• Home
  • about emily
  • before + after
  • HGTV + DIY Network
  • good press
  • contact
  • Let’s Organize These Posts:

    • Art Attack
    • Backyard
    • Barn
    • Basement
    • Bathroom
    • Beach
    • Bedrooms
    • Being Thrifty
    • Business-y
    • Buying and Renting and Selling
    • Casual Celebrations
    • Closets
    • Curb Appeal
    • Dainty Details
    • Deck
    • Decor
    • Dining Room
    • DIY
    • Dog-Related
    • Entryway
    • Flooring
    • For the Kids
    • Garage
    • Gardening
    • Helping The Economy
    • HGTV + DIY Network Projects
    • Holiday-Related Projects
    • Home Safety
    • Kitchen
    • Lighting
    • Living Room
    • Merry Travels
    • Office Space
    • Organized
    • Other Pads
    • Outdoor Living
    • Scooter Fun
    • Stairwell
    • Sunroom
    • Supporting Sponsors
    • The Art Room
    • Tools
    • Uncategorizable
    • Wedding
    • Windows
    • Work-pads
  • Search

  • Hi, I’m Emily

    Emily Fazio

    I'm a home improvement enthusiast, living a very merry DIY lifestyle.

    You can find me writing for HGTV and DIY Network, follow me on facebook and instagram, or drop me a note if you'd like. I love notes.

    Thanks for visiting!

  • BROWSE POSTS BY CATEGORY:

    • Art Attack (7)
    • Backyard (92)
    • Barn (8)
    • Basement (27)
    • Bathroom (43)
    • Beach (13)
    • Bedrooms (73)
    • Being Thrifty (53)
    • Business-y (12)
    • Buying and Renting and Selling (23)
    • Casual Celebrations (36)
    • Closets (17)
    • Curb Appeal (44)
    • Dainty Details (8)
    • Deck (23)
    • Decor (286)
    • Dining Room (37)
    • DIY (577)
    • Dog-Related (24)
    • Entryway (59)
    • Flooring (58)
    • For the Kids (32)
    • Garage (17)
    • Gardening (70)
    • Helping The Economy (30)
    • HGTV + DIY Network Projects (283)
    • Holiday-Related Projects (80)
    • Home Safety (12)
    • Kitchen (83)
    • Lighting (31)
    • Living Room (77)
    • Merry Travels (21)
    • Office Space (21)
    • Organized (41)
    • Other Pads (14)
    • Outdoor Living (12)
    • Scooter Fun (8)
    • Stairwell (20)
    • Sunroom (22)
    • Supporting Sponsors (43)
    • The Art Room (3)
    • Tools (43)
    • Uncategorizable (1)
    • Wedding (28)
    • Windows (14)
    • Work-pads (10)
  • Search

  • Pages

    • blog
    • Merrypad Features
    • Privacy Policy
    • about emily
    • before + after
      • before + after, our current home
      • before + after, our first house
    • contact me
    • choose a badge and share the merrypad.com love
  • Home
  • about emily
  • before + after
  • HGTV + DIY Network
  • good press
  • contact

Exploring Below Vinyl: Tale #1 of (at least) 4

December 16, 2010

Original vinyl flooring (and previous owner's mat). Faux stone must go. I’m really not a vinyl floor kind of girl. Hardwoods have my heart. Ceramic, great; porcelain, marble, or slate, amazing (and heated tile, especially in the bathroom, even better). But vinyl? Sometimes it’s neutral enough to be permissible – and I’m even more accepting for it if it’s in a nice clean sheet and not square stickers (because the damn corners are always poking up). But in my entryway? I suppose I understand why previous owners laid it in the entryway – the area gets a lot of traffic, and it was pretty easy to clean, but the pattern they chose? It was faux-rock, very obviously not seamlessly matched together – see that picture to the left? That’s what I saw the day that I found the house – and yes, I photographed it because I was taken aback and immediately thinking of what I could do to make it better. What gives? And what’s a girl to do?

My frame of thought? Be logical and have a plan. I wouldn’t recommend pulling up a floor until you have a defined plan of attack to fix the floor (this is why I haven’t done more than preliminary peeking under the bathroom and kitchen vinyl). The entryway though? It’s a mere 20 sq. ft, so I was less worried about finding rot, an enormous hole, or, you know, something horrific. While I didn’t really have a plan of attack, I figured it couldn’t be too bad (the floor felt very solid, not squishy or bowed at all, thankfully). In the midst of a Project Runway marathon one evening, I gathered my tools and had at it. Those tiles were glued down really well – SO well that I broke a sweat and two scrapers trying to pry it up – but what’d I find? (Besides another really worn out layer of heinous vinyl) I uncovered a painted, stamped, (potentially lovely) cement floor.

First things first... hours spent prying up vinyl and cleaning the floor.

Hmm. Cement floor? Cold… and hard… but not uninteresting. It was in really good shape, solid and not crumbling (fortunately), so I proceeded with removing the paint that was on there (it was peachy in color) with some of my favorite non-toxic (orange-scented!) paint remover. In the end, after a little bit of time and elbow-grease, I ended up with a nice, clean surface that was ready for me to do whatever I dreamed up.

I contemplated covering it up with some floor tiles, and we also had this great plan to use some super-tiny stones salvaged from the lake shore (think: DIY Pinkberry pebble flooring! Still a DIY project we’re dying to try, umm I segue, sorry…), but the stamped squares that were hidden under there were appealing to me (who knew that stamped concrete would have a place in my heart?). I decided to preserve them for the time being instead of doing something rash, figuring that I had plenty of time to dream up (and save up for) a longer term flooring solution. In the end, I borrowed some of the leftover exterior floor paint that I had used on the sunroom floor – a matte gray.

