Brown Paper Packages… March 14, 2011 DIY, Eco Friendly Projects, Home Decor, Inspiration, Our House, Tutorials 152 Comments 65823 ********If you are new to my paper floors, please read this first********** tied up with string… Brown craft paper is quickly climbing up the ladder as one of my favorite things- and you know how I love my drop cloth. But I just can’t believe the versatility of this also-banned-to-the-painting-aisle material. Seriously, is there a club for people like me? It all started with my desire to get rid of the carpet in our house. The main floor has hardwood, but the whole upstairs plus the staircase is all carpet. If it was nice carpet, maybe I wouldn’t be complaining. But it’s fairly cheap and having 4 animals has certainly taken its toll. I started seeing more and more staircase makeovers in blog land where dingy carpet was ripped up to reveal lovely hardwood treads just waiting for some TLC. No such luck here, as a quick peek under our carpet revealed mdf. UGH. It would be impossible to remove the carpet upstairs without addressing the stairs, so I was losing hope. Ridding the house of carpet was becoming more and more of a pipe dream until I picked up an issue of Cottages and Bungalows and saw this: Image courtesy of An Oregon Cottage Jami from An Oregon Cottage had been featured in the magazine for her unique floor treatment using brown craft paper. I was immediately intrigued and began doing more research. The more I thought about it, the more I was in love with this alternative look-the paper can even be stained for a custom finish! I saw many examples of people using this technique on their floors, but I couldn’t find a single picture of a staircase with brown paper treads. I wanted to give the look a test drive, so I decided to give our (previously painted) basement stairs a makeover. They were looking pretty bad anyway- and I’d get to see the finished product before I well all Jack The Ripper upstairs. It’s pretty bad, I know. It’s like a cranberry dungeon/laundry chute-not very inviting, especially with the crazy eyed cat hanging out at the bottom. I painted the stairs when we first moved, and they’re definitely showing wear. Plus, I had a little…uhm…accident (Blackberry + paint = Sticky phone that doesn’t work) with some white paint which dripped all the way up the stairs. I have no excuse for the cranberry walls except that I thought it’d be a good idea to use leftover paint we had from the front door. Let’s just chalk it up to a bad pre-home-design-blog-obsession days, mmm k? I think it’s safe to say that it couldn’t really get any worse. I started by painting the risers white, then gathered my supplies for the paper bagging: Roll of brown paper (near the painters drop cloth) Gallon Elmer’s glue (bought at AC Moore with a 40% off coupon and barely made a dent in it) Gallon Water Based Floor Grade Polyurethane (about $40) Paintbrush A few cheapo sponge brushes for the poly Begin by tearing pieces of brown paper. Rip the straight edges off the roll and tear them into random pieces (I used about 4-6″ pieces for stairs…for a floor you’ll probably wan’t 8-10″ pieces). Tear the middle portion of the roll into similar pieces. I used two grocery bags to keep my pieces separates, crumpling each piece into a ball before it went in. Mix up a bowl of glue using a 3:1 ratio (3C water to 1C glue). Working on the perimeter first (straight edges), drop the paper balls into the glue and squeeze them gently like a sponge. Keep dipping and squeezing until the paper is saturated, then flatten it out and squeegee it with your hands. Brush your surface with the glue mixture in the area you’re working in. Lay your pieces down as if you were decoupaging, overlapping in areas. Be sure to smooth out wrinkles (although some will crop up during the drying process, they will likely disappear later) and air bubbles. I did every other stair so we could still use them. Once everything is done, allow 24-48 hours for it to dry completely. Apply at least 10 (I ended up doing 12) coats of water based polyurethane, lightly sanding between each coat if you want. Follow the guidelines on your poly for re-coating/drying time. After the stairs were done, I repainted the stairwell with my fav color: Burnished Clay by Behr. It would have been easier to paint before I did the stairs (note to self), but I was able to get it done without too many issues. If this result isn’t a testimony to Behr’s Ultra paint/primer in one, I don’t know what is. Another angle… Since these are basement stairs, I didn’t spend time adding stain. I did already start upstairs with stain though, and it looks amazing. A complete tutorial can be found in my Ultimate Brown Paper Flooring Guide. So, what’s the verdict? Would you ever try this technique on your floors? Your walls? A piece of furniture? 152 Responses Robin March 14, 2011 AMAZING! I’ve seen this done on walls, but never on floors- it turned out awesome! I might just have the right piece of furniture to give this a try on- love your blog! Reply marie September 4, 2011 I’m in process of doing this treatment now in my house. Beats the cheap & ugly vinyl flooring. IT LOOKS GREAT!! It’s cost effective and looks high end. Seems like a win -win to me. Reply Heather September 12, 2011 I was just wondering.. did you tear up your vinyl floor or lay it over it? If you layed it over how does it look? Can you see the vinyl design under it? Lovely Crafty Home September 12, 2011 We didn’t have vinyl…just plywood subfloor after I ripped up the carpet. Francine Johnson McGee October 21, 2012 I also did this treatment all over my house. I did it right over the vinyl in my kitchen. I used the same paper she used in most rooms, but in the kitchen I used vintage cookbook pages with some light stain over them. Since my vinyl floor has a little