Hallway Makeover April 12, 2011 DIY, Our House 180 Comments 98748 ************If you are new to my paper floors, please read this first.*************** I know it’s hard to believe that I’m still continuing my quest to rid the house of carpet. After completing the stairs, I moved into the hallway. I knew it’d be difficult to get this done since it’s a high traffic area- but I figured I’d get it over with! The hallway used to look like this: You can see there has been quite a bit of damage at each door seam (courtesy of the cats). Other than that, it’s in fairly good shape-but doesn’t match my new sophisticated vision of the space. So I turned to my brown craft paper again, continuing the carpet demo from the staircase. I’ll be the first one to admit that this was a rush job. Between 3 working adults with all bedrooms upstairs, I had to time everything to dry while we were out of the house or sleeping. The bedrooms themselves will be easier since we’ll totally evacuate to another room when the time comes. After ripping up the carpet and removing staples and tack strips: Hmmm…second thoughts, anyone? I pressed on, filling the cracks and nail holes with wood filler and sanding everything smooth. In order to allow us to walk on it, I papered the whole area except 3 “hopping” spots (see the how-to here). The next morning I filled in the spots and let them dry before staining the whole floor. It’s not my best stain job, due to the fact that I was rushed and had to stain myself literally down the stairs without the option to fix anything. I’ll do better in the rooms. After 8 coats of poly (planning on doing 4 more when I complete the rooms), I added a reducing threshold to floor at the bathroom entrance with liquid nails. It’s still hard to see the grand vision because there is a lot of finishing work to do. I have to add trim to the baseboards to cover the gap and stain the threshold to the bathroom to match the floor (p.s. these are way more expensive than I thought, a 6ft unfinished section set me back $15). I also left the area around the doorway to each bedroom a little jagged to help me blend the areas when I do the floor installation in the bedrooms. The edges are only stained (but not poly-ed) to help the transition. I have plans for a floor cloth runner in here as well as re-purposing my old dining room chandelier to replace the boob light (not shown…). Even though it’s still a little rough, I’m loving the look and can’t wait to move on into the guest room! What do you think so far? Not bad for a simple and effective solution to home hallway flooring! *****Linked Up****** 180 Responses Linda@Coastal Charm April 12, 2011 How cool is this!!! I have never seen this done before…how do you clean it? Thanks for sharing this thrifty idea with us at NTT. Blessings, Linda Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Thanks Linda! I clean it the same way as my hardwood downstairs: vacuum with my Kirby then mop with vinegar/water and a microfiber pad. Reply Michelle Smith November 8, 2011 I did this to my entire house back in 1998, except, I did not stain the floor but just pollyed it and let it take on different shades, it looked like faux flagstone and I have gotten so many compliments on it over the years, I have 4 cats so there are some scratch marks but it has held up great. LORI November 13, 2011 How does it wear???? rachaelevans November 13, 2011 Lori- It wears really well in my opinion, especially considering it’s just paper. Dog nails can scratch it, but I haven’t found it to be awful and it’s only happened a few times over the past 6+months. Regular traffic seems fine. I do put felt feet on my furniture because I like to move it around a lot. I treat it a lot like my hardwoods on the first floor. Mary Lee September 14, 2012 Awesome! I did the paper exactly like you did a few years back on my dining room walls and everyone loves them. I had never thought about doing it to a floor! This could be my next project-thank you Kami October 20, 2012 Hi Mary Lee. You said you did your walls. I was curious, when its cold outside or moisture in the air, does it make the walls tacky or anything? I was wanting to do some off my walls as well but wasnt sure the glue would start to run. Hope this isnt a stupid question, Im not much of a DIYer. Thank You… sidelia gonzalez November 16, 2011 i’ve seen this done on walls before but it looks just as beautiful on floors im hoping to do this to my home this summer in my kitchen??? i have tile do you think its a good idea? and where did you get so much paper bag material from? where can i get it? Reply rachaelevans November 16, 2011 Sidelia- There are detailed instructions here that should answer your questions. Linda@Coastal Charm April 12, 2011 How cool is this!!! I have never seen this done before…how do you clean it? Thanks for sharing this thrifty idea with us at NTT. Blessings, Linda Reply heymudda April 12, 2011 I already have wood floors throughout my home-hubby no longer sneezing- but I love this look. I’m going to use it on an old writing desk this weekend. I think it would make the top of it look like old leather! Reply Stephanie April 12, 2011 Yes! That will look so cool! Reply Ashley @ DesignBuildLove.co April 12, 2011 that’s a great idea!!! Reply Jessica April 12, 2011 pure awesomeness… Reply Stephanie April 12, 2011 I think it looks really awesome. How does it feel to walk on in bare feet? Is it rough and uneven? Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Stephanie- It actually feels nice under bare feet. It is smooth since there is so much poly on it, but it’s almost like a leather texture where it’s softer than wood. I dig it 🙂 But we will be putting a lot of area rugs upstairs since my husband says he’ll miss the feeling of the carpet. Reply Ashley @ DesignBuildLove.co April 12, 2011 It looks great!!! I really cannot wait to see it all put together! 🙂 I’m loving those floors so much. I wish I could see them in person somewhere. I also love the molding idea for the base boards. We have been considering the same thing for when we finish the concrete floors throughout the house. It’s either that or take off all the baseboards and get new (maybe taller) ones! Reply Kassi @ Truly Lovely April 12, 2011 I think this looks so classy! When you compare the before and the after, it looks so much more modern and CLEAN really… It’s weird, but bare floors, read NO carpet seems so much cleaner! Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Yes that’s it exactly Kassi, it is much cleaner isn’t it?! Weird, but true! Thanks for popping over! Reply Kayla April 12, 2011 I love the way it looks on your stairs and now in your hallways! It looks very rich!! Great job! Reply vickie April 12, 2011 Love how this is looking. I did my bathroom walls ina previous house and painted them rusty red. It looked like oxblood leather. I haven’t gotten brave enough to do a floor yet. Reply vickie April 12, 2011 Love how this is looking. I did my bathroom walls ina previous house and painted them rusty red. It looked like oxblood leather. I haven’t gotten brave enough to do a floor yet. Reply Sheila April 12, 2011 That’s awesome…looks very sophistocated…wanna come to my house…I have a couple bathrooms that need major floor refinishing….lol Reply Sheila April 12, 2011 That’s awesome…looks very sophistocated…wanna come to my house…I have a couple bathrooms that need major floor refinishing….lol Reply tracy April 12, 2011 wow you are so amazing,I think everything you have done is fantastic, I posted it on my blog to share with all of my southern friends here in Tn. thanks for sharing your work!!! Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Thank you so much Tracy, how kind of you to repost! I’ll stop by your blog! Reply Marty@A Stroll Thru Life April 12, 2011 This is so pretty and so creative. What a great idea. Thanks for joining TTT. Hugs, Marty Reply Barbara aka Pink Overalls April 12, 2011 Genius! I had my doubts when I started reading, but you’ve totally won me over. Now, to talk DH into trying it here. Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 LOL Barbara! That seems to be the normal reaction, like uhhh…..trust me I was unsure at first, but I am super picky about things looking cheap and non-pro, but I really like this-especially compared to carpet. And, if/when we decide to do hardwood upstairs, it can just go right over the top! Reply Joyce Meier April 15, 2011 This looks so fantastic! This is a crazy question and I know you said how you clean it. My daughter has a two story house and her doggie door is located in the large wrap around hall closet. The senior dogs have had some accidents 🙁 do you think this would work in an area that needs to be dog cleaned often? she keeps saying she’s going to rip out the carpet? Reply Laura @ Ms Smartie Pants April 16, 2011 I did this a long time ago to my bathroom walls and loved it! As soon as I saw your rug the floor caught my attention and I thought did she… It’s a great look, at the price is definitely right! Reply angela April 18, 2011 We are going to do this in our upstairs guest bedroom i was wondering if you stain the floor when it is still wet or completly dry? Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 18, 2011 Wait until the paper and glue has completely dried before staining-usually overnight is sufficient! Reply Lauren April 22, 2011 Well this just beats them all!! How amazing! Reply gina April 23, 2011 I have a child care upstairs and have wanted to remove the carpet I saw this yrs ago thanks for revival. I was wondering about doing this on a cement floor. Any thoughts? Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 23, 2011 Gina- I would try it on cement, but a lady who commented below said she sealed her concrete first and had problems with adhesion. Unfortunately I ddon’t have first hand knowledge, but I think if you skipped the sealer it might work better. Reply jana April 25, 2011 WISH WE COULD DO THIS IDEA ON MY FLOORS THAT ARE NOW CARPETED. BUT THEY HAVE CEMENT UNDER THE CARPET. GET SO TIRED OF SHAMPOING THEM. ANY IDEAS TO HELP? JANA Reply linda May 2, 2011 i am so loving your blog! do you think this paper project would work on an old vinyl floor? do you think application would be any different? have you thought about papering a dropcloth like this to work as an area rug?thank you so much for answering all my questions..linda Reply sheila June 7, 2011 i can’t wait to do this!!! it is beautiful! can you please tell me what brand and color of stain you used? Reply Lovely Crafty Home June 7, 2011 I used Minwax Dark Walnut, good luck! Reply Crystal February 28, 2012 Did you use oil base or water base stain? rachaelevans February 29, 2012 I used oil based- minwax dark walnut sheila June 23, 2011 thank you for sharing! i truly appreciate it! Reply Alisha July 26, 2011 I LOVE this! I would defiitely consider doing this myself! My only question is: Is it durable enough to withstand the test of time? PS~ I hope you dont mind me reposting this to my fledgling blog! =) Reply Lovely Crafty Home July 27, 2011 Alisha, so far it has been great!! I have heard from others that it has lasted 7-10 years. We are planning on doing hardwoods eventually up there, so I don’t know how long we’ll have with it but I am loving it! Thank you for reposting! Reply jolene July 30, 2011 I want to know what color your stain is! I would like to use THIS color! 