apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I have a starfish doorstop I got a few years back from Anthropologie for $20 and a cast iron mermaid from Paris to The Moon in Costa Mesa for $16.

Save for the Jute Bag, these all sem over priced and quite frankly, not too unique. At least the gold bar featured a while back is clever.

Any ideas for a cute DIY doorstop??

I would love the big rope knot, but I have a feeling it would become an expensive dog chew toy when I wasn't looking.

I don't have a photo handy, but I have a few antique cast iron shoe lasts that I use as doorstops.

Vintage cast-iron iron that belonged to my great-grandmother.

You know, I kind of prefer my cheap little rubber wedge from the hardware store. It's one of those elegant little items that does its job simply and perfectly.

spossberg: A brick or large enough rock. By itself, painted, or simply put inside a decent looking spare bag. Virtually free.

I found a squat little gargoyle at a Dollar Tree in October that works just fine.

This might sound weird, but we use decorative gourds as doorstops. We have french doors and a single side door in our kitchen that we like to leave open most days (thanks to our gorgeous socal weather). I bought a bag of decorative gourds/pumpkins/squash at Trader Joes sometime between Halloween and Thanksgiving. They are just the right size for propping the doors open. Random, I know, during most of the year, but especially in the Fall, they look pretty nice. Suprisingly, they haven't gone bad yet, either.

$40 for the "Jut Knot"?

It's a monkey fist. I used to make those all the time in Scouts, waiting for the rain to stop while at camp.

All you need is a round weight for the middle, and then whatever rope you want to use. I used marbles for keychain sized, but I'm sure you can get larger round objects at the hardware store.

About, and instructions.

DIY doorstop idea - Chopsticks bundled together.

My DIY doorstops: beautiful rocks found on beaches and in mountain streams. Just put felt pads on the bottom if you are worried about scratching the floor.

Cost: free.