bit of texture to it, that comes through, but you can’t notice unless you’re looking for it. People are always reading the recipes on my floor. It’s kinda funny. Test your paper with the glue 1st if using printed pages. I used a book of victorian trade cards in one of my bathroom floors, and the image from the other side bled through. It’s not too bad, I am going to try and save it with some stained urethane, but if that doesn’t work I’ll just put something else over the top of it. That’s the beauty of this project. Get a hole, just put down another piece of paper and some more poly. We put our poly on in thick coats, but we weren’t doing stairs. It has held up well for over a year. I use a shark steamer to clean them, which I don’t do often enough, but both the cookbook pages and the brown paper hide the dirt much better than my crappy vinyl or uber cheap carpets ever did. I LOVE it. chris November 8, 2012 Please post pics of that would love to see. Robin March 14, 2011 AMAZING! I’ve seen this done on walls, but never on floors- it turned out awesome! I might just have the right piece of furniture to give this a try on- love your blog! Reply Suz in the Tules March 14, 2011 Lovely! And a lot less costy. Plus, I would hate to cut flooring for the stairs! Reply Laurie March 14, 2011 Very well done. I did this on the top of some desks and end tables. I love this finish on furniture. I will have to try the floors. Reply Tanya March 14, 2011 I just love this. My cousin did this on an entire focal wall in her living room a few years ago. Your stairs turned out great =) Reply Ashley March 14, 2011 Great job, this is totally amazing, it looks so PRO!! Great job!! Reply Ashley March 14, 2011 Great job, this is totally amazing, it looks so PRO!! Great job!! Reply Kassi @ Truly Lovely March 14, 2011 HUGE improvement!! Funny how your style and tastes change the longer your familiar with blogging, huh! haha! I’m the same way! We don’t have stairs… anywhere, but it’s a cool idea to try! Reply julie March 14, 2011 That is awesome. I would do it in a heartbeat if I knew that the paper would hold up. Did you put a varnish or other kind of clear sealant on the steps? I have seen crinkled up,torn pieces of brown paper bag on walls and that is really beautiful. Great texture and hues. Reply Lovely Crafty Home March 14, 2011 Julie- I have it on good authority that it does, from several people who have used it in their homes. The only sealer is the floor grade polyurethane, the same way hardwood floors are finished. You can always lightly sand and re-coat if spots are getting worn (but there are 6 original coats, so it would take a long time to get to bare paper). Also, patching is easy…just sand lightly and glue down more paper. Reply julie March 14, 2011 That is awesome. I would do it in a heartbeat if I knew that the paper would hold up. Did you put a varnish or other kind of clear sealant on the steps? I have seen crinkled up,torn pieces of brown paper bag on walls and that is really beautiful. Great texture and hues. Reply Shannon March 19, 2011 omg – you are a genius!! That looks SO good! I will def. be trying this little bit of wonderfulness! lol – LOVE IT! Reply Kendra @ Creative Ambitions March 19, 2011 LOVE this idea! I think it looks great!! Brown paper flooring… who would have thought?? Kendra Reply Pamela Manes March 19, 2011 Wow, I am so impressed with how this has turned out…looks great and I can’t wait to see the stained stairs on your other stairs! I have been seeing a number of great, original ideas here lately and that’s why I love Blogland! Great job! ~Pam pamspaintparlor.typepad.com Reply Pamela Manes March 19, 2011 Wow, I am so impressed with how this has turned out…looks great and I can’t wait to see the stained stairs on your other stairs! I have been seeing a number of great, original ideas here lately and that’s why I love Blogland! Great job! ~Pam pamspaintparlor.typepad.com Reply cristie March 19, 2011 What a great idea as I’m sitting here looking at my ugly stairs….think I’ll try it. How well does it hold up? Great tutorial. Thanks. Reply Ellie March 19, 2011 That’s amazing! It seriously doesn’t look like the same staircase! Stopping by from FJ’s SNS. 🙂 Reply Pat March 20, 2011 Wow! who’d of thought to do that on the stairs or the floor even, I’ve done a piece of furniture this way, but didn’t think of doing it on the floor. I like how this turned out. I could do this~ Pat Reply kendra Caudill March 20, 2011 I loved this idea! I used it on my bathroom counter after reading this post. It came out wonderful. http://kendrazblog-kendra.blogspot.com/2011/03/my-bathroom-revamp.html Reply kendra Caudill March 20, 2011 I loved this idea! I used it on my bathroom counter after reading this post. It came out wonderful. http://kendrazblog-kendra.blogspot.com/2011/03/my-bathroom-revamp.html Reply Jen @ Domesticated Nomad March 21, 2011 Love it! I have awful basement stairs that I want to fix up, but haven’t made up my mind yet. I think you may have made up my mind for me. Thanks for the inspiration! How’s it holding up? Do you allow shoes on it? Just curious. It’s so affordable I’m willing to take the chance, but I am a little worried even with the poly what the wear and tear is like. Reply Lovely Crafty Home March 21, 2011 Jen- We are a “shoes on” house. So far it’s been fine, I just sweep/mop them like I do on my hardwood. I know of a few people who have done this to their stairs and said it held up great. Right now I have 6 coats of poly on the stairs, but I will eventually sand them again and do 2 more. Reply Jen @ Domesticated Nomad April 2, 2011 I just wanted to let you know that I am getting ready to start this, and I started blogging about it, where my inspiration came from. I put the link to you in my post. 