😀 Reply jolene July 30, 2011 Uh– nevermind I found it! Can you tell us how much poly you used? As in for 200 sqft, I used 2 gallons– I read that one person used almost a gallon per sqft. Reply Lovely Crafty Home July 31, 2011 Hmmm….I don’t know for sure since I’ve done two staircases and a hallway but to give you an idea: I have part of my second gallon left and have done 1 small bedroom (about 8×10) and one larger bedroom (about 10 x 12) plus the (2) stairs and hallway. Almost everything has 12 coats. 1 gallon per square foot is WAY off. I expect our master to use the rest of the second gallon and most of a 3rd (it’s the size of the other two bedrooms combined). Our whole top floor is 622 sq. ft. Hope that helps! Lina Adreani October 10, 2011 I did jump in and do thsi on my basement flor..looks great..but it did chip with the furniture moving so we put carpet pads on the bottom of all the furniture..but i used a gallon and part of a gallon and didnt even do as many coats as you in a much smaller area? am i using to much poly at a time like too thick? could this also be why our ripped? Lovely Crafty Home October 10, 2011 Lina- It’s possible you’re putting it on too thick…how long did you let the last coat dry before moving furniture in? It really needs a week to fully cure and harden, so I put felt on everything right from the start. I still put felt on all the furniture just for extra protection. Tiffany October 14, 2011 Love your floor. It looks great. I am trying to find a durable floor covering for my basement. We have epoxied our concrete floor and it has cracked. My kids roller skate and ride-on toys. Do you think it might stand up to that abuse? rachaelevans October 14, 2011 I don’t think it would be a good idea for that application Tiffany, it will scratch like wood floors. Kelly W. August 7, 2011 I just found this via pinterest and I love it! Do you think it would be sturdy enough to stand up to a kitchen? We currently have the stick on tiles, thanks to the previous owner, and they are coming up at the seams. 🙁 Got to do something! Reply Lovely Crafty Home August 7, 2011 Kelly- Are you talking about a counter or a backsplash? I know people who have done it on desk/dresser tops with good results, but for a countertop you’d really have to sand the surface and I might even try that resin stuff instead of poly on top. If I had a countertop in bad condition, I’d certainly try it anyways LOL. Reply Letecia August 22, 2011 I’ve done this in my husband’s office, my son’s room and a hallway. I”d like to try stain in our bedroom. How did you apply it? Reply Letecia August 22, 2011 I’ve done this in 2 rooms and a hallway. I’d like to use stain when I do my bedroom. How did you apply the stain? I layed down my paper with glue. I see where some people use polyurethane Do you think it would work to add stain to the glue/polyurethane? Reply Lovely Crafty Home August 22, 2011 I prefer to use the glue/water over poly to adhere the paper because it’s MUCH cheaper, and dries faster. Plus, I haven’t seen anything to suggest the poly makes it last longer. I would not recommend mixing the stain with anything because I used an oil based stain, but the poly I like is waterbased. If your paper is dry, you can apply the stain with a lambskin mop pad (like for staining decks), then follow with poly (using a sponge mop head). Hope that helps! Reply Letecia August 30, 2011 Thanks! I wish I had used stain in the two rooms I’ve done already but I’m gearing up to do the living and dining rooms. I’m debating between special walnut and dark walnut for the stain. It looks like you were successful using oilbased stain under the waterbased polyurethane. I hope to recreate the same success. Nicole BYler September 17, 2011 I love this idea!!Looks great!!I am wanting to do it in my kitchen, but I have the vinyl on the floor now and concret under it. DO you think it would work just putting it over the vinyl? Reply Lovely Crafty Home September 17, 2011 I know of people who have done it on vinyl, my suggestion would be to make sure the vinyl is in good condition, clean it very well, then sand it with some 80 grit before starting. Hope that helps! Reply Anna September 18, 2011 i saw this on pinterest and was curious. i’ve been thinking about doing a similar thing with magazine pages/pictures. i’ve been concerned about the durability. you’ve had it for a few months, how is it holding up? does it nick and scratch easily? does is show any water damage when you mop up? is there any downside to this? it’s a large floor and would be time consuming, so i would love some additional input before i go on this journey. thanx! Reply Lovely Crafty Home September 18, 2011 Hi Anna! In my opinion it is holding up great. I use a swiffer type mop (cloth pad with my own solution), not a traditional mop and it cleans beautifully. I treat it the same as hardwood. I wouldn’t leave a puddle of water on my hardwood floors, and I wouldn’t leave a puddle on the paper floors either. We do have a dog and there are a few scratches from her nails when she got rowdy one night…not “typical” dog walking if you know what I mean. Regular foot traffic has been fine-especially the stairs which are holding up way better than I thought given the traffic they get. We have also done 2 rooms (not sure if you saw those posts) so I can say it looks great in a large area. I use area rugs in the rooms and felt pads under furniture. Is there a downside? I suppose so, I mean I will have to add quarter round to the baseboards because there is a 1″ gap between them and the floor. It may not be as durable as tile, vinyl, or laminate/engineered wood. To me it performs about the same as our oak floors. It’s soft enough to scratch if you try hard enough. Would I go back to carpet? NO. Was it worth the roughly $100 I have spent on two staircases, a hallway, and two rooms? YES. The only thing I would replace this floor with is hardwood (which is in the plans eventually…like 5 years maybe). I am very happy with it, and I wouldn’t hesitate to replace any bad flooring with this method. At the very least it’s a temporary solution. Hope that helps! Reply Anna September 18, 2011 thank you so much for your extra input Angela March 7, 2014 I am doing my guest room and I will just be lowering my baseboards …just a thought. Karissa September 18, 2011 First off, I love it! I can’t wait to look atbthe rest of your work. I had a few questions for you if you don’t mind answering. First, what type of glue did you use to put the paper down? secondly, did you just stain the paper after the glue dried? Thanks so much and keep up the awesome work! Reply Lovely Crafty Home September 18, 2011 I used plain-ol Elmer’s Glue, and yes, I stained after the glue dried 🙂 Reply lj September 19, 2011 I love this! My question is though, if we do this…. in 5 years if we want to do a different flooring (tiles or hard wood) would we just do it right over this? Reply Lovely Crafty Home September 20, 2011 Yup, that’s our plan- to eventually put hardwood right over it. Reply april September 24, 2011 i want to do this on my stairs but i seem to be missing a few steps how did you put the brown paper down. did u wet it and ball it up then put it down. how did you sucure it to the floor before the polly part. Reply Lovely Crafty Home September 26, 2011 April: Check out this post for the complete tutorial http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/03/14/brown-paper-packages/ Reply A Stenciled Drop Cloth Rug October 14, 2011 […] what’s up with the floor? Click here to read about […] Reply Jeannette October 14, 2011 Will this work on concrete floor?? My house is built on a slab with no subfloor. I would love to try this! Reply rachaelevans October 14, 2011 My dad did it on concrete using poly only (the glue won’t stick). Reply Michele October 19, 2011 I was so excited to do this project but also was attempting to treat concrete. After two goes at it and my husband pressuring me to have completion, I gave up. I will attempt another run at our bathroom floor for a temporary fix until a remodel. Overall I just love the look. I would suggest an alternate adhesive for concrete. Also, I found that I wasn’t overlapping my pieces enough so as the paper dried they shrunk and left occasional gap between pieces. Reply rachaelevans October 19, 2011 Michele- For concrete you will need to adhere the paper with polyurethane instead of glue. Hope that helps! Cindy October 25, 2011 How do you use polyurethane instead of glue? I also have concrete floors. rachaelevans October 25, 2011 Cindy- Basically you’d crumple the paper, brush the floor with poly, then lay the paper and brush poly over it. I haven’t actually done this myself, but I have heard that the poly will stick to the concrete. Hope that helps! Lauren October 29, 2011 I think this idea is such a great thing for subfloor application but why would you want to apply it to concrete floors? You can stain concrete floors and get the same effect. Please don’t take this as a negative comment. I just wanted to make sure everyone was aware that you could stain it. There should be plenty of online tutorials for concrete staining if you are interested. Reply rachaelevans October 31, 2011 Lauren- that is a good point, I have seen some gorgeous stain on concrete! Reply Paige November 8, 2011 Staining my concrete hallway is not an option due to the condition of the concrete. So I am curious is papering it. I understand that I would need to coat the concrete with poly rather that glue before laying the paper; but would I still soak the paper in a water/glue mixture? Any advice is greatly appreciated. With a baby on the way, I’m ready to get this project completed! rachaelevans November 9, 2011 Paige- Michelle just gave a helpful comment, she did use 50/50 glue which worked for her. But I have also heard that glue does not work, so it may depend on the condition and consistency of the concrete. You could try the glue in a small area first to test it. Otherwise, you’ll be using poly only-no glue-which makes it harder to add stain in. You’d probably brush the poly on, lay the paper, then brush poly on top…I wouldn’t soak it. Sarah November 2, 2011 I think this is FABULOUS… I was just day dreaming this morning about ripping up the flloor in our bathroom off one of the bedrooms, then thought I’d take out everything and start new…. THIS could be the flloor I end up with… the bedroom is very rustic, so this would be fantastic in my opinion.! thank you for sharing this awesome technique! Reply Mitch McElroy November 2, 2011 I like the look. Lot easier than tiling which I planned to do in hallway and living room. Is there a problem yet with putting things on it or moving things around. Certainly I would think you really couldn’t move things around by pushing around, you would probably have to pick it up to move it. Looks great though. Let me know something on setting things on it. Reply rachaelevans November 2, 2011 Mitch- After the poly fully cures (depends on what you use) you’d be