We just had our herringbone stair runner installed last week and I thought I would share all the details on it! This was not an easy decision and one that took a long time, but ultimately I am so happy we did it. It turned out amazing and adds a really nice warmth to our home, which is exactly what we were looking for.
Before
Our stairs before- this was the listing photo
When we bought the house back in 2021, this is what it looked like. I absolutely hated the carpeting on the stairs. It was gross, it was stained and there was no way it was staying. So when we redid the floors before we moved in, it was a no brainer that we were going to have the carpet ripped out.
What we didn’t really realize was how much of a mess it was going to be under the stairs. It never even dawned on me that the back of the stairs were going to need to be painted, but once the carpet and floors were re-done that became a high priority for us. I hated walking up those stairs so much and looking at the ugly back drop. Not to mention every time someone new walked in our home it was the first thing they saw.
After the floors were done, but before we had the back painted. They were in rough shape.
After living with it for about six months, we finally hired a painter to paint it all. I should also note we had a newborn at this time so there was no time to DIY anything or else we might have attempted it. Although, I wasn’t very confident with my abilities at that time especially since we had just re-done the floors. It was a lot of precise work and I’m so glad we hired this out because it was a ton of work! It look a professional almost an entire day just to tape everything off before he could even start any of the other prep work!
After the stairs were painted. They did an incredible job!
Why We Decided to do it Now
I was never going to add a runner until the contractor who painted our stairs told me a few horror stories about kids falling down the stairs because they were so slippery. And from that moment on, I knew we would eventually add one. And looking back I knew it would add some warmth to the space.
What really drove us to do it now was the fact that our dog, Addie is getting older. She sort of stopped coming up and down the stairs. And we think it’s because her legs are getting weaker and she slips a little on them because there is no traction. It was honestly kind of nice that she didn’t’ come upstairs- way less hair! But at night I feel bad that she sleeps all alone downstairs!
How I Decided
The antelope sample I thought I was going to choose.
I knew I wanted something a little fun here and bold. And I originally had my heart set on this antelope print, which I still love! But after getting a sample of it, I just didn’t love it as much as in the picture. Our paint is more cool tone and the sample was more warm tone. And it just didn’t look right. Plus I was really hesitant on doing something that felt more trendy. Don’t get me wrong- I still love it! But it just didn’t feel right for our home.
So then I took to Pinterest and this image popped up and I feel in love. The herringbone pattern for a stair runner seemed more my style and perfect for our space. I got some samples and loved them. But I still couldn’t pull the trigger. In the meantime, we had ordered samples in the herringbone stripe and the second I saw the sample in Ash I knew it was it! The color was perfect- it wasn’t too warm or cool and it mixed well with all of our current furniture. Plus I really loved that this felt classic, but still fun, which is exactly what I was going for.
The two herringbone samples I loved, but ultimately didn’t choose.
If you remember and follow on Instagram I ordered a ton of samples. I thought I was going overboard, but I think it’s actually pretty normal. I would lay them on the stairs and live with them. And I would slowly take away some and live with my favorites for a while longer. Every time I walked up and down the stairs I would take notice. Especially at different times of the day and in different light.
This was not a short process at all. I was kind of expecting it to be because I thought I knew what I wanted -the antelope. But that was not how it went at all haha. I started the process in September by looking in the store, ordering samples, etc. We put the deposit down mid-November and the carpet was installed mid-January. If you are local, we went thru McLeod Carpet on Mack. They were great and were always there to assist.
The Carpet We Choose
We went with Peter Island Stripe in the color Ash. It has a grey/brown coloring to it which I really like because you can kind of pull out both colors. Our paint is the same tone (our walls are Benjamin Moore Gray Mist), so it matched really well. We did a grey binding on the sides. I have no idea what the color is because they gave me two choices the day of. I picked the darker one and really like how it turned out.
After
And here is the after! It just looks so good and I am so happy with it! It add a nice warmth. And it feels so good on your feet because of the padding. It also lessens the creaks in the floor. We have quite a few in the hallway especially and it’s not as noisy now which is a very nice perk!
Cost
I don’t have the cost breakdown because they just gave me the quote over the phone but it cost us around $3300. There was an additional cost to add the runner down the hallway, but I am so glad we did that. I had a runner there before, but it was too big and was always moving, which was a big pain.
I also know that because we choose the herringbone stripe carpet which has a pattern, it was a little more expensive. Additional carpet had to be ordered to make sure the pattern lined up correctly. There wasn’t a lot of waste or leftovers, but if you get a carpet without a pattern, I was told it would be cheaper.
And I have to imagine the labor was quite a expensive too! There were two men here and it took them all afternoon, so I bet that was a large part of the cost too. But you want professionals who are skilled at this because after seeing how meticulous they were and how well it turned out- it’s not something you should skimp on!
It’s only been a week but I am so happy with it! I can’t wait to officially finish of this space with some artwork and sconces. Here are some of my ideas here.
xoxox Amanda
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