🙂 andi March 21, 2011 hi Rachael, I saw your guest post on Tater Tots and Jello. What a great idea and outcome. My sister did this to her basement stairs and I featured it on my blog with a big shout out to your tutorial and website. Thanks for sharing your good ideas! Reply andi March 21, 2011 hi Rachael, I saw your guest post on Tater Tots and Jello. What a great idea and outcome. My sister did this to her basement stairs and I featured it on my blog with a big shout out to your tutorial and website. Thanks for sharing your good ideas! Reply Selina@CreativeJuicesDecor March 25, 2011 This is CRAZY! I am blown away. Brown paper. Keep us updated a year from now how it is holding together. In any of your research did it say? Anyway, I just love it and what a difference it made from the before shots! Good job!!!!! Reply Lovely Crafty Home March 25, 2011 Thank you Selina! I will definitely post back about it, but I have read it lasts 7+ years. I’m sure it’s like any floor-if you take care of it, it will last longer. I try to sweep and mop it regularly so that dirt doesn’t dull the finish. Reply Nancy March 30, 2011 That looks great! I just yelled up to my daughter, “I have a solution to my stairs!!” She wondered what needed to be solved. We already tore the carpet off our stairs and painted them white. I was planning to stain the treads but there were spots where knots had been filled in with putty so that wouldn’t work. I considered painting them but couldn’t come up with a paint that looked good so I just left them white. They look fine, but I was hoping for something different on the treads to break it up and I think this might be just the solution! I love all the ideas I’m finding lately. I’m in the process of painting my bathroom counters to look like granite and they look great!! Thanks for the idea and your tutorial! Reply Katy March 31, 2011 I have this treatment on the walls in my hallway and my friend saw it and borrowed the idea and did the floors in her kid’s rooms. She used marine grade poly due to the amount of stuff her kids spill everywhere. She loves it! Holds up really well and goes with every change of decor that growing kids will go through. Great tut, by the way. I used wallpaper paste instead of glue, but it is all the same… Reply Sally April 1, 2011 My problem is solved!!!! i absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE the stairs!!! My hubby will think I’m nuts, but is used to these kind of ideas!!! Only question….how slippery? we are a shoes on family too, but lots of just socks too…what do ya think? thanks so much for this post!!! Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 1, 2011 Sally- I usually am barefoot or shoe clad, but I have been down in socks a few times. No one in our house has fallen, but we don’t have children. I guess it’s a judgment call, but unless you’re running or not holding the railing I would say it’s pretty low risk. Or you could get some of those skid socks (like at the hospital) lol! Reply crazy4years July 8, 2011 Learned from a contractor that it works to toss sand onto the final layer of wet finish. Use a shaker if you aren’t handy at even distribution. This too will wear away eventually, but not real soon. Use a fine grit to avoid aggravation, like silica or craft sand, or sift your sand through a colander if using play or local sand. It doesn’t interfere with appearance unless you sprinkle waaaaay too much. Lowers the slick factor considerably and can be redone in a couple years if needed. Reply Susan April 2, 2011 This is WONDERFUL!!!! Do you think, to make it darker, you could add some dark stain to the glue mixture??? Did the paper darken up pretty much from the original dry paper? I’m gonna do this!! Thanks so much for posting! Saw your link on Tatertots&Jello!! Suz Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 2, 2011 Susan- I wouldn’t mix the stain and glue for fear it would mess with the adhesion, but you could just do more than one coat to make it darker. The color I got was from one fairly heavy coat, but after it dries you could see if the paper will accept more. Reply Susan April 4, 2011 Did the stain soak into the glue? My thought was that the glue sealed the paper so it wouldn’t accept the stain…. ?? I saw that you stained your steps to your upstairs and not the ones to your basement. I guess my question is does the dry glued paper accept the stain?? Suz Lovely Crafty Home April 4, 2011 Susan- It does, the paper dries back to it’s original color and everything. The paper soaks up the stain REALLY well, so if you don’t want a deep color (like my mocha) I would suggest going really easy on it for a first coat. Carri Siebenmark April 4, 2011 I wonder if it would work on concrete floors? My basement floor is so ugly and want to make it better. Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 4, 2011 Carri- I bet it would, but I would be sure to brush the floor itself with glue while you’re laying paper so it doesn’t draw the moisture out from the paper. Couldn’t hurt to try! If you do, let me know how it works out! Reply Michaela April 22, 2011 This is so very cool! We’re getting the house ready for market, so I won’t be trying this here. We are planning on painting our concrete stairs in a colour that brings out the colour in our vinyl tile that we laid a few days ago. I was a little worried about painting them & not being able to walk on them, but I never thought to do every other step. GENIUS! Thanks! Reply Michaela April 22, 2011 This is so very cool! We’re getting the house ready for market, so I won’t be trying this here. We are planning on painting our concrete stairs in a colour that brings out the colour in our vinyl tile that we laid a few days ago. I was a little worried about painting them & not being able to walk on them, but I never thought to do every other step. GENIUS! Thanks! Reply Pam April 22, 2011 I live in a slab and tried this in my daughters bedroom on the concrete floors in there. It was worth a shot but did not hold up. I treated the floors first with a concrete sealer. Then I layed the paper floor. Then I poly’d 4 coats. Looks? Great. Did not stick, it has been installed for about a year and you could peal the entire floor up in one sheet – it did not stay adhered. At the edge, she dropped a glass of water, it got underneath and soaked the paper. And we moved her desk without help once and tore a hole in the floor. SO, from my experience, I would never try this on concrete but I have seen that it works when adhered to wood. 