surprised at how resilient it is. Still, I put those felt feet on all my furniture and it slides fine. I treat them the same way I treat my hardwoods downstairs. Reply Michelle Smith November 8, 2011 We did put this paper floor on our cement slab back in 1999, Needed an inexpensive floor treatment, tried several things that just didnt work, being frustrated I picked up a decorating book from the 70’s and came across an article on “faux flagstone” floors using either paper bags or brown kraft paper, tried it on a story board and loved it, we used white elmers glue cut 50/50 with water, but we didn’t crumble our paper, we used a roller brush to put glue on back of paper, put it on the floor and rolled glue over the top, when room was finished 20×30 we let it dry the applied water based polly on top about 4 times, when it dried it looked like stone, felt great and has held up even with my 3 cats except for scratch marks, nothing major. Everyone loves my floors and several have coppied it, We did install new vinyl planks on the downstairs due to the fact we are selling out home and didn’t think most people would like the paper floors but we have left it in the upstairs bedrooms. It still looks good after 12 years. Pet stains will ruin it if you don’t clean it soon, but you can redo any part at anytime. I would do this again. Reply Michelle Smith November 8, 2011 I forgot to say that not only did this stick to my cement, it is almost impossible to get off (we needed to replace a spot and it took an effort to get it up) and we live in a high humidity area so it does wrinle up a little but flattens back out when we turn on air or humidity goes down. Hope this helps. Reply rachaelevans November 9, 2011 Thank you so much for sharing Michelle!! You are the only person who has ever written that has done this to their cement floor with glue. That is really good to know 🙂 Kate November 10, 2011 I love this look, and of course, the low cost! I want to do it in our office, but my husband is afraid that it will be impossible to change in the future. He thinks that it may be too thick to put another floor over–how thick is it with all the coats of poly? Thanks! Reply rachaelevans November 10, 2011 Kate- it’s VERY thin actually even with all the poly, which is why you need shoe molding to cover the gap in the baseboard. I would not hesitate to put hardwood right over top in the future. Reply Jealous Floor Girl November 11, 2011 So how do you do it? Glue the paper bags? and then stain it?I love it! Reply Jealous Floor Girl November 11, 2011 So how exactly do you do this? Do you glue the bags down first? Reply rachaelevans November 11, 2011 Check out the tutorial here: http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply Randa November 15, 2011 My friend just shared this link with me. It looks great. I’m your 600th follower. Would love it if you could visit some time and follow back @ thebewitchinkitchen.com Reply Taryn @ Design, Dining + Dipaers December 13, 2011 This is awesome! I may be late to the game, but I’ve never seen anything like this before. This is so cool! Reply Lee Ann December 27, 2011 AWESOME and AMAZING! LOVE IT! Reply Christine January 4, 2012 WOW!! Love it! My Mom did this with masking tape on our lamp shades when I was a kid. BUT… I must do this… Question???? You did 8 coats of poly but how waster resistant is it???? Please let me know! I’d like to do my kitchen. Thanks Reply rachaelevans January 4, 2012 Christine- I know people who have used it in bathrooms, I would say to treat it like hardwood. I wet mop mine (spray mop, not a traditional mop) and wipe up spills immediately. I actually went back and added 4 more coats of poly, I recommend 12. Reply Alicia choate January 4, 2012 I was wondering how you did the stain? Did you blot it or do it with a roller? I have my walls done like this but I didn’t stain them and I love it but the floors I would want to stain. Reply rachaelevans January 4, 2012 Alicia, check out my comprehensive tutorial here: http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply Tracey January 10, 2012 This is awesome!!!! I have this little landing at the bottom of my split home stairs I need to cover with something. I was doing another type of flooring, but ran out and haven’t been too thrilled to finish it. I might try this instead. Reply Dina Bartlett January 10, 2012 I want to use the white kraft paper on my wall, can it be used the same as the brown? Reply Kalie January 11, 2012 I love the look and would love it in my drab entryway!!! Our house is very rustic so I think it would be fun! But what to do when tired of it??? Would it be hard to put flooring over??? Thanks for sharing your great idea!!!! LOVE it! Reply rachaelevans January 12, 2012 Kalie- We are planning to lay hardwood right over it eventually. Carpet would also go easily over the top. You might need some prep for tile (sanding through some of the poly), but I’ve never laid floor tile so I can’t speak to that unfortunately. Hope that helps! Reply Marcia Cox January 14, 2012 Great floor! I did this on walls in my basement. They were old paneled walls that I hated so I tore the craft paper and mod podged it right over the paneling. I was afraid the cracks on the paneling would show through but they didn’t! It covered great and looks great! I didn’t seal the walls and they have looked good for several years. My next project to update the walls will be to burnish them with copper paint, just to highlight the areas. Reply Tracy Culley February 4, 2012 Do you think instead of the coats of poly, you could put epoxy down? Reply Julie February 5, 2012 Can I ask what do you use to stick the paper to the floor before you stain it? Reply rachaelevans February 5, 2012 Julie- I use Elmer’s Glue and water…the complete tutorial is found at the top of the page in the menu. Reply Cheryl Puckett February 8, 2012 I was wondering how it is holding up after this much time? Are you still as happy with it as you were in the beginning? We are buying a condo and I want to spruce up some areas….and I love this idea. I have seen it on kitchen counters, too…and am thinking of doing it in my kitchen until we replace the counters with granite. Reply rachaelevans February 8, 2012 Cheryl- We still love it…it is holding up great and I doubt there is an alternative (aside from hardwood) that I would like better at this point. Hope that helps! Reply Kathy February 21, 2012 I really want to do this to my stairway. My question is how did you do this without “help” from you cats? I only have one cat, but she is NOSY! So I am just wondering how you handled it when you got to the poly stage. Thanks! Reply rachaelevans February 22, 2012 Kathy- I would keep her in another room with food/water/litter box. Ours didn’t seem very interested in the process haha. Reply Miss Bee February 24, 2012 I have hand made terra cotta tiles in my kitchen and dining room. They were made to be uneven surfaced. The floor ripples. I’ve been told that hardwood would not last even if I had a thick underlayment because of the ripple effect. I don’t want carpet. Since many of the tiles are cracked I am thinking of trying this covering each cracked tile with smooth paper and staining the paper to match the terra cotta. Any advice? Reply rachaelevans February 25, 2012 Miss Bee- It’s certainly worth a shot given the lack of options…you could try the red rosin paper instead of the brown, that might be a better match colorwise. Reply EthelSmith February 25, 2012 I just used this process to cover the top of a coffee table. I am waiting for the stain to dry right now. Unfortunately it looks like I’m going to have spots that got much darker than the rest. It looks like maybe the paper didn’t have enough glue on it and the stain made it wet. Did you have this problem? Should I try to recover those spots? By the way – your floors look awesome! Reply rachaelevans February 25, 2012 Hmmmm…I’m not sure what happened…was the paper totally dry when you applied the stain? You could recover them if you like, but if it’s not that noticeable I wouldn’t worry about it 🙂 Reply Patti Brooks March 5, 2012 This is GREAT and you did a wonderful job. I want to do my living room walls and ceiling, but do you know if this can be done on blown ceilings? (popcorn ceilings). I have researched and can not find any info on the ceilings. I appreciate any help you have. And again, you did a great job! Reply rachaelevans March 6, 2012 Patti- I would think so, but you may end up seeing the texture in the final product. I would suggest trying it in a small area to test it out. Reply BriSwartley March 19, 2012 The popcorn texture is actually really easy to remove. Just spray it down really good with diluted vinegar and scrape it with a putty knife. I’ve only got one room left to remove it from =) there are videos online, some people’s just falls off if you wet it enough. I had to scrape a little but not much. I suggest using a gardner sprayer and covering all your light fixtures first. Reply marianne thibodeau April 3, 2012 OH MY GOODNTIS IS SOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL I have to know adzactly how you did this please tell me. Are you using brown paper bags and then staining the floor. How do you do this process i really want to do it in my home. What is poly please please i really need to know how to do this can you send me an email with the step by step process Im begging you this is the most coolest thing I hve ever seen, My goodness you are so creative. You should have your own design show WOW TRULY AMAZING!!!!!!! please email me mthibodeau@telus.net and in subject line put LEATHER LOOK FLOOR thanks so much I wil blog about this and get your site traffic. Ill definately be telling all my friends. Reply rachaelevans April 3, 2012 Marianne- There is a complete tutorial here http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply Ericka April 4, 2012 Just wanted to stop by and say thanks for the information! My husband and I just did our kitchen/dining room floors using kraft paper. We tweaked it to make it look like wood, though! Would love to share pictures if you are interested! -Ericka Reply rachaelevans April 5, 2012 Sounds neat, send them over! lovelycraftyhome@gmail.com Reply Deb September 18, 2012 I’d love to see pics! You can email to me…debperrymullins@aol.com Reply Heather April 18, 2012 Would this work in a bathroom? Reply rachaelevans April 18, 2012 Heather- I haven’t used it in a bathroom, but I know of people who have with success. Just remember it’s a lot like wood flooring so standing water is a no-no. You’d have to just be careful about tub/shower use. Reply Monica April 25, 2012 Thanks so much for this. I’m glad I ran across it. I’ve ‘pin’ it so I can find it agan. We are buying a house that has carpet in the kitchen – UGH! At this point I don’t know what is under there (sub-floor or vinyl) and I’ve been wondering what to do with it. I want it gone ASAP but worry about the expense. Now I know that I can get it taken care of with a little work on my part. Thanks again….I’m so excited now. Reply april edwards May 9, 2012 Can you please let me know what you put it down with? Glue,ect. I love this,I have a cowgirl coming