Peach-colored paint removed, gray paint going on.

I originally thought that painting the cement gray would make it seem colder and more cement-like, so I’ve planned all along to do a cute detail along the edge, but I haven’t gotten there yet because I’m not quite bothered by the solid gray yet.

Freshly painted stamped concrete in the entryway. When I took this, I was thinking I need cutesy trim.

Oh, and side note: It’s really not easy to clean stamped cement. Also thinking about a thick coat of poly to smooth it out. Thoughts?


Share

DIY  / Entryway  / Flooring

Emily
I'm a home improvement enthusiast, living a very merry DIY lifestyle. You can find me writing for HGTV and DIY Network, follow me on facebook and instagram, or drop me a note if you'd like. I love notes.

Leave A Reply


Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • HI, I’m Emily

    Emily Fazio

    I'm a home improvement enthusiast, living a very merry DIY lifestyle. Follow me on facebook and instagram, or drop me a note if you'd like. I love notes.

    Thanks for visiting!

  • Instagram

    Can’t believe I ever bought dumpling wrappers. 🥟 Pulse a few cups of flour in the food processor drizzling in cold water until it forms dough. Roll smooth. Use a conveniently large cookie cutter, or just trim out squares. The end ❤️ #hny #dumplings
    Didn’t think I’d be making more masks, but her Didn’t think I’d be making more masks, but here we are (now feat. recycled t-shirt layer for added softness and bonus-layer protection). #diy #amateurseamstress #diymask
    Get out there ☀️ Get out there ☀️
    The gang finally showed up. 👻 The gang finally showed up. 👻
    A record 233 cloves + 10 shallots 🧛🏻‍♀️ 
#merrypadathome #garden2021 #garlic #gardennotes #whatisnormal
    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
    Immeasurably tall, lanky tomatillos. #garden2020 # Immeasurably tall, lanky tomatillos. #garden2020 #tomatillos #nofilter
    32 oz., reserved for the brave 🌶🌶 😍#homeg 32 oz., reserved for the brave 🌶🌶 😍#homegrown #tomatillos #harvest2020
    Nothing says “let’s stay home all fall, too” Nothing says “let’s stay home all fall, too” like a badass custom fireplace on our patio. 🔥 #chiminea #merrypadathome
    Load More... follow emily: @merrypad



  • Like Us On Facebook

    Facebook Pagelike Widget



  • Popular Posts

    • DIY sideboard rehab. Our Refinished Midcentury Buffet 37.8k views
    • How to fix an IKEA drawer. Cheap IKEA Drawers (And The Quick Fix) 37.6k views
    • How to design and make a barn quilt. How to Make Your Own Barn Quilt 32.5k views
    • DIY driveway removal. The Driveway Rocks 24k views
    • How to hang art on brick surfaces using specialty clips. The Easy Way to Hang Art on Brick or Stone 23.2k views
    • Goodbye, gold fireplace covering. Less Is More: How to Remove a Fireplace Surround 21.1k views
    • Our DIY flagstone patio. Building a Patio in One Day 16.5k views
    • Bedroom paint, freshened up with Snowbound paint. Painting Everything White: We Chose Snowbound, By Sherwin Williams 15.8k views
    • Tips for dying pasta different colors, and a Halloween Recipe for the kids. Tips for Dying Pasta Different Colors (+ A Special Halloween Recipe) 15k views
    • Finished stained kitchen cabinets. Javalicious, A Gel Staining Reveal (Update #3) 13.6k views



  • BROWSE POSTS BY CATEGORY:

    • Art Attack (7)
    • Backyard (92)
    • Barn (8)
    • Basement (27)
    • Bathroom (43)
    • Beach (13)
    • Bedrooms (73)
    • Being Thrifty (53)
    • Business-y (12)
    • Buying and Renting and Selling (23)
    • Casual Celebrations (36)
    • Closets (17)
    • Curb Appeal (44)
    • Dainty Details (8)
    • Deck (23)
    • Decor (286)
    • Dining Room (37)
    • DIY (577)
    • Dog-Related (24)
    • Entryway (59)
    • Flooring (58)
    • For the Kids (32)
    • Garage (17)
    • Gardening (70)
    • Helping The Economy (30)
    • HGTV + DIY Network Projects (283)
    • Holiday-Related Projects (80)
    • Home Safety (12)
    • Kitchen (83)
    • Lighting (31)
    • Living Room (77)
    • Merry Travels (21)
    • Office Space (21)
    • Organized (41)
    • Other Pads (14)
    • Outdoor Living (12)
    • Scooter Fun (8)
    • Stairwell (20)
    • Sunroom (22)
    • Supporting Sponsors (43)
    • The Art Room (3)
    • Tools (43)
    • Uncategorizable (1)
    • Wedding (28)
    • Windows (14)
    • Work-pads (10)





  • a little bit of everything, friends, DIY, and inspiration

    • Dadand.com < My husband and his BFF
    • DIY Network
    • HGTV
  • Get Posts Via Email

  • Some Legal

    Merrypad incorporates the occasional affiliate link to Amazon.com and Minted; we link to many other websites and products, but if it is in context of a paid sponsorship, it is always noted as such. Please review the privacy policy and contact me if you have any additional questions.

    Theme customized by Pete Fazio Creative, the guy from dadand.com.


© Copyright Merrypad