Have you ever been shopping for an area rug but you just can’t seem to find exactly what you are looking for? Your taste is unique, and you deserve to find a piece that fits it perfectly. Take a walk through the carpet section of your local home decor or hardware store for an alternative selection. See if anything catches your eye; a color, a texture, a pattern, or a sale.
Many stores (like Christian Flooring) have carpet squares you can bring home like a paint sample for your wall, but this is a carpet sample for your floor! Choose samples of the carpet that catch your attention and place them all together to see which ones work together; it could be two, three, or even four!
For the purposes of this project, it is best to have a good variety from which to choose, but be careful not to choose too many or you may feel overwhelmed. Bring these samples home and see how they look in the room, under the home lighting, and with your furniture. Check these samples at different times of day to get a better idea of what the designs will look like in different natural lighting.Once you have chosen the style, color, and texture that works best in your space, then the fun can begin.
Make a Pattern
Let's just say you choose two carpet samples you really like. Now you can decide on a design or pattern. The design can be a checkerboard pattern, stripes, or a chevron pattern. the sky's the limit! Many national home improvement stores sell 8x8 inch squares of carpet for $1.00 each. The number of pieces you will need is determined by the size and pattern you choose to make. When making an 8x10 foot rug you are going to need a total of 180 pieces, which would come to the total of approximately $180 plus taxes. An 8 X 10 rug bought at full retail pricing could easily cost thousands of dollars, so this is a huge win!
When you head out to purchase your carpet samples, you will also need to pick up a few other materials to do this project right. You will need double sided carpet adhesive and shelf liners.
The Steps
When you get home with all of the needed supplies, you’re ready to start:
- Lay out your pattern - lay your carpet squares in the desired pattern carpet side down.
- Attach adhesive - Next, peel one side of your double carpet adhesive and attach it to the carpet squares, making sure to attach them all to their neighbors in one long strip on the rug from end to end, not simply square to square.
- Remove the adhesive backing - Once you have finally attached all of the squares horizontally and vertically to the entire length of the rug, carefully remove the other side of the double sided carpet adhesive to expose the sticky side.
- Cut the shelf liner - Now, cut the shelf liner to the size of you area rug, in this case 8x10 feet. Then, carefully place the shelf liner onto the exposed side of the double sided carpet adhesive.
Attach rug grips - The final step, which is optional, place rug grippers onto the corners of your rug. This is so it will not move once it is in place. Now flip your project over and trim strayed or frayed ends.
Instantly, you have a custom made area rug at a fraction of the cost! Now that you have a great rug on the floor, it is now time to accessorize the rest of the room; for more ideas visit our blog at Christian Flooring.