🙁 Pam Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 22, 2011 I am wondering if it’s the sealer that caused it not to stick? Reply Kelly April 22, 2011 FUN!!! I’m not kidding I had a similar idea the other day to decoupage my front entry! (although I think I like this idea better!) Wow I love it, turned out great! Reply gina April 22, 2011 The stairs look so great! My sister did that type of treatment with brown paper grocery bags to her bedroom walls years ago. It looked like leather and I have always wanted to try the technique myself. This has inspired me again! Reply kathie chipman April 22, 2011 Oh. My. Goodness. I hardly know what to say ~ but I LOVE it. You have inspired me! Thank you 🙂 Reply kathie chipman April 22, 2011 Oh. My. Goodness. I hardly know what to say ~ but I LOVE it. You have inspired me! Thank you 🙂 Reply Cathy April 22, 2011 Wow, that looks fantastic. I also was inspired by all of the beautiful stair makeovers but ripped up my carpet and… its particle board! Bumby and lumpy… do you think this could cover that? Probably not, darn, but yours looks amazing. Reply Lovely Crafty Home April 22, 2011 Yes!! Mine were particle board-ish also. Just sand them smooth and go to work 🙂 Reply Eileen April 23, 2011 This is so freaking awesome! I love brown paper. I recently used it to decoupage some maps onto a laminate dining table in my florida house that needed help. I would use this technique for a piece of furniture for sure. I have never seen this, and it looks so great!! Reply Parents of a Dozen April 26, 2011 I REALLY like your stairs. I am going to be taking off the carpet on our basement stairs soon, hopefully. I think they are going to be worse than yours. Maybe I will try your idea. I recently redid our main stairway. You could see the post here. http://parentsofadozen.blogspot.com/2011/04/our-steps-redo.html Reply The dresser that glue built: Part 1 | Cubicle 57 July 21, 2011 […] first part of this story does go pretty smoothly. I started with my dresser and this floor covering tutorial from Rachel at Lovely Crafty Home. Only 86 stairs/floor… sub street dresser. But this street find needed legs. I refused to […] Reply The dresser that glue built: Part 1 | Cubicle 57 July 21, 2011 […] first part of this story does go pretty smoothly. I started with my dresser and this floor covering tutorial from Rachel at Lovely Crafty Home. Only 86 stairs/floor… sub street dresser. But this street find needed legs. I refused to […] Reply Pam July 29, 2011 I thinking of doing this to purge my house of all the ugly stained carpet. However, I live in the frozen tundra of Wisconsin. Do you have any idea how these are in colder climates in the winter? I don’t think I’d do this treatment in our main living areas…just thinking stairs, hallway, dining room. and maybe bedrooms. Reply Lovely Crafty Home July 30, 2011 Pam- I can’t speak from experience, but I’d imagine as long as your house is mostly climate controlled you’d be ok. Most paint/stain products will have working temperatures on the can in the instructions, so as long as you’re within that range it would perform normally. Hope that helps! Reply soccermom August 2, 2011 LOVE your floors!!! Did you sand between each poly layer? What type of sandpaper did you use? I just finished a test area, and have a fairly rough finish. Any tips/hints for a smooth, cleaner finish? Reply Lovely Crafty Home August 2, 2011 Soccermom- Thanks so much! I actually did not sand between each layer, although you certainly can (I’d imagine it would be very time consuming). You raelly want to make sure that the floor is free of debris before you put stain on. The first few layers of poly might have some texture, but by the time you are at coat 10-12, it will be much smoother. How many coats do you have on now? Reply soccermom August 3, 2011 I think I probably had the debris pieces of brown paper (from smoothing the paper when it was saturated with water/glue). I have 4 coats of poly on now. At what point did you do a light sanding? I love the way this looks! Lovely Crafty Home August 3, 2011 Are you doing stairs? I only sanded lightly after the first coat on stairs, but when I did my floors I did not sand at all between layers. To be honest, I don’t think it matters too much. I think if you are doing a small area, you could try sanding lightly now- but if it’s a whole room, just keep going with the poly and it will smooth out. Inspire Me Heather August 4, 2011 Your stairs look fantastic! I linked this to my hardwood floors post too, well done! Reply amy August 4, 2011 You rock my socks off…this is amazing! How are they holding up?! Reply August Moulton August 25, 2011 Oh wow! I am so amazed, A few questions: How do you make sure it holds up on the rounded corners of the stairs? Do you put the stain on before the Poly? So in a step by step, I would first paint a layer of glue mixture, followed by saturated paper pieces, followed by another layer of glue. Let dry, then follow with Poly? Am I understanding it right? Thanks for the tutorial! I plan to start this early next week and I am so excited! Reply Lovely Crafty Home August 28, 2011 Hey August- the paper is