A Stair Runner with a Tail

It's a good day when you can get a present for your two kids, one human, one furry and they both love it. How did we accomplish this? A rug runner for our stairs!

Here is what we started with:

These stairs have seen a lot of action in the 14 months we have lived here. Croix enjoys climbing up them (100 times a day) and Luke sadly was falling down them nearly as often :( Luke is 13 years old and was having an increasingly hard time managing his speed as he came down to the landing and then made the turn to continue down to the 1st floor. We figured a stair runner would give his paws something to grip on to, plus it would soften any falls Croix might have as he works to grasp the concept that you can't go down the stairs leading with your head.

We changed out the runner in our last house, and while we were super happy with it, I wanted to do something a bit more fun and special this time around. I'd run across an image of a "stair runner pool" a while ago on-line and knew instantly that's what I wanted to do. Once I got serious about pulling the trigger on this project I started trying to research other inspiration photos and found there really weren't a lot of them. I ran into the same road blocks when I tried to find a company that could do the decorative pool detail. Finally I found the great people at Underfoot Design and they made the whole thing seem extremely easy. Here's how it went down....a representative came to the house, took measurements and talked with me about my vision. Within a week I received a slew of samples to choose from.

Once I selected the material I wanted to go with I gave them a 50% deposit to order the material and they set up an install date. A two man crew arrived right on time and while one guy installed the runner on the stairs, the other worked on the detail at the tail. He started by drawing the design on paper and then cutting it out to play with the scale and size.

Once I was comfortable with the paper template he laid the template on the carpet and began cutting out the shape.

Next, he got everything nailed down and........

wah lah! 

Our stair runner has a tail!! Isn't it awesome!?!

Croix and I watched the whole thing so he was very excited to try it out as soon as the guys gave us the go ahead :)

We are so so happy with the results! Not only does our new stair runner serve us all well from a functional stand point but it looks so cool and really adds so much warmth and interest to the stairwell. Underfoot Design was great to work with and I would definitely recommend them if you are in the Atlanta area and are in the market for something fun!

All photos are my own. 

New Stair Runner + Grandma's Art

As most of you know Brent and I live in a little bungalow built in 1944 that has charm coming out the ying-yang. HOWEVER, there are some features that were added during a renovation in the early 2000's by previous owners that are simply not our style, and one of those features was the stair runner.

It's not that it was completely horrible, the colors and vibe just didn't really go with our decor. With every new element we added to the house, the rug became more and more random and out of place. The idea of replacing the runner had been in my mind from the beginning, but other, more pressing projects kept us from really focusing on it. Of course that all changed as the days ticked closer and closer to the Junior League Tour of Kitchens. Like I said a few weeks ago, this tour, while focused primarily on the kitchen, pretty much involved the majority of the first floor, so getting this runner fixed up was a must. 

For about .4343 seconds we considered DIY'ing a new runner, but then we came to our senses and did what anyone drowning in half done projects would do and Googled: Stair Runners Atlanta. The first thing that popped up was "The Carpet Lady." I read some reviews, sent her an email and she was at my house the next day with swatches and an estimate. We knew we wanted something neutral and durable and landed pretty quickly on a pretty sisal. She took measurements, I paid a deposit and she ordered the carpet. Literally less than two weeks later her crew was out to remove the existing runner and get the new one up and running. Ha, no pun intended. Ok, never mind it was totally intended. 

The one element I did always love about the existing stairs was the gold stair rods. So, we had the guys put them back on atop the new sisal runner.

So. Much. Better.

I love how the sisal adds a quiet texture to the space without being too busy. However, once everything was installed, the stairwell quickly felt very beige/white. I instantly thought of a giant piece of art from my Grandma's house. I'd had this piece for a while now, but could never figure out where to hang it. As soon as we held it up against the wall, I knew it was perfect!

This ocean picture hung over the couch in her living room for as long as I can remember. I knew her living room well, as many a days of my childhood were spent in that room practicing piano, playing with my sister and cousins and opening Christmas gifts around the holidays. I always loved the colors of the ocean against that gold frame. This piece is big and beautiful and fit perfectly on the wall of the stairwell. I know it's not the most conventional place to hang a piece of art, but I love how grand it feels and how happy it makes not only the stairwell, but me when I walk past it every day. My Grandma was so special to me and I'm so glad that pieces from her home, where so many of my childhood memories took place, can integrate so seamlessly into our decor. I like to be reminded of her as much as possible and now each and every time I walk down the stairs I am.


All photos are my own.