home from a college break and want it done before she gets home. Thank you. Please email me with it. Reply rachaelevans May 9, 2012 April- full instructions can be found here http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply Things You Can Create with a Paper Bag May 11, 2012 […] Paper Bag Floor from Lovely Crafty […] Reply debbie July 13, 2012 I just finished this in a bedroom. It came out good except a few piceses wrinkled even after I smoothed with wall paper smoothie. Did yours have a few wrinkles & how did you get them out? Thanks Reply Cat June 3, 2012 My question is…we have a backporch area that is screened in and have particle boad on he floor. I have painted it, but would love to do this to the floor. Do you think it would hold up to outside weather???? It is pretty protected, but gets occasional wet puddles from the rain and snow. Reply rachaelevans June 4, 2012 Cat- I’d be hesitant to apply this anywhere that could be wet for an extended period of time. The standing water will erode the poly (think of water spots on hardwood). Reply sonji c June 19, 2012 I love it!! It would be perfct for my bedroom and less expensive than hardwood. I can”t wait to try it. Reply Cindy June 26, 2012 Love this look. Can I do it on a cement floor? Would like this in my basement. It is high traffic in the winter months because of mud, calving and all, but I think it would work. Please give me your opinion. Thanks C Reply rachaelevans June 26, 2012 Cindy, you can read about my experience with concrete here: http://lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/12/06/a-10-x-10-corner/ Reply Marcia July 11, 2012 I was wondering if this is something that I could do on my patio? Do you think it would stick down on concrete? Also, do you think that I could use some type of outdoor poly to seal it? I would love this look out there. Reply rachaelevans July 12, 2012 Marcia- I wouldn’t recommend it for outdoor spaces at all, I just don’t think it would hold up long term. Reply Heather July 27, 2012 Hi there! I apologize if this is a repeat question… We have almost completed the “putting the paper down” phase of this project, and I was re-reading the instructions when I realized that in the list of items used, you gave a link to the minwax (oil based) stain, but then later said that you had used a water based stain… I am wanting to use a water base for both the stain and poly, did you use a water based stain, and if so, which one? Thank you!! Reply rachaelevans July 27, 2012 Heather- I used oil based stain and water based poly. I have not heard many good reports with the water based stain, so you might want to test it in a small area before you go that route. Good luck! Reply Veronicka August 14, 2012 Do you think this would work well outdoors? lol 🙂 Reply Veronicka August 16, 2012 Is this an indoors only project? Reply rachaelevans August 16, 2012 Veronicka- Pretty much, sorry! Reply Charity September 7, 2012 I am still in the process of doing this to my guest room. I love it so far. I used glue/water mixture on concrete. We have a slab home and it had what I call old school tile. It worked fine for me. I am totally bummed at how long it is taking for the poly to dry. I did two coats today and I feel like I rushed it. I didn’t realize it would take me this long. I live in a small house so the things that need to go back in the room are driving me nuts sitting around the house. I stained mine but kinda wish I would have skipped that step. I got stain on my perfectly painted trim. My fault on that cause I should have removed it. I love your idea on the stairs but this has killed my back so I think it will be awhile. Thanks so much for the wonderful instructions. Reply rachaelevans September 11, 2012 Charity- How is it going now? Reply Cheryl September 12, 2012 Looks beautiful!! Has this been done on hardwood floors? Reply rachaelevans September 12, 2012 Cheryl- I’m not sure, I haven’t personally done it but maybe someone else has? I would worry about the cracks between boards showing up through the paper. I would kill for hardwood upstairs though, may I ask why you want to cover it up? Reply Sabrina Reynolds September 25, 2012 I did this in my Master Bath about 3 months ago and couldn’t be happier. It is still gorgeous as ever and very durable. Thank you for the amazing tutorial…I followed it to a tee and it worked out GRAND! Reply Crystal September 27, 2012 Does anyone know how this would do on top of felt paper that is over concrete? Reply fawn September 29, 2012 my husband and I followed the tutorial for this exactly, same products, same method, same everything and it failed. water based poly over oil based stain is not a good idea. it crackled up under our tennis shoes. we are going to try a test spot with laquer but if that doesnt work we will have to do wood flooring. hope others dont have the same issues. Reply Rachael Evans September 29, 2012 Fawn- I’m so sorry you had a fail! I’m not sure what went wrong, did you do it on plywood subfloor? Reply Linda October 9, 2012 Years ago they used this with paper bags, even on the walls. You did a great job. I wanted to do this in an entry way but had no time so used wood tile. Linda Reply Susan Hanson November 11, 2012 how did you get it to stick to the floor..DId you glue it?? Reply Chris at Padoozles December 9, 2012 My daughter sent this page over to me, and I’m so glad she did! I think she and her husband may be planning on doing this in their new home, but I also think I’m going to try it in MY home as well! I’m thinking this will be very nice in our master bedroom, so we can take a little more time to get it done… won’t be rushed as much as you had to be putting it in your hallway. However, if this looks as nice as it does in your pictures, perhaps we’ll move on out from that master bedroom area and into other parts of the house. Thank you very much for posting this. I am always in awe of the resourcefulness and creativity of people and of some of the things they can figure out. Just very nice here, really. Reply J P December 14, 2012 It would be better to move the base board down. You will have to splice in new molding at the doorway, but the end result would be much more desirable. Reply Arminda December 17, 2012 Si u have steps and list of product u used on this project Reply Deb January 25, 2013 Love your ideas. If people read the comments they would have all their questions answered! Sheesh. I’m going to try this on a kitchen wall that was wall papered and then painted over. Our puppy would hide under the table and pull the paper off the wall! Sooo I think this might be te perfect solution! Thanks for sharing Reply Tricia February 6, 2013 Ok I am going to try this in laundry room but need to know how long it will take so I can move washer and dryer back and how long I wait between coats of poly super excited to try this thAnks for sharing Reply Brittani February 8, 2013 I want to do this to my living room but can’t find the steps after pulling up carpet to polyurethane need help please Reply Kathy February 27, 2013 Love it. Going to try it on in the basement absoluty love this idea Reply Upcycling April 22, 2013 […] in paper bags. It looks almost like a leather floor. What a nice inexpensive floor covering. http://lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/04/…lway-makeover/ ****If you are new to my paper floors, please read this first.*** […] Reply Dakara April 22, 2013 I love you idea of using paper for flooring. I used brown paper to cover a mess of stuff in a bathroom once. Similar technique… torn and crumpled then wall papered with paste to the wall.. did the entire bathroom as there was part of old paper on the wall etc… sponged in a accent of gold paint to give is added glimmer.. then coated the walls with a finish clear coat… what a HUGE difference that and a new shower curtain made… felt like home vs a disaster zone. Reply Paper bag Floor - DIY Crafty Projects July 2, 2013 […] Pin It Source: lovelycraftyhome.com via Amber on […] Reply Brenda August 11, 2013 What a great idea. Have seen it done on walls, but not on floors before now. Reply jen September 1, 2013 I just wanted to thank you for this amazing idea! I now have paper bag floors covering 2/3 of my home including kitchen and bathrooms. They have been in for over a year now and we absolutely LOVE them! They stand up to everything from water to tonka trucks. Everyone that sees them loves the look 🙂 thanks again! Reply Robin Massengill October 4, 2013 I am doing this in my home, one bedroom we pulled up carpet and then the sticky tile, It all looked good. Got my paper down and I had some sort of color bleed through, a spot of green and a spot of red. It is all dried now, but not sure what to do to get rid of if. I don’t want to stain the floor with that on there. What kind of recommendations are there for this sort of thing? Reply Robin Massengill October 4, 2013 I just finished one bedroom and I have 2 spots of bleed through one green and one red, not sure what they are, don’t remember seeing any coloring on the floor prior. I am wondering what kind of solution there is for this. I don’t have it stained yet as I want to get rid of these spots. Any suggestions? Reply Sophie November 4, 2013 Great tranformation it`s hard to think how you do that makeover i want to try …. but i wish i can do ill try my best Reply Paper Floor Inspiration - An Oregon Cottage November 20, 2013 […] from Lovely Crafty Home has transformed two sets of stairs and an upper hallway so dramatically, I just had to share her […] Reply Laurie April 20, 2014 Will mine ever cure? It’s been 6 week in bathroom, can still see water spots? Reply Paper Bag Crafts | Inspired Home Style May 21, 2014 […] Paper Bag Floor ~ Ok now I have seen it all. Seriously…this floor is incredible. I actually thought it was leather when I first saw the photos. […] Reply Paper Floor Inspiration April 25, 2015 […] from Lovely Crafty Home has transformed two sets of stairs and an upper hallway so dramatically, I just had to share her […] Reply Paper Bag Scrapbooks - Somewhat Simple September 13, 2015 […] Paper Bag Floor from Lovely Crafty […] Reply BACK - July 12, 2017 […] times better. I’m toying around with the idea of stenciling it, but then I found someone who used brown paper and stain on a subfloor! Wow…it looks like […] Reply Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. CAPTCHA Code * Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. Check here to Subscribe to notifications for new posts
Linda@Coastal Charm April 12, 2011 How cool is this!!! I have never seen this done before…how do you clean it? Thanks for sharing this thrifty idea with us at NTT. Blessings, Linda Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Thanks Linda! I clean it the same way as my hardwood downstairs: vacuum with my Kirby then mop with vinegar/water and a microfiber pad. Reply
Michelle Smith November 8, 2011 I did this to my entire house back in 1998, except, I did not stain the floor but just pollyed it and let it take on different shades, it looked like faux flagstone and I have gotten so many compliments on it over the years, I have 4 cats so there are some scratch marks but it has held up great.