wrapped around the underside of the stairs and it hasn’t peeled or anything, I just applied the glue all the way under the tread, then the soaked paper, followed by the stain and then poly. Reply August Moulton August 25, 2011 Oh wow! I am so amazed, A few questions: How do you make sure it holds up on the rounded corners of the stairs? Do you put the stain on before the Poly? So in a step by step, I would first paint a layer of glue mixture, followed by saturated paper pieces, followed by another layer of glue. Let dry, then follow with Poly? Am I understanding it right? Thanks for the tutorial! I plan to start this early next week and I am so excited! Reply Kallie September 1, 2011 Hi-o! Saw this on Pinterest a few weeks ago and am planning to do it in my entry this weekend. It’s a horrible, 50 year old brick floor with a horrible blobby patch of concrete floor where we took out the horrible, huge 50 year old indoor waterfall. (HORRIBLE.) I am so, so excited about this change. (FTR, we’re doing a coat of FixAll first to even out the floor, fill in between bricks and unify the concrete/brick intersections.) Anyway: my question: I realize the two stairs projects were in cramped quarters, but would you have used a roller (lint free obviously) to apply the stain or the poly? Or is it strictly a job for a brush? Thanks so much! I’ve looked all over the internet and your projects and comment threads are the most informative paper-flooring source! Reply Lovely Crafty Home September 1, 2011 Hi Kallie! Yes I did use a lambswool pad (stain) and sponge pad (poly) for the larger areas! Reply Spruce Pine Fir » Paper bags do more than hold your lunch September 9, 2011 […] […] Reply Joey R. September 17, 2011 This is sooo cool! I am thinking of doing this to get rid of our nasty carpet as well! here’s my question…what do you think of doing this in a bathroom? I am wondering if it would hold up well next to a shower. I am so sick of carpet in this room (who puts carpet in the bathroom anyway?? Hel-lo!). Thanks for your input and your website ROCKS! Reply Lovely Crafty Home September 17, 2011 Joey- I know it’s been done in bathrooms, but I personally haven’t done it. To be honest, I’d be a little nervous about a bathroom BUT since you have carpet in there, I feel like I’d go for it. I mean it can’t be worse than carpet. I would just make sure you put 12+ coats of poly on there and use a rug! Thanks so much for stopping by! If you decide to do it, let me know how it goes! Reply Marie September 23, 2011 This is amazing!! I’ve been looking for something beautiful for our basement, but the project has been on hold since I lost my job and thought we couldn’t afford flooring. I think we can afford this! And it’s incredibly pretty! Thank you for the tutorial. Reply Nadine October 10, 2011 Your stairs look beautiful! I have a bi-level house and when we pulled the stair’s rug up we found it was attached with swirls of black adhesive all over each tread! We can’t sand them due to asthma issues and they have (literally!) stayed like that for years because we had no idea what to do. Finally, this might be the solution we need! We also have cats and I was wondering how you kept yours from stepping on the wet stairs until they dried? Our cats’ box & food are downstairs and we & everything else are upstairs so they won’t tolerate being locked up away from us for very long. Thank you for such a great & inexpensive idea! ^_^ Reply Lovely Crafty Home October 10, 2011 Nadine- I did actually lock mine in the basement (where their food and box are) for a few hours after, but for the most part they stayed off of it because I think the wet/stickiness of it was a turn off haha! I would recommend putting them up while you’re working, but in general we didn’t have any big problems. They step so lightly compared to our dog (which we kept off them completely…I had my husband carry her upstairs in socks lol). Reply Nadine October 10, 2011 Thank you for your reply. ^_^ A few hours sounds better than 1-2 days and I’m glad to know they mostly avoided the wet stairs on their own. I was worried they’d get it on their paws, lick it off & get sick. Your puppy isn’t small & your husband had to take every other stair. Did you take a picture? That would be great to see! I’m sure your puppy was very confused when your husband suddenly started to do that! ^_^ Well, I Guess It Happens October 14, 2011 […] trying to track down the brown paper floor tutorial so please please please come back! It’s here, and […] Reply Well, I Guess It Happens October 14, 2011 […] trying to track down the brown paper floor tutorial so please please please come back! It’s here, and […] Reply Tammy Kitts October 14, 2011 Wow this is awesome on the floors, I done my previous house walls in this and used cedar fencing as the waynes coat, in my living room I stayed with the color of the paper with the new Cedar fencing, same as in hall and made shutters like a country saloon with saloon doors down hall, beautiful, the bedroom was done with a different Type of glue that gave it a weathered look and used weathered cedar fencing. In the masterbath we used packing paper it’s thinner than the Painters paper and it was a cream color to Give a vintage look, this technique is beautiful but would Have never thought to use on the floors, thanks I think I will try this in my new place. Reply Guest Room Paper Floor…DONE! October 14, 2011 […] the how to, check out this post and this post. The updated hallway view…ignore the awkward hallway furniture and jagged […] Reply Compulsive in Texas October 14, 2011 I love, love, love this idea! I just ripped up the carpet on our front stairs and was trying to think of something different to do. This is it. I had already ripped up the carpet on our back stairs and refinished them to look like old repurposed crates. Now I know what I will do on the front stairs. Love your blog! Reply Nancy October 14, 2011 This is a great idea and I would love to see pics … but for some reason the pics on your page aren’t loading for me. 