that you can cut with precision and ease. You want to have pretty perfect halves to line up your corks on the mat.

Step Two

The next step is to prepare your bath mat base. Thes best kind of base is a non-slip rubber mat that you can easily glue your corks to. Try finding something similar to this one. 

You can also use a plastic shelf liner as the glue adhesive will stick to it easily.

Step Three

Cut your bath mat base to the desired shape or size that you want for your wine corks.

You can use a box cutter again for this step. You may want to place your bath mat base over some waxy paper or parchment paper to keep it safe whilst you move onto the next step.

Step Four

Now you can begin arranging your wine corks to create a neat border for your DIY bath mat. You can create your bath mat in any pattern that you like.

We recommend making the border first in the pattern of two wine cork halves vertical, next to 2 wine cork halves horizontal, until you have covered the whole outer circumference of the mat. 

Then you can either line the halves inside up vertically next to each other or continue the original pattern. Make it your own!

It is always best to lay out your pattern first to ensure that it all blends and fits together perfectly. If you are stuck, you can always trim some corks to fit your bath mat. 

Step Five

Once you have arranged and completed the placement of your wine cork halves, then you can begin glueing. This will be the most time consuming and frustrating part of the whole process. 

You can use a hot glue gun, glue sticks or superglue for this part. We chose to use a waterproof silicone adhesive to ensure that the corks stay in place. However, any high strength glue that is waterproof and mold resistant will be perfect for the bath mat. 

If you do not have a precision tip for your glue, then you can use a small paintbrush and paint on the glue to the flat cut side of your wine cork halves. 

You must place the corks down flat, pressing firmly against the mat liner and hold it in place for around 10 seconds, before starting another. This is very tiresome after a while, but stick with it and always keep checking that you are working in a straight line and that everything has its place. 

Step Six

After successfully adhering all of your wine cork halves, we recommend that you place a heavy board over your mat to hold them in place until the glue is completely cured.

Try leaving your bath mat for at least 24 hours. Always check how long the glue you used takes to cure as it may take longer to fully settle. 

Step Seven

Have a quick check to see whether all of your corks are properly fixed and secured to your mat liner.

If not, then reapply glue and repeat the curing process. If they are all perfectly in place, then you are ready for the final step. 

Step Eight

The final step to your DIY wine cork bath mat is to seal your corks. This way you are protecting the mat from any build up or moisture from using it.

As we use bath mats for coming out of the shower or bath, you can expect the mat to get wet. Sealing your DIY bath mat will protect it from mold and mildew and help it last longer. 

Spray your bath mat with a rubber coating to seal it. Once it has dried completely, you are ready to place your mat within your bathroom and enjoy your custom wine cork bath mat!