How to make a Magic: The Gathering Playmat

When making your own MTG custom playmat, here are the materials that you will need:

• ​ 1 White blank playmat (you can buy these on Ebay, but I usually get mine from the card shop​​
• Alcohol based markers, or sharpies if you prefer. I like to use copic markers because they blend so darned well, but if you can get away with using sharpies, then great!
• Old wrapping paper that you hate
• Pencil
• Patience
   

Step 1: Sketch out the basic idea

When I start with a playmat I am usually working with a set idea that I've already been playing around with for a little while. What I like to do is to get some thumbnail sketches made up in my sketchbook to work from. After I have those thumbnails, and I've picked the one that I'm going to go for, I get out that piece of old wrapping paper that I hate (in this case, leftovers from an ugly sweater party I went to last year) and I sketch out the design that I'm going to put on the mat in full scale. I always use the actual playmat as a stencil before I start, that way I know exactly how much space I have to offer. ​