🙁 Reply rachaelevans October 16, 2011 Nancy- have you tried reloading the page? My site crashed earlier this week so there might be some leftover “funk”. Reply Debbie October 18, 2011 There is a flash update this week, so maybe you need to update your Adobe. Now for your flooring…..I love it! I am redo a small room in my single-wide mobile home and am going to use your tutorial for the floor. I currently have some carpet that looks like that old asphalt that was popular when I was a child (with the white, pink and grey in it) and I hate hate HATE it. I was so thirlled when I found your beautiful site and the great looking floor! I will post pictures on my blog when i get it up and running. Thanks for sharing this technique. You saved my sanity! Reply DIY Newbie October 18, 2011 What did you use to apply your polyurethane? Was it a small brush? What if I’m doing a really large room? Any suggestions? Reply rachaelevans October 19, 2011 I used a paint brush (I used waterbased poly so I could wash it out) on the small areas and a large sponge mop applicator for large rooms. Reply DIY Newbie October 18, 2011 What did you use to apply your polyurethane? Was it a small brush? What if I’m doing a really large room? Any suggestions? Reply Jessica October 24, 2011 I just finished this on my kitchen counters. I used a mocha colored stain and it looks fantastic!!!!! I have done several things to my countertops but never loved them, this I love! Reply Blog Swapping with Rachael from Lovely Crafty Home « Measured by the Heart October 25, 2011 […] are so lucky to get to hear from Rachael from Lovely Crafty Home!! I have a craft crush on her flooring tutorial. Read on you will see. And then go follow her cus you don’t want to miss out on one thing […] Reply Lacie October 25, 2011 I get TONS of brown craft paper in my boxes as packaging material. I’m so excited to have found an awesome use for it. Thanks for the great idea 🙂 Reply Lacie October 25, 2011 I get TONS of brown craft paper in my boxes as packaging material. I’m so excited to have found an awesome use for it. Thanks for the great idea 🙂 Reply Lori Herning October 26, 2011 I really love this idea! We are getting ready to finish our basement and I wonder if it will work on concrete floors or if we would need to put down a subfloor. What do you think? Reply rachaelevans October 26, 2011 Lori- I have never done it on concrete, but I know people who have. Instead of glue you have to use poly, but it should work! Reply Lori Herning October 27, 2011 Thank, I think we will give it a try. Now to convince my hubby. Jen November 7, 2011 Just finished “bagging” an end table top. Needs to dry then will add the varnish. So far so good though!! 😀 Thanks for the brilliant idea. The table was originally headed for the dump! Reply Lynne Sheley November 8, 2011 We recently purchased a church that we will be using as our Youth Facility. The basement had horrible carpet that needed to be ripped up. The carpet did not have any padding so when the carpet came up, the glue stayed on the floor, when we saw your idea we were so excited…it looks amazing! My question; 1.Do we need to remove the old glue first? 2. Someone had said to use “poly” instead of glue on cement…is that polyurethane? 3. When do you apply the stain? After you glued it to the floor, or before? is the stain a wood stain? 4. Was the polyurethane a high gloss..? Can’t wait to get started, thank you for sharing!!! Reply Autumn November 13, 2011 Oh my gosh I absolutely love Iam going to attempt this in my back antique room I have been wanting to redo the floors and put wood down but that would cost so much so for a year and a half I have been patiently waiting for a idea or a project to pop in my head and wa la you did that is amazing I do have a few questions if you could please help I m doing it on a smooth cement do you think that would work just as well?? If not no problem to place the plywood hubby’s great at that stuff also I’m not much for polyurethane pretty much despise it. You said you put 10 coats or so on your project and sanded it, you waited two days per coat then sanded it then polled coat number two and so on and do forth?? I’m just trying to judge so I store all my furniture in the right places!! Thank you do much for posting this me and my husband are so very excited to try this and to see amazing results!! Reply rachaelevans November 13, 2011 Autumn-Here is a complete guide to the flooring http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply Shannon Jones November 21, 2011 This is AWESOME!! I live in a trailer I have lanoleum in my small bathrooms and kitchen I don’t like do you think this would work on them since they are like particle board? Reply Joy November 24, 2011 We are in the process of turning our small one car garage into another room for our house. There is a set of UGLY stairs leading into the house that I was just tonight (while painting the walls )thinking about what we could do to them that would hold up and look good! enter Pinterest 🙂 gosh I love that place. We have a big roll of the paper in our closet since my daughter uses it for paint paper. Looks like I have my fix now!! I can’t wait!! Reply Joy November 24, 2011 We are in the process of turning our small one car garage into another room for our house. There is a set of UGLY stairs leading into the house that I was just tonight (while painting the walls )thinking about what we could do to them that would hold up and look good! enter Pinterest 🙂 gosh I love that place. We have a big roll of the paper in our closet since my daughter uses it for paint