Back in the days of red (you know what I'm talking about, right? Red accent walls everywhere...), I bought a square, cranberry red rug to go under my square dining table. Once we moved to this house, it migrated to the family room, since the dining was too small. Through the entire remodel, it was our one little source of ugliness, I mean comfort! Even though I had lost my love for all things red, it was nice to have something soft to step on while not caring if it was covered in dust and drywall mud. After finally getting our flooring in, we needed something to protect the wood floor from the dining room chairs. I looked for a rug, but had two problems: I couldn't find a square rug, and even rectangular rugs sell for no less than $200. I joked to Caleb that I was just going to flip the rug over to save money, and then decided I actually liked the idea. Once I did, however, I noticed how dingy the back was. So, I brought out my favorite trick--paint!
At first I tried spray-painting the whole thing, but I soon realized that would take too long, and my fingers agreed (that little nozzle isn't exactly ergonomically designed). So I bought a gallon of cheap gray paint at Wal-Mart and sloshed it all over. I was just short and couldn't quite cover the edges, so rather than spend another $15 on one more gallon of paint, I modified my plan. I taped off about 8 inches around the border and spray painted it the original, darker gray.
Despite the scoffing I received from neighbors, friends, and family, I persisted in my project and am so pleased with the outcome. It has a unique, contemporary feel. Now I want a new table....<sigh>
See all the red (this is from our Delta house)?
Poor, ugly, abused rug.
Ta-da!
