Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Help! There's Carpet In My Kitchen!

Nothing like moving into a house and debating whether you really want to keep the ninties-inspired patterned carpet in your kitchen. Before we moved in, the homeowner said it was "scotchgarded."

*crickets*

With three kids and a slobbering dog, there isn't enough Scotchgard® in the world to save this carpet.

Cue kitchen of my dreams from bhg:


What to do, what to do, a quick inward scream, and then you get online to see how on earth to remedy this. Hmm...ceramic tile, vinyl tile, hardwood, laminate...oh so much to choose from. Cross off laminate, been there, done that in several homes. Hardwood? Love it, but the dog scratching her nails across it everyday? I don't think so. How about vinyl tile? Easy upkeep, comes in different sizes, looks like ceramic tile (or stone) and can be grouted, but is lighter, warmer and easier on the feet.


Three problems; 1) they glued the carpet directly to the floor boards, so it was a bumpy, nasty mess and 2) if you use vinyl tile, you may feel the bumps underneath unless you are willing to sand, etc. (which Husband and I have yet to do our own floors so we are terrified) and of course 3) cost.

Always about the bottom line.

I wish I could have said that we were brave and we DIYed it, but even after consulting other DIYers and flooring specialists on Hometalk, the job seemed incredibly daunting for us flooring-newbies.


And even though we can paint, reuse, refurbish and craiglist the crap out of most things in our home, we folded and had someone else do it. :(

Now that we decided on vinyl tile, we looked at every possible color/style option and even pinned them:


I don't know why I'm always drawn to 'travertine' which is a form of limestone, but I am. So that is the kind of tile we chose. That process only took about two weeks! (Hey, when you're spending a boat-load of money on a floor, you better love it!)

But alas! Apparently it would have costed us more to have vinyl tile installed than ceramic tile. Who woudda thunk it. So, I dished out the big bucks (because people, it isn't cheap) and hired someone to put in travertine-looking ceramic tile, because Husband wasn't about to mess with tile, being unexperienced and all.


This photo makes it look more gray, but it is more on the brown side. My saving grace about choosing ceramic tile, it will last forever.

What kind of flooring do you have in your kitchen? Are you happy with it?


15 comments:

Michelle said...

We have ceramic tile and I love it! It kind of looks like what you picked. I cannot imagine having carpet! That would be a recipe for disaster in our house with 3 kids and 7 pets!

Unknown said...

We have laminate flooring through out our great room and into the kitchen. I love it! I can't believe someone had that carpet in your kitchen! Yikes@

Unknown said...

We have tile and I love it.

Unknown said...

We have ceramic tile in our kitchen and it actually looks very similar to yours. We had someone come and install it as well since I can't hammer a nail and my husband just learned how to change a lightbulb. I love it. I wish I would have gone a shade darker since you can see all the little spots that accumulate, but it looks fantastic.

Stopping by from SITS

Mindy said...

First of all, that first kitchen picture is perfection.
Second, carpet? In a kitchen? What were they thinking?!
We put VCT (vinyl composite tile) down in our kitchen about 8 or 9 years ago. We have it in one of our bathrooms, too. It's glue down, but no grouting. It looks like solid surface when you're done. I love it. BUT, when we gut our kitchen, my hope is to get down to the original fir floors and refinish them. Which is no easy task with the three layers (at least) and whatever the heck that tar/glue stuff is that they used back in the 40's. Yikes.
Your floor is gorgeous, but you couldn't pay me to have tile on the floor or counters with kids, and sometimes clutsy adults, in the house. There ain't a single dish that will bounce off that stuff. My sister's new house has tile floors similar to yours in the kitchen and granite tile on the counters. They've broken a ton of dishes and glasses since they moved in. But, again, it's super pretty to look at!!!!!

Crystal @ 29 Rue House said...

It is gorgeous!!! I we have old vinyl/linoleum - can't wait for it to go!!

Suzanne said...

So you know exactly what I mean!

Suzanne said...

It's funny how trends change, but this is one trend I wouldn't have followed...

Suzanne said...

Hooray!

Suzanne said...

First, I laughed out loud "...just learned to change a lightbulb!" and Husband even suggested the darker grout. Better choice in order to hide the dog hair...

Suzanne said...

Funny you should mention broken glass, because I NEVER drop stuff. But wouldn't you know the day after installation, I dropped an empty jelly jar and it smashed to smithereens! Happy to say nothing else has broken since. Phew!

Suzanne said...

I hear you, but I have to say the vinyl that is out there now is pretty spectacular!

Unknown said...

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Unknown said...

I think it’s kinda weird to have a carpeted floor. I can imagine those debris falling and hiding from you behind carpet fibers. Anyway, it’s good to hear that you have it changed. It feels good when your feet can walk over a comfortable surface.

Conner @CMSOFSC.com

Unknown said...

Food chops on your carpets? Not a great idea, right? Good thing you decided to replace your flooring. Anyway, great choice of vinyl tiles. It will, indeed, last forever. But I suggest you maintain it properly to avoid unwanted stains that will make it ugly. Thanks for the share! :)

Toby Almy @ TittleBrothers

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