paper. Looks like I have my fix now!! I can’t wait!! Reply Dina Bartlett January 9, 2012 My question is what if I used the white artkraft paper? I love this but want to do a lighter color. There are tons of colors to choose from, but so undecided and scared to use it without input. Reply rachaelevans January 10, 2012 Dina, I’d imagine white paper would work the same way but maybe white would be harder to keep clean? Reply Jan Walters January 11, 2012 Great idea and what a great job you did. Thanks for the inspiration! Reply Amanda McEwen January 13, 2012 If I owned my own home I would totally utelize this…but since I dont…i think my computer desk may need a leather look makeover hmmmm Reply mmilkls62 January 14, 2012 I love this ideal. I am going ot try this in one of my bed rooms. Reply Lori February 1, 2012 Hi, I absolutely love this! I have a room I would like to try…there is old carpet in there and I know there is linoleum underneath. After ripping out the carpet, do I also need to take up the linoleum or can it be done over it? Thanks! Reply rachaelevans February 1, 2012 Hi Lori- If the linoleum is in good shape and doesn’t have a lot of texture (i.e. faux tile with grout grooves), you can go right over it. Just keep in mind that the paper will not hide imperfections, so I don’t usually recommend it over non-smooth surfaces (especially tile because of the grid effect). Hope that helps! Reply Lori February 1, 2012 Hi, I absolutely love this! I have a room I would like to try…there is old carpet in there and I know there is linoleum underneath. After ripping out the carpet, do I also need to take up the linoleum or can it be done over it? Thanks! Reply My Paper Flooring Project using Craft Paper or Paper Bags | Adventures in Mothering February 28, 2012 […] So, searching Brown craft paper, I found a project for redoing your floor with craft paper and Elmer’s glue-all. Perfect. Praise God. The original post that I learned how to do this from is located here. […] Reply Pam March 1, 2012 this is March 1st 2012, how are the stairs holding up? Reply rachaelevans March 1, 2012 Pam- Just as beautiful as the day I did it! Really! I haven’t added poly or anything. Reply Carli St. Michel March 20, 2012 I was looking for rolls of Kraft paper at Staples, but it seemed awfully thin. Could you tell me more about the paper, what brand, weight etc. or what stores carry it. Our Home Depot does not have it. Thank you so much, I really want to do this, preferably this week when my husband is out of town. Reply rachaelevans March 20, 2012 Carli- I’d be really surprised if any HD didn’t have it…did you look by the fabric drop cloths in the painting section? I would check Lowes also. I have even seen it at Walmart with packing supplies. Generally it should feel like a paper grocery bag, maybe slightly “lighter”. Reply Carli St. Michel March 21, 2012 Thanks for the info. I will check Home Depot again and Lowes and Walmart. Staples has an 18# Kraft paper on line, but presently sold out. Latasha April 1, 2012 I really want to try this for my kitchen, but not sure if it would last on the vinyl that I have or the concrete that is underneath. Could you give me any suggestions??? Thanks in advance. Reply rachaelevans April 2, 2012 Latasha- If the vinyl is in good shape, I’d test out a 50/50 glue/water mix in a small area and see if it sticks. Hope that helps! Reply crissy April 29, 2012 I was reading about brown paper floor and was wondering about how slippery the stairs are to walk on and if you added anything to applying Reply rachaelevans April 30, 2012 Crissy- they are about as slippery as hardwood, you could put a runner down the center if you like to help! Reply Brown Paper + Walnut Stain = Mocha Love June 14, 2012 […] You’re probably tired of hearing about my basement staircase makeover. […] Reply Schellie August 2, 2012 Your floors look beautiful! Now that it has been awhile how have they held up? Also, I saw the question about putting this on top of vinyl floor but I didn’t see the answer. Can you put it directly on a vinyl floor or do I have to peal up the vinyl squares? Thanks so much for your help! Reply rachaelevans August 2, 2012 Schellie- My floors are still lovely, I used a floor finish called Holloway House Quick Shine about twice a month and they look brand new. Obviously there is some wear and tear- light scratches from the dog- but they are still holding up well. I will try to remember to take some pictures and add them to the post sort of like a then and now 🙂 Here is my post about vinyl: http://lovelycraftyhome.com/2012/05/24/out-west-where-home-depot-is-still-my-home/ Reply The dresser that glue built: Part 1 | Cubicle57 September 18, 2012 […] first part of this story does go pretty smoothly. I started with my dresser and this floor covering tutorial from Rachel at Lovely Crafty Home. Only 86 stairs/floor… sub street dresser. But this street find needed legs. I refused to […] Reply Tracie September 21, 2012 Can you paint it instead of staining…like a whitewash. Looks awesome! Tracie Reply Carla October 8, 2012 It looks like I’m a little bit late to your blog, but I am so glad I finally found you. We, too, have a pet worn carpet on our 25 year old staircase. I have been pondering the situation and lurking at blogs for about 2 years or so to find a solution. Here is my situation: We have 12 steps up from a tiled foyer and hallway. At the top of the 12 steps is a 3′ x 3′ landing, a turn to the right and then 2 more steps to the second floor hallway. I want to paint the steps, but didn’t know what to do about the landing that is just subfloor under the carpet. I didn’t want to have to do some expensive treatment on the landing when I was just painting the steps. The tile in the foyer is a 16″ Congoleum tile that is a mxture of brown, tan, dark gray and a little