Old Carpets Never Die

When you live in a house that is well over 100 years old, there is ALWAYS a project going on. Or Ten.

And I seem to add to these projects monthly, or maybe weekly. Surely not daily?

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago, I decided the carpet in my bedroom had passed the point of usability. Actually, it had past that a decade or two ago, but who's counting? It didn't help that just a few days prior to that, one of my beloved pets had lost the contents of her stomach right in front of my dresser. At 6:30 AM. What a way to wake up.

I made the decision right then that it had to go but I was just waiting for the right time. I certainly couldn't do it with house guests on their way.

So, when a couple of the youth girls were over one afternoon, I enlisted their help. (Being a Youth Pastor DOES have its advantages - heh heh.) We moved all the little furniture out and then pushed the bed way over to one side. We pulled up that yellow carpet. Or maybe at one time is was green, or yellow-green, I just don't really know.

Then we lifted the bed over the roll. (Thanks, honey for taking this five minutes out of your workday - at home- to help with this detail. I love your muscles.) And then heaved the carpet down the stairs and out the front door. It was no small task. But I had some serious Girl Power on my side. Including Abby. :)

THANKFULLY, the wood floor underneath is very nice: still has a finish on it, with no major flaws, a few paint drops and a couple of gaps between boards. But nothing that a rug or two won't cover-up. Yeah!!!

It even inspired me to lose the blue/white/floral room ensemble I've had since we got married (1994). No, I don't like change. So now, we're going with red and brown which couldn't make Hubby happier! Plus, we're using a quilt that one of his grandmothers made out of old ties. It deserves a picture, but sadly, there are none. Yet.

Hubby was so happy with the nice flooring, that he gave into my pleadings to get rid of yet another room of SERIOUSLY old carpet. The carpet in the office was in worse shape than the bedroom. This one is definitely yellow but with several black spots. Not at all in keeping with the red/white/blue patriotic theme I've got going on in there.

So, last Saturday, we pulled up a little of the edge and saw that it was not too bad - painted brown flooring. I could live with that. Once again, we started ripping up the carpet.

Only this time, we found that only the edges were painted and the rest needed some help in the finishing department. Oh, and as a bonus, in the very middle of the room is a piece of cardboard nailed on top of a board. I'm kinda nervous about pulling that up.

But, there are no major gaps between the boards. And, even though it's not the greatest, it still is better than the 30+ year-old carpet that was here.

So now, I have added finishing the office floor to the ever growing list of projects. If it's like all the other projects, I'll probably start a new one before that one is done.

P.S. (can you do that in a blog post?) Do not weep for the old carpet. Its life is not over... it makes a home in the garden. Stay tuned for THAT story.