After just a week in Maine last summer, I decided that it was my favorite state. The beaches were how I like them: light on people, heavy on dramatic vistas. The weather, too, was my preferred type: temperatures that required at least half of the body (your choice of top or bottom) be covered up. I enjoyed my stay there so much that I did what I usually pride myself on not doing when playing tourist: I left with a souvenir—a doormat woven from reclaimed lobster rope. Every time I step barefoot onto its knotty surface, I am reminded of my trip.
Recently, I noticed that I’m not the only one enamored with nautical rope doormats. They’re popping up in quite a few stores outside of Maine. Here are 10 I like. I am partial to the washed-out, rustic look of the versions made from upcycled lobster rope, but I’ve also include rope doormats that are a bit more refined.
Above: From New England Trading Co.’s Wicked Good line of handwoven Nautical Rope Doormats, this one features a classic tan and black palette; $59.95. Above: From Cape Porpoise Trading Co.’s website: “The rope used to make this doormat was once connecting a Maine lobsterman’s buoy to his lobster trap on the bottom of the ocean floor. This lovely doormat will not only decrease the footprints in your house it will also assist in decreasing your environmental footprint.” The Recycled Lobster Rope Doormat in Machias comes in five sizes; starting from $62. Above: Made in Maine, this Large Rope Doormat (in oyster and honeycomb) is $130 at Hudson Grace. Above: “New federal regulations mandate that lobster fisherman can no longer use floating line to connect their traps together, because the northern right whale was becoming entangled in the floating line.” Custom Cordage is saving the rope from ending up in a landfill by weaving them into doormats. The Original Reclaimed Fishing Rope Doormat is $46.95 at Kittery Trading Post. Above: The Rope Co. Doormat comes in three colorways and is available at Rejuvenation; from $99. Above: This Plain Maine Mat from Wash Ashore Store was made from line that “was retired from Owls Head Lobster Co. and donated for upcycling in September 2019”; $65.
Above: Hawkins New York carries The Rope Co.’s Woven Rope Doormats in monochromatic neutrals; $68. Above: And Food52 carries The Rope Co’s Essential Stripe Doormat in multiple color combinations and three sizes; from $59. Above: A preppy and jaunty Wicked Good Rope Doormat from New England Trading Co; from $59.95. Above: LittleSaltyRopeCo’s Thin Line Collection includes this black and blue doormat; from $49.95 on Etsy.
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