rachaelevans November 13, 2011 Lori- It wears really well in my opinion, especially considering it’s just paper. Dog nails can scratch it, but I haven’t found it to be awful and it’s only happened a few times over the past 6+months. Regular traffic seems fine. I do put felt feet on my furniture because I like to move it around a lot. I treat it a lot like my hardwoods on the first floor.
Mary Lee September 14, 2012 Awesome! I did the paper exactly like you did a few years back on my dining room walls and everyone loves them. I had never thought about doing it to a floor! This could be my next project-thank you
Kami October 20, 2012 Hi Mary Lee. You said you did your walls. I was curious, when its cold outside or moisture in the air, does it make the walls tacky or anything? I was wanting to do some off my walls as well but wasnt sure the glue would start to run. Hope this isnt a stupid question, Im not much of a DIYer. Thank You…
sidelia gonzalez November 16, 2011 i’ve seen this done on walls before but it looks just as beautiful on floors im hoping to do this to my home this summer in my kitchen??? i have tile do you think its a good idea? and where did you get so much paper bag material from? where can i get it? Reply
rachaelevans November 16, 2011 Sidelia- There are detailed instructions here that should answer your questions.
Linda@Coastal Charm April 12, 2011 How cool is this!!! I have never seen this done before…how do you clean it? Thanks for sharing this thrifty idea with us at NTT. Blessings, Linda Reply
heymudda April 12, 2011 I already have wood floors throughout my home-hubby no longer sneezing- but I love this look. I’m going to use it on an old writing desk this weekend. I think it would make the top of it look like old leather! Reply
Stephanie April 12, 2011 I think it looks really awesome. How does it feel to walk on in bare feet? Is it rough and uneven? Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Stephanie- It actually feels nice under bare feet. It is smooth since there is so much poly on it, but it’s almost like a leather texture where it’s softer than wood. I dig it 🙂 But we will be putting a lot of area rugs upstairs since my husband says he’ll miss the feeling of the carpet. Reply
Ashley @ DesignBuildLove.co April 12, 2011 It looks great!!! I really cannot wait to see it all put together! 🙂 I’m loving those floors so much. I wish I could see them in person somewhere. I also love the molding idea for the base boards. We have been considering the same thing for when we finish the concrete floors throughout the house. It’s either that or take off all the baseboards and get new (maybe taller) ones! Reply
Kassi @ Truly Lovely April 12, 2011 I think this looks so classy! When you compare the before and the after, it looks so much more modern and CLEAN really… It’s weird, but bare floors, read NO carpet seems so much cleaner! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Yes that’s it exactly Kassi, it is much cleaner isn’t it?! Weird, but true! Thanks for popping over! Reply
Kayla April 12, 2011 I love the way it looks on your stairs and now in your hallways! It looks very rich!! Great job! Reply
vickie April 12, 2011 Love how this is looking. I did my bathroom walls ina previous house and painted them rusty red. It looked like oxblood leather. I haven’t gotten brave enough to do a floor yet. Reply
vickie April 12, 2011 Love how this is looking. I did my bathroom walls ina previous house and painted them rusty red. It looked like oxblood leather. I haven’t gotten brave enough to do a floor yet. Reply
Sheila April 12, 2011 That’s awesome…looks very sophistocated…wanna come to my house…I have a couple bathrooms that need major floor refinishing….lol Reply
Sheila April 12, 2011 That’s awesome…looks very sophistocated…wanna come to my house…I have a couple bathrooms that need major floor refinishing….lol Reply
tracy April 12, 2011 wow you are so amazing,I think everything you have done is fantastic, I posted it on my blog to share with all of my southern friends here in Tn. thanks for sharing your work!!! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 Thank you so much Tracy, how kind of you to repost! I’ll stop by your blog! Reply
Marty@A Stroll Thru Life April 12, 2011 This is so pretty and so creative. What a great idea. Thanks for joining TTT. Hugs, Marty Reply
Barbara aka Pink Overalls April 12, 2011 Genius! I had my doubts when I started reading, but you’ve totally won me over. Now, to talk DH into trying it here. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 12, 2011 LOL Barbara! That seems to be the normal reaction, like uhhh…..trust me I was unsure at first, but I am super picky about things looking cheap and non-pro, but I really like this-especially compared to carpet. And, if/when we decide to do hardwood upstairs, it can just go right over the top! Reply
Joyce Meier April 15, 2011 This looks so fantastic! This is a crazy question and I know you said how you clean it. My daughter has a two story house and her doggie door is located in the large wrap around hall closet. The senior dogs have had some accidents 🙁 do you think this would work in an area that needs to be dog cleaned often? she keeps saying she’s going to rip out the carpet? Reply
Laura @ Ms Smartie Pants April 16, 2011 I did this a long time ago to my bathroom walls and loved it! As soon as I saw your rug the floor caught my attention and I thought did she… It’s a great look, at the price is definitely right! Reply
angela April 18, 2011 We are going to do this in our upstairs guest bedroom i was wondering if you stain the floor when it is still wet or completly dry? Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 18, 2011 Wait until the paper and glue has completely dried before staining-usually overnight is sufficient! Reply
gina April 23, 2011 I have a child care upstairs and have wanted to remove the carpet I saw this yrs ago thanks for revival. I was wondering about doing this on a cement floor. Any thoughts? Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 23, 2011 Gina- I would try it on cement, but a lady who commented below said she sealed her concrete first and had problems with adhesion. Unfortunately I ddon’t have first hand knowledge, but I think if you skipped the sealer it might work better. Reply
jana April 25, 2011 WISH WE COULD DO THIS IDEA ON MY FLOORS THAT ARE NOW CARPETED. BUT THEY HAVE CEMENT UNDER THE CARPET. GET SO TIRED OF SHAMPOING THEM. ANY IDEAS TO HELP? JANA Reply
linda May 2, 2011 i am so loving your blog! do you think this paper project would work on an old vinyl floor? do you think application would be any different? have you thought about papering a dropcloth like this to work as an area rug?thank you so much for answering all my questions..linda Reply
sheila June 7, 2011 i can’t wait to do this!!! it is beautiful! can you please tell me what brand and color of stain you used? Reply
Alisha July 26, 2011 I LOVE this! I would defiitely consider doing this myself! My only question is: Is it durable enough to withstand the test of time? PS~ I hope you dont mind me reposting this to my fledgling blog! =) Reply
Lovely Crafty Home July 27, 2011 Alisha, so far it has been great!! I have heard from others that it has lasted 7-10 years. We are planning on doing hardwoods eventually up there, so I don’t know how long we’ll have with it but I am loving it! Thank you for reposting! Reply
jolene July 30, 2011 I want to know what color your stain is! I would like to use THIS color! 😀 Reply
jolene July 30, 2011 Uh– nevermind I found it! Can you tell us how much poly you used? As in for 200 sqft, I used 2 gallons– I read that one person used almost a gallon per sqft. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home July 31, 2011 Hmmm….I don’t know for sure since I’ve done two staircases and a hallway but to give you an idea: I have part of my second gallon left and have done 1 small bedroom (about 8×10) and one larger bedroom (about 10 x 12) plus the (2) stairs and hallway. Almost everything has 12 coats. 1 gallon per square foot is WAY off. I expect our master to use the rest of the second gallon and most of a 3rd (it’s the size of the other two bedrooms combined). Our whole top floor is 622 sq. ft. Hope that helps!
