One of my goals before the baby comes was to get my stairs painted and carpeted. Happy to say, I did it!
And I even managed it before Christmas came.
It was a bit of a bear of a project, requiring quite a bit more carpet that I expected. In total I used four 2x8 foot runners to go the whole length of the stairs.
It was the turn at the bottom that really did me in. Lots of cutting and piecing together to make it work. So worth it in the end though. The stairs stay cleaner (though I have to vacuum them now instead of sweep) and the carpet muffles our steps which will be great once the baby is here. No errant steps waking the sleeping beast!
I used the classic, staple as you go method, which is holding up quite well. The key is using as many staples as you can to hold everything nice and tight.
One project down!
Cheers!
Showing posts with label Downstairs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Downstairs. Show all posts
Friday, December 27, 2013
Friday, November 29, 2013
Sherwin Williams- Color Visualizer
Paint and I have not been friends this year. It isn't that the colors look bad, they just never seem to be exactly what I wanted. However, I will not be deterred! I have things to paint dammit! Lots of things. The stairs are my next victim.
Now that we have beautiful floors downstairs my stairs were really looking bad. And I mean BAD.
When I painted them white I foolishly thought "but we don't wear shoes inside, they will stay clean." Obviously that was a lie. While we don't usually wear shoes inside, we do a lot of construction- which clearly leaves a lot of dirt. The scrubbing was getting old.
We finally found a runner that I liked (this one from Urban Outfitters) so the paint was all that was holding me back. Do I try to match the floor color? Do I go bold? Black? Gah! Technology to the rescue!
If you've never used Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer tool it's a pretty simple thing. You upload a picture of the space and use the capture tools to select the bits you want colored. I started with this picture of the stairs with the runner placed on them.
Then, I used the tools to try out two colors: Caviar and Fiery Brown. I'll let you guess which was which.
Obviously it is not something I'd hang on the wall, but it does give me a good idea on which paint color I like better. Fiery Brown reads more rustic and old world to me and Caviar is more modern. Caviar is my top choice but my mind isn't made up.
Have you used the color visualizer? Or something like it? I feel like it would be great for big blank spaces but it would be a bit choppy around furniture and what not. I still plan on getting paint samples before biting the bullet. I just don't trust my computer screen that much.
Cheers!
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Floored: Part 2
We finished! And just in time for our Thanksgiving guests.
Here's the original before:
And the after:
The guest room before (sans carpet):
Now, with the new flooring:
We still need to add baseboards and moulding, paint, and style but things are looking much better down there!
Cheers!
Here's the original before:
And the after:
The guest room before (sans carpet):
Now, with the new flooring:
We still need to add baseboards and moulding, paint, and style but things are looking much better down there!
Cheers!
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Floored: Part 1
Yesterday we hit the half way point with our floor installation and it is looking darn good! After about 12 hours (including moving the furniture out and pulling out the old molding) we are done with the guest bed and half the hall.
Install is super easy due to the click and lock style of flooring we ended up with. Just like the cork in our kitchen you just snap everything together and it floats over your existing flooring.
We went with a felt underlayment for added warmth and sound cushioning. So far the most difficult thing has been cutting boards to go around (and under) the door jambs. I swear it takes twice as long as the rest of it.
I'll keep you updated on wear and tear but so far I love the stuff! Now it is just making me want to finish all of the other projects that need to happen down here… One thing at a time!
Anyone else install their own floors? I am super happy we decided to save the $1,000 or so and do it our selves.
Cheers!
Install is super easy due to the click and lock style of flooring we ended up with. Just like the cork in our kitchen you just snap everything together and it floats over your existing flooring.
We went with a felt underlayment for added warmth and sound cushioning. So far the most difficult thing has been cutting boards to go around (and under) the door jambs. I swear it takes twice as long as the rest of it.
I'll keep you updated on wear and tear but so far I love the stuff! Now it is just making me want to finish all of the other projects that need to happen down here… One thing at a time!
Anyone else install their own floors? I am super happy we decided to save the $1,000 or so and do it our selves.
Cheers!
Thursday, November 14, 2013
It All Started with a Trip to Costco…
A few weeks back we went shopping to price out hardwoods for the downstairs. We had no plans to buy and hit up the usual places: Lumber Liquidators, Lowes, Home Depot, etc. A last minute decision that I needed Costco pizza and we stumbled on the best flooring deal I have ever seen!
This beautiful strand woven solid bamboo flooring was $2.03 sq/ft! Can you believe it? We snapped up 11 cases of it and have been letting it acclimate to our downstairs for the last week. Instalation begins this weekend. I'm stoked. This was one of my big "want to get done before the baby comes" items and it looks like we are well ahead of schedule. For once!
Sometimes it pays to wander through Costco, just for the heck of it.
Cheers!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