black….it is a good dirt color. I am thinking of painting the risers white and the treads a dark grey . On the landing I would like to use the paper treatment. After installing the paper, could I paint it gray and then poly it? I I am really nervous about starting this project since it is the very first thing you see when you come in the front door. You seem fearless about trying new things. I love your blog! Reply Rachael Evans October 8, 2012 Carla- I’ve never tried painting the paper, but I don’t see why not! I’d get a piece of scrap plywood and cover it in paper, then paint it (maybe try a few different colors to see what you like best, and how many coats you need). Hope that helps! Thanks for stopping by 🙂 Reply shelly November 26, 2012 This looks so amazing. Can this be done on a rough concrete floor or would I have to put a subfloor down first? I think this will be my spring project for next year! Thanks for the great information and idea! Reply Rachael Evans November 26, 2012 Shelly- if the concrete is not in good shape, I’d advise either using a concrete re-surfacing type product (like a self leveling repair type product) or laying sub-floor. I just don’t think you’ll be happy with the results long term if the surface doesn’t start out pretty smooth. Reply GMAof5 December 3, 2012 Did you sand between coats of poly on your stairs and how long did you wait between coats? Reply Rachael Evans December 4, 2012 Yes I did on the stairs, I waited anywhere between 4-6 hours, but longer is probably better 🙂 Reply Agnieszka December 5, 2012 Hi, first all project is fantastic! Pity I didnt see it before puttine laminate floor.. It would save my money.. huge time. Did anyone tried it on tiles? Or maybe would you know it will work? I have absolutly hideous tiles on the kitchen & hallway floor and no money to change it. would really love to cover them but I cannot buy paint for floor tiles in Ireland and cannot find anything thin enough to cover. Reply Rachael Evans December 5, 2012 I have not tried it on tiles, but you should be able to get adhesion with either glue or poly. As long as you don’t care about seeing a faint “grid” from the grout underneath, I say go for it! Reply Suelo de papel reciclado - Decoracion - EstiloyDeco January 17, 2013 […] Una vez el papel esté bien seco, coloca dos o tres capas del barniz, dejando secar bien entre ellas y lijando ligeramente si lo deseas. Ya está listo tu nuevo suelo, hecho completamente con papel reciclado. Si quieres más información y fotografías, visita JoyFolie o LovelyCraftyHome. […] Reply Paper Floors: An Eco-Friendly, Frugal Idea « Joyful Momma's Thoughts and DesignsJoyful Momma's Thoughts and Designs September 23, 2013 […] So, searching Brown craft paper, I found a project for redoing your floor with craft paper and Elmer’s glue-all. Perfect. Praise God. The original post that I learned how to do this from is located here. […] Reply What Can You Do With A Paper Bag? — A Cultivated Nest March 13, 2014 […] DIY Paper Bag Stair Makeover at Lovely Crafty Home […] Reply SA Springer April 11, 2014 The stair treads going to the second floor in our 1916 Foursquare are hideous. Once golden oak, they’ve been painted four times, once with a dirty mustard that both chemicals and heat haven’t been able to get off. I’d been thinking about the paper bag treatment then found your article. Just what the doctor ordered! I’m going to try your method of paper bag flooring on the steps as well as add silica or sand to the final polyurethane. With two large dogs, I’m not sure it will last, but anything is better than what we have now! Many thanks for posting such a well written set of instructions! Reply Julie December 28, 2014 i did this treatment in the upstairs hall, stairs, and downstairs hall. Instead of stain, I used rit dye mixed right into my glue/water. It’s beautiful and the upkeep is so easy! Reply Thoughts and Designs: Thoughts and Tips for Life; Designs and Tools for Living It March 16, 2015 […] So, searching Brown craft paper, I found a project for redoing your floor with craft paper and Elmer’s glue-all. Perfect. Praise God. The original post that I learned how to do this from is located here. […] Reply Ishtar December 26, 2015 So now, 5 years later, how have the held up? Reply Rachael Evans January 23, 2016 Check out a photo I posted this morning on my instagram @lovelycrafty 🙂 Reply An AMAZING (and Budget-Friendly) Flooring Makeover December 28, 2015 […] For more on this project, head over to Lovely Crafty Home, or you can see her tutorial here. It sounds like this may have been a pretty labor-intensive project, so I’m sure Rachael […] Reply 26 Brown Paper Bag Crafts - Crafting a Green World November 23, 2016 […] 21. stairs. Okay, these aren’t paper bag stairs, exactly, but stairs covered in paper bag flooring. Regardless, they look amazing. […] Reply 16 Ways to Repurpose Paper Bags - Dukes and Duchesses March 13, 2017 […] to the paper bag floor treatment above, these brown paper stairs are a really neat way to update a […] 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 * Check here to Subscribe to notifications for new posts Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email.
Robin March 14, 2011 AMAZING! I’ve seen this done on walls, but never on floors- it turned out awesome! I might just have the right piece of furniture to give this a try on- love your blog! Reply
marie September 4, 2011 I’m in process of doing this treatment now in my house. Beats the cheap & ugly vinyl flooring. IT LOOKS GREAT!! It’s cost effective and looks high end. Seems like a win -win to me. Reply
Heather September 12, 2011 I was just wondering.. did you tear up your vinyl floor or lay it over it? If you layed it over how does it look? Can you see the vinyl design under it?
Lovely Crafty Home September 12, 2011 We