Lina Adreani October 10, 2011 I did jump in and do thsi on my basement flor..looks great..but it did chip with the furniture moving so we put carpet pads on the bottom of all the furniture..but i used a gallon and part of a gallon and didnt even do as many coats as you in a much smaller area? am i using to much poly at a time like too thick? could this also be why our ripped?
Lovely Crafty Home October 10, 2011 Lina- It’s possible you’re putting it on too thick…how long did you let the last coat dry before moving furniture in? It really needs a week to fully cure and harden, so I put felt on everything right from the start. I still put felt on all the furniture just for extra protection.
Tiffany October 14, 2011 Love your floor. It looks great. I am trying to find a durable floor covering for my basement. We have epoxied our concrete floor and it has cracked. My kids roller skate and ride-on toys. Do you think it might stand up to that abuse?
rachaelevans October 14, 2011 I don’t think it would be a good idea for that application Tiffany, it will scratch like wood floors.
Kelly W. August 7, 2011 I just found this via pinterest and I love it! Do you think it would be sturdy enough to stand up to a kitchen? We currently have the stick on tiles, thanks to the previous owner, and they are coming up at the seams. 🙁 Got to do something! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home August 7, 2011 Kelly- Are you talking about a counter or a backsplash? I know people who have done it on desk/dresser tops with good results, but for a countertop you’d really have to sand the surface and I might even try that resin stuff instead of poly on top. If I had a countertop in bad condition, I’d certainly try it anyways LOL. Reply
Letecia August 22, 2011 I’ve done this in my husband’s office, my son’s room and a hallway. I”d like to try stain in our bedroom. How did you apply it? Reply
Letecia August 22, 2011 I’ve done this in 2 rooms and a hallway. I’d like to use stain when I do my bedroom. How did you apply the stain? I layed down my paper with glue. I see where some people use polyurethane Do you think it would work to add stain to the glue/polyurethane? Reply
Lovely Crafty Home August 22, 2011 I prefer to use the glue/water over poly to adhere the paper because it’s MUCH cheaper, and dries faster. Plus, I haven’t seen anything to suggest the poly makes it last longer. I would not recommend mixing the stain with anything because I used an oil based stain, but the poly I like is waterbased. If your paper is dry, you can apply the stain with a lambskin mop pad (like for staining decks), then follow with poly (using a sponge mop head). Hope that helps! Reply
Letecia August 30, 2011 Thanks! I wish I had used stain in the two rooms I’ve done already but I’m gearing up to do the living and dining rooms. I’m debating between special walnut and dark walnut for the stain. It looks like you were successful using oilbased stain under the waterbased polyurethane. I hope to recreate the same success.
Nicole BYler September 17, 2011 I love this idea!!Looks great!!I am wanting to do it in my kitchen, but I have the vinyl on the floor now and concret under it. DO you think it would work just putting it over the vinyl? Reply
Lovely Crafty Home September 17, 2011 I know of people who have done it on vinyl, my suggestion would be to make sure the vinyl is in good condition, clean it very well, then sand it with some 80 grit before starting. Hope that helps! Reply
Anna September 18, 2011 i saw this on pinterest and was curious. i’ve been thinking about doing a similar thing with magazine pages/pictures. i’ve been concerned about the durability. you’ve had it for a few months, how is it holding up? does it nick and scratch easily? does is show any water damage when you mop up? is there any downside to this? it’s a large floor and would be time consuming, so i would love some additional input before i go on this journey. thanx! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home September 18, 2011 Hi Anna! In my opinion it is holding up great. I use a swiffer type mop (cloth pad with my own solution), not a traditional mop and it cleans beautifully. I treat it the same as hardwood. I wouldn’t leave a puddle of water on my hardwood floors, and I wouldn’t leave a puddle on the paper floors either. We do have a dog and there are a few scratches from her nails when she got rowdy one night…not “typical” dog walking if you know what I mean. Regular foot traffic has been fine-especially the stairs which are holding up way better than I thought given the traffic they get. We have also done 2 rooms (not sure if you saw those posts) so I can say it looks great in a large area. I use area rugs in the rooms and felt pads under furniture. Is there a downside? I suppose so, I mean I will have to add quarter round to the baseboards because there is a 1″ gap between them and the floor. It may not be as durable as tile, vinyl, or laminate/engineered wood. To me it performs about the same as our oak floors. It’s soft enough to scratch if you try hard enough. Would I go back to carpet? NO. Was it worth the roughly $100 I have spent on two staircases, a hallway, and two rooms? YES. The only thing I would replace this floor with is hardwood (which is in the plans eventually…like 5 years maybe). I am very happy with it, and I wouldn’t hesitate to replace any bad flooring with this method. At the very least it’s a temporary solution. Hope that helps! Reply
Angela March 7, 2014 I am doing my guest room and I will just be lowering my baseboards …just a thought.
Karissa September 18, 2011 First off, I love it! I can’t wait to look atbthe rest of your work. I had a few questions for you if you don’t mind answering. First, what type of glue did you use to put the paper down? secondly, did you just stain the paper after the glue dried? Thanks so much and keep up the awesome work! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home September 18, 2011 I used plain-ol Elmer’s Glue, and yes, I stained after the glue dried 🙂 Reply
lj September 19, 2011 I love this! My question is though, if we do this…. in 5 years if we want to do a different flooring (tiles or hard wood) would we just do it right over this? Reply
Lovely Crafty Home September 20, 2011 Yup, that’s our plan- to eventually put hardwood right over it. Reply
april September 24, 2011 i want to do this on my stairs but i seem to be missing a few steps how did you put the brown paper down. did u wet it and ball it up then put it down. how did you sucure it to the floor before the polly part. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home September 26, 2011 April: Check out this post for the complete tutorial http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/03/14/brown-paper-packages/ Reply
A Stenciled Drop Cloth Rug October 14, 2011 […] what’s up with the floor? Click here to read about […] Reply
Jeannette October 14, 2011 Will this work on concrete floor?? My house is built on a slab with no subfloor. I would love to try this! Reply
rachaelevans October 14, 2011 My dad did it on concrete using poly only (the glue won’t stick). Reply
Michele October 19, 2011 I was so excited to do this project but also was attempting to treat concrete. After two goes at it and my husband pressuring me to have completion, I gave up. I will attempt another run at our bathroom floor for a temporary fix until a remodel. Overall I just love the look. I would suggest an alternate adhesive for concrete. Also, I found that I wasn’t overlapping my pieces enough so as the paper dried they shrunk and left occasional gap between pieces. Reply
rachaelevans October 19, 2011 Michele- For concrete you will need to adhere the paper with polyurethane instead of glue. Hope that helps!
rachaelevans October 25, 2011 Cindy- Basically you’d crumple the paper, brush the floor with poly, then lay the paper and brush poly over it. I haven’t actually done this myself, but I have heard that the poly will stick to the concrete. Hope that helps!
Lauren October 29, 2011 I think this idea is such a great thing for subfloor application but why would you want to apply it to concrete floors? You can stain concrete floors and get the same effect. Please don’t take this as a negative comment. I just wanted to make sure everyone was aware that you could stain it. There should be plenty of online tutorials for concrete staining if you are interested. Reply
rachaelevans October 31, 2011 Lauren- that is a good point, I have seen some gorgeous stain on concrete! Reply
Paige November 8, 2011 Staining my concrete hallway is not an option due to the condition of the concrete. So I am curious is papering it. I understand that I would need to coat the concrete with poly rather that glue before laying the paper; but would I still soak the paper in a water/glue mixture? Any advice is greatly appreciated. With a baby on the way, I’m ready to get this project completed!
rachaelevans November 9, 2011 Paige- Michelle just gave a helpful comment, she did use 50/50 glue which worked for her. But I have also heard that glue does not work, so it may depend on the condition and consistency of the concrete. You could try the glue in a small area first to test it. Otherwise, you’ll be using poly only-no glue-which makes it harder to add stain in. You’d probably brush the poly on, lay the paper, then brush poly on top…I wouldn’t soak it.
