How to make a do-it-yourself mouse pad: step-by-step instructions

To save on the purchase of a computer mouse pad, the product can be made with your own hands. There are many materials from which you can make a rug. All of them are very affordable, and you can find something suitable at home. The quality of the do-it-yourself rug is not inferior to the factory product.

How to make a mouse pad yourself

To create a rug, we need to find material that could become the basis of the product. It should be smooth and work well. In addition to the material, we need scissors to cut the necessary piece. We may also need additional accessories such as glue or decoration paper. The choice is entirely up to the individual. You can experiment to make the product what its owner wants.

What you can make a mouse pad

There are many materials that can become the basis for creating a rug. Among them:

1. Linoleum. The material is very smooth and works well. It will be an excellent basis for the product.
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2. Cardboard. It can be taken from any shoe box or household appliance box. Cardboard is also very easy to process, but there is a risk that it will glide strongly on the surface. Therefore, a substrate is needed.
3. Leather. You can cut a piece from an old jacket or bag.
4. Organic glass. Working with this material is more difficult than with others. Therefore, this method is recommended only for people who know how to work with organic glass. But such a product can become a good competitor to the store, not only in functionality, but also in appearance.
5. Plastic napkin. Kitchen appliance. In most cases, the shape of the product already meets the necessary parameters, and processing is not required.
6. Rubber product. We just need rubber with a smooth surface with the appropriate dimensions.
7. Game mat. A bit like the previous method, but we already have a finished product purchased in a store. Just cut to size. Gaming mats are made of rubber and sold in stores.
8. You can use a cloth. It is important that there are no holes on it, and there are no gaps between the fibers.
9. If you often buy a mouse, or rarely use the device, you can do without a rug. The substrate is not a mandatory subject, but rather helps to make working at the computer more convenient. The product is needed to avoid scratches and stains on the table (they form if you drive the mouse).

Additional materials

There are additional materials that can temporarily replace the mouse pad. Any product with a smooth surface is suitable as a substrate. For example:

1. Notebook with a cover, varnished (the number of sheets does not matter).
2. Tile.
3. Hardcover book.
4. Cardboard.
5. Paper in a file.
6. The envelope. The dimensions of the product are slightly smaller than necessary, but it can become a good temporary substitute for the rug.
7. Magazine.

These are the most common replacement methods. But the house is full of other things that can become a substrate. It is important that they are in perfect contact with the surface of the mouse.

Attention! It is not recommended to use glass products as a substrate. They reflect light, and this may damage the product. There is also a risk that light will be reflected directly into the eyes of a person.

Do-it-yourself mouse pad: step by step

The mat manufacturing process will vary, depending on the material chosen. For example:

1. If linoleum is chosen, we need to cut a piece 20 cm wide and 25 high. It is recommended to round the edges of the product so as not to get scratched while working on the computer. You can glue any photo or pattern with glue to linoleum.
2. Cardboard. Just cut a piece of cardboard of the same dimensions as in the previous method. The edges also need to be rounded. You can decorate the product with colored paper. It is also necessary to put something under the mat so that it does not slip.
3. Leather. Cut a round piece of material. The skin is very thin, so it may not be an excellent substitute. If you encounter this problem, it is better to cut 2 identical pieces, and glue them together. If you do not want to work with glue, the edges can be sewn. And to create a beautiful appearance, acrylic paint is applied to the skin.
4. Plastic napkin. If the shape is a little larger than it should be, just cut off the excess.
5. If a fabric is selected, to create the required thickness, several pieces are glued together. The main thing is that the result is a smooth product.
6. Organic glass. Just cut a piece of the required size. No additional fixtures needed. But if we want to make a luminous mat, we need to place LEDs on it, attach a USB port and connect it to a laptop.
7. Rubber. The material lends itself perfectly to processing. If the shape is wrong, you can always change it by melting the material. But it is better not to resort to this, since there is a risk of spoiling the smoothness of the product.
8. Game mat. Cut a piece of appropriate size.

Most of the above methods are suitable for a laser mouse. If the ball design is chosen, not all methods will be suitable, but only those that provide a hard coating of the rug. For example, the option with leather and fabric disappear, and cardboard and linoleum fit.