Sarah November 2, 2011 I think this is FABULOUS… I was just day dreaming this morning about ripping up the flloor in our bathroom off one of the bedrooms, then thought I’d take out everything and start new…. THIS could be the flloor I end up with… the bedroom is very rustic, so this would be fantastic in my opinion.! thank you for sharing this awesome technique! Reply
Mitch McElroy November 2, 2011 I like the look. Lot easier than tiling which I planned to do in hallway and living room. Is there a problem yet with putting things on it or moving things around. Certainly I would think you really couldn’t move things around by pushing around, you would probably have to pick it up to move it. Looks great though. Let me know something on setting things on it. Reply
rachaelevans November 2, 2011 Mitch- After the poly fully cures (depends on what you use) you’d be surprised at how resilient it is. Still, I put those felt feet on all my furniture and it slides fine. I treat them the same way I treat my hardwoods downstairs. Reply
Michelle Smith November 8, 2011 We did put this paper floor on our cement slab back in 1999, Needed an inexpensive floor treatment, tried several things that just didnt work, being frustrated I picked up a decorating book from the 70’s and came across an article on “faux flagstone” floors using either paper bags or brown kraft paper, tried it on a story board and loved it, we used white elmers glue cut 50/50 with water, but we didn’t crumble our paper, we used a roller brush to put glue on back of paper, put it on the floor and rolled glue over the top, when room was finished 20×30 we let it dry the applied water based polly on top about 4 times, when it dried it looked like stone, felt great and has held up even with my 3 cats except for scratch marks, nothing major. Everyone loves my floors and several have coppied it, We did install new vinyl planks on the downstairs due to the fact we are selling out home and didn’t think most people would like the paper floors but we have left it in the upstairs bedrooms. It still looks good after 12 years. Pet stains will ruin it if you don’t clean it soon, but you can redo any part at anytime. I would do this again. Reply
Michelle Smith November 8, 2011 I forgot to say that not only did this stick to my cement, it is almost impossible to get off (we needed to replace a spot and it took an effort to get it up) and we live in a high humidity area so it does wrinle up a little but flattens back out when we turn on air or humidity goes down. Hope this helps. Reply
rachaelevans November 9, 2011 Thank you so much for sharing Michelle!! You are the only person who has ever written that has done this to their cement floor with glue. That is really good to know 🙂
Kate November 10, 2011 I love this look, and of course, the low cost! I want to do it in our office, but my husband is afraid that it will be impossible to change in the future. He thinks that it may be too thick to put another floor over–how thick is it with all the coats of poly? Thanks! Reply
rachaelevans November 10, 2011 Kate- it’s VERY thin actually even with all the poly, which is why you need shoe molding to cover the gap in the baseboard. I would not hesitate to put hardwood right over top in the future. Reply
Jealous Floor Girl November 11, 2011 So how do you do it? Glue the paper bags? and then stain it?I love it! Reply
Jealous Floor Girl November 11, 2011 So how exactly do you do this? Do you glue the bags down first? Reply
rachaelevans November 11, 2011 Check out the tutorial here: http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply
Randa November 15, 2011 My friend just shared this link with me. It looks great. I’m your 600th follower. Would love it if you could visit some time and follow back @ thebewitchinkitchen.com Reply
Taryn @ Design, Dining + Dipaers December 13, 2011 This is awesome! I may be late to the game, but I’ve never seen anything like this before. This is so cool! Reply
Christine January 4, 2012 WOW!! Love it! My Mom did this with masking tape on our lamp shades when I was a kid. BUT… I must do this… Question???? You did 8 coats of poly but how waster resistant is it???? Please let me know! I’d like to do my kitchen. Thanks Reply
rachaelevans January 4, 2012 Christine- I know people who have used it in bathrooms, I would say to treat it like hardwood. I wet mop mine (spray mop, not a traditional mop) and wipe up spills immediately. I actually went back and added 4 more coats of poly, I recommend 12. Reply
Alicia choate January 4, 2012 I was wondering how you did the stain? Did you blot it or do it with a roller? I have my walls done like this but I didn’t stain them and I love it but the floors I would want to stain. Reply
rachaelevans January 4, 2012 Alicia, check out my comprehensive tutorial here: http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply
Tracey January 10, 2012 This is awesome!!!! I have this little landing at the bottom of my split home stairs I need to cover with something. I was doing another type of flooring, but ran out and haven’t been too thrilled to finish it. I might try this instead. Reply
Dina Bartlett January 10, 2012 I want to use the white kraft paper on my wall, can it be used the same as the brown? Reply
Kalie January 11, 2012 I love the look and would love it in my drab entryway!!! Our house is very rustic so I think it would be fun! But what to do when tired of it??? Would it be hard to put flooring over??? Thanks for sharing your great idea!!!! LOVE it! Reply
rachaelevans January 12, 2012 Kalie- We are planning to lay hardwood right over it eventually. Carpet would also go easily over the top. You might need some prep for tile (sanding through some of the poly), but I’ve never laid floor tile so I can’t speak to that unfortunately. Hope that helps! Reply
Marcia Cox January 14, 2012 Great floor! I did this on walls in my basement. They were old paneled walls that I hated so I tore the craft paper and mod podged it right over the paneling. I was afraid the cracks on the paneling would show through but they didn’t! It covered great and looks great! I didn’t seal the walls and they have looked good for several years. My next project to update the walls will be to burnish them with copper paint, just to highlight the areas. Reply
Tracy Culley February 4, 2012 Do you think instead of the coats of poly, you could put epoxy down? Reply
Julie February 5, 2012 Can I ask what do you use to stick the paper to the floor before you stain it? Reply
rachaelevans February 5, 2012 Julie- I use Elmer’s Glue and water…the complete tutorial is found at the top of the page in the menu. Reply
Cheryl Puckett February 8, 2012 I was wondering how it is holding up after this much time? Are you still as happy with it as you were in the beginning? We are buying a condo and I want to spruce up some areas….and I love this idea. I have seen it on kitchen counters, too…and am thinking of doing it in my kitchen until we replace the counters with granite. Reply
rachaelevans February 8, 2012 Cheryl- We still love it…it is holding up great and I doubt there is an alternative (aside from hardwood) that I would like better at this point. Hope that helps! Reply
Kathy February 21, 2012 I really want to do this to my stairway. My question is how did you do this without “help” from you cats? I only have one cat, but she is NOSY! So I am just wondering how you handled it when you got to the poly stage. Thanks! Reply
rachaelevans February 22, 2012 Kathy- I would keep her in another room with food/water/litter box. Ours didn’t seem very interested in the process haha. Reply
Miss Bee February 24, 2012 I have hand made terra cotta tiles in my kitchen and dining room. They were made to be uneven surfaced. The floor ripples. I’ve been told that hardwood would not last even if I had a thick underlayment because of the ripple effect. I don’t want carpet. Since many of the tiles are cracked I am thinking of trying this covering each cracked tile with smooth paper and staining the paper to match the terra cotta. Any advice? Reply
rachaelevans February 25, 2012 Miss Bee- It’s certainly worth a shot given the lack of options…you could try the red rosin paper instead of the brown, that might be a better match colorwise. Reply
EthelSmith February 25, 2012 I just used this process to cover the top of a coffee table. I am waiting for the stain to dry right now. Unfortunately it looks like I’m going to have spots that got much darker than the rest. It looks like maybe the paper didn’t have enough glue on it and the stain made it wet. Did you have this problem? Should I try to recover those spots? By the way – your floors look awesome! Reply
rachaelevans February 25, 2012 Hmmmm…I’m not sure what happened…was the paper totally dry when you applied the stain? You could recover them if you like, but if it’s not that noticeable I wouldn’t worry about it 🙂 Reply
Patti Brooks March 5, 2012 This is GREAT and you did a wonderful job. I want to do my living room walls and ceiling, but do you know if this can be done on blown ceilings? (popcorn ceilings). I have researched and can not find any info on the ceilings. I appreciate any help you have. And again, you did a great job! Reply
rachaelevans March 6, 2012 Patti- I would think so, but you may end up seeing the texture in the final product. I would suggest trying it in a small area to test it out. Reply
BriSwartley March 19, 2012 The popcorn texture is actually really easy to remove. Just spray it down really good with diluted vinegar and scrape it with a putty knife. I’ve only got one room left to remove it from =) there are videos online, some people’s just falls off if you wet it enough. I had to scrape a little but not much. I suggest using a gardner sprayer and covering all your light fixtures first. Reply
marianne thibodeau April 3, 2012 OH MY GOODNTIS IS SOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL I have to know adzactly how you did this please tell me. Are you using brown paper bags and then staining the floor. How do you do this process i really want to do it in my home. What is poly please please i really need to know how to do this can you send me an email with the step by step process Im begging you this is the most coolest thing I hve ever seen, My goodness you are so creative. You should have your own design show WOW TRULY AMAZING!!!!!!! please email me mthibodeau@telus.net and in subject line put LEATHER LOOK FLOOR thanks so much I wil blog about this and get your site traffic. Ill definately be telling all my friends. Reply
rachaelevans April 3, 2012 Marianne- There is a complete tutorial here http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply
Ericka April 4, 2012 Just wanted to stop by and say thanks for the information! My husband and I just did our kitchen/dining room floors using kraft paper. We tweaked it to make it look like wood, though! Would love to share pictures if you are interested! -Ericka Reply
rachaelevans April 18, 2012 Heather- I haven’t used it in a bathroom, but I know of people who have with success. Just remember it’s a lot like wood flooring so standing water is a no-no. You’d have to just be careful about tub/shower use. Reply
Monica April 25, 2012 Thanks so much for this. I’m glad I ran across it. I’ve ‘pin’ it so I can find it agan. We are buying a house that has carpet in the kitchen – UGH! At this point I don’t know what is under there (sub-floor or vinyl) and I’ve been wondering what to do with it. I want it gone ASAP but worry about the expense. Now I know that I can get it taken care of with a little work on my part. Thanks again….I’m so excited now. Reply
april edwards May 9, 2012 Can you please let me know what you put it down with? Glue,ect. I love this,I have a cowgirl coming home from a college break and want it done before she gets home. Thank you. Please email me with it. Reply
rachaelevans May 9, 2012 April- full instructions can be found here http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply
debbie July 13, 2012 I just finished this in a bedroom. It came out good except a few piceses wrinkled even after I smoothed with wall paper smoothie. Did yours have a few wrinkles & how did you get them out? Thanks Reply
Cat June 3, 2012 My question is…we have a backporch area that is screened in and have particle boad on he floor. I have painted it, but would love to do this to the floor. Do you think it would hold up to outside weather???? It is pretty protected, but gets occasional wet puddles from the rain and snow. Reply
rachaelevans June 4, 2012 Cat- I’d be hesitant to apply this anywhere that could be wet for an extended period of time. The standing water will erode the poly (think of water spots on hardwood). Reply
sonji c June 19, 2012 I love it!! It would be perfct for my bedroom and less expensive than hardwood. I can”t wait to try it. Reply
Cindy June 26, 2012 Love this look. Can I do it on a cement floor? Would like this in my basement. It is high traffic in the winter months because of mud, calving and all, but I think it would work. Please give me your opinion. Thanks C Reply
rachaelevans June 26, 2012 Cindy, you can read about my experience with concrete here: http://lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/12/06/a-10-x-10-corner/ Reply
Marcia July 11, 2012 I was wondering if this is something that I could do on my patio? Do you think it would stick down on concrete? Also, do you think that I could use some type of outdoor poly to seal it? I would love this look out there. Reply
rachaelevans July 12, 2012 Marcia- I wouldn’t recommend it for outdoor spaces at all, I just don’t think it would hold up long term. Reply
Heather July 27, 2012 Hi there! I apologize if this is a repeat question… We have almost completed the “putting the paper down” phase of this project, and I was re-reading the instructions when I realized that in the list of items used, you gave a link to the minwax (oil based) stain, but then later said that you had used a water based stain… I am wanting to use a water base for both the stain and poly, did you use a water based stain, and if so, which one? Thank you!! Reply
rachaelevans July 27, 2012 Heather- I used oil based stain and water based poly. I have not heard many good reports with the water based stain, so you might want to test it in a small area before you go that route. Good luck! Reply
Charity September 7, 2012 I am still in the process of doing this to my guest room. I love it so far. I used glue/water mixture on concrete. We have a slab home and it had what I call old school tile. It worked fine for me. I am totally bummed at how long it is taking for the poly to dry. I did two coats today and I feel like I rushed it. I didn’t realize it would take me this long. I live in a small house so the things that need to go back in the room are driving me nuts sitting around the house. I stained mine but kinda wish I would have skipped that step. I got stain on my perfectly painted trim. My fault on that cause I should have removed it. I love your idea on the stairs but this has killed my back so I think it will be awhile. Thanks so much for the wonderful instructions. Reply
rachaelevans September 12, 2012 Cheryl- I’m not sure, I haven’t personally done it but maybe someone else has? I would worry about the cracks between boards showing up through the paper. I would kill for hardwood upstairs though, may I ask why you want to cover it up? Reply
Sabrina Reynolds September 25, 2012 I did this in my Master Bath about 3 months ago and couldn’t be happier. It is still gorgeous as ever and very durable. Thank you for the amazing tutorial…I followed it to a tee and it worked out GRAND! Reply
Crystal September 27, 2012 Does anyone know how this would do on top of felt paper that is over concrete? Reply
fawn September 29, 2012 my husband and I followed the tutorial for this exactly, same products, same method, same everything and it failed. water based poly over oil based stain is not a good idea. it crackled up under our tennis shoes. we are going to try a test spot with laquer but if that doesnt work we will have to do wood flooring. hope others dont have the same issues. Reply
Rachael Evans September 29, 2012 Fawn- I’m so sorry you had a fail! I’m not sure what went wrong, did you do it on plywood subfloor? Reply
Linda October 9, 2012 Years ago they used this with paper bags, even on the walls. You did a great job. I wanted to do this in an entry way but had no time so used wood tile. Linda Reply
Chris at Padoozles December 9, 2012 My daughter sent this page over to me, and I’m so glad she did! I think she and her husband may be planning on doing this in their new home, but I also think I’m going to try it in MY home as well! I’m thinking this will be very nice in our master bedroom, so we can take a little more time to get it done… won’t be rushed as much as you had to be putting it in your hallway. However, if this looks as nice as it does in your pictures, perhaps we’ll move on out from that master bedroom area and into other parts of the house. Thank you very much for posting this. I am always in awe of the resourcefulness and creativity of people and of some of the things they can figure out. Just very nice here, really. Reply
J P December 14, 2012 It would be better to move the base board down. You will have to splice in new molding at the doorway, but the end result would be much more desirable. Reply
Deb January 25, 2013 Love your ideas. If people read the comments they would have all their questions answered! Sheesh. I’m going to try this on a kitchen wall that was wall papered and then painted over. Our puppy would hide under the table and pull the paper off the wall! Sooo I think this might be te perfect solution! Thanks for sharing Reply
Tricia February 6, 2013 Ok I am going to try this in laundry room but need to know how long it will take so I can move washer and dryer back and how long I wait between coats of poly super excited to try this thAnks for sharing Reply
Brittani February 8, 2013 I want to do this to my living room but can’t find the steps after pulling up carpet to polyurethane need help please Reply
Upcycling April 22, 2013 […] in paper bags. It looks almost like a leather floor. What a nice inexpensive floor covering. http://lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/04/…lway-makeover/ ****If you are new to my paper floors, please read this first.*** […] Reply
Dakara April 22, 2013 I love you idea of using paper for flooring. I used brown paper to cover a mess of stuff in a bathroom once. Similar technique… torn and crumpled then wall papered with paste to the wall.. did the entire bathroom as there was part of old paper on the wall etc… sponged in a accent of gold paint to give is added glimmer.. then coated the walls with a finish clear coat… what a HUGE difference that and a new shower curtain made… felt like home vs a disaster zone. Reply
Paper bag Floor - DIY Crafty Projects July 2, 2013 […] Pin It Source: lovelycraftyhome.com via Amber on […] Reply
Brenda August 11, 2013 What a great idea. Have seen it done on walls, but not on floors before now. Reply
jen September 1, 2013 I just wanted to thank you for this amazing idea! I now have paper bag floors covering 2/3 of my home including kitchen and bathrooms. They have been in for over a year now and we absolutely LOVE them! They stand up to everything from water to tonka trucks. Everyone that sees them loves the look 🙂 thanks again! Reply
Robin Massengill October 4, 2013 I am doing this in my home, one bedroom we pulled up carpet and then the sticky tile, It all looked good. Got my paper down and I had some sort of color bleed through, a spot of green and a spot of red. It is all dried now, but not sure what to do to get rid of if. I don’t want to stain the floor with that on there. What kind of recommendations are there for this sort of thing? Reply
Robin Massengill October 4, 2013 I just finished one bedroom and I have 2 spots of bleed through one green and one red, not sure what they are, don’t remember seeing any coloring on the floor prior. I am wondering what kind of solution there is for this. I don’t have it stained yet as I want to get rid of these spots. Any suggestions? Reply
Sophie November 4, 2013 Great tranformation it`s hard to think how you do that makeover i want to try …. but i wish i can do ill try my best Reply
Paper Floor Inspiration - An Oregon Cottage November 20, 2013 […] from Lovely Crafty Home has transformed two sets of stairs and an upper hallway so dramatically, I just had to share her […] Reply
Laurie April 20, 2014 Will mine ever cure? It’s been 6 week in bathroom, can still see water spots? Reply
Paper Bag Crafts | Inspired Home Style May 21, 2014 […] Paper Bag Floor ~ Ok now I have seen it all. Seriously…this floor is incredible. I actually thought it was leather when I first saw the photos. […] Reply
Paper Floor Inspiration April 25, 2015 […] from Lovely Crafty Home has transformed two sets of stairs and an upper hallway so dramatically, I just had to share her […] Reply
Paper Bag Scrapbooks - Somewhat Simple September 13, 2015 […] Paper Bag Floor from Lovely Crafty […] Reply
BACK - July 12, 2017 […] times better. I’m toying around with the idea of stenciling it, but then I found someone who used brown paper and stain on a subfloor! Wow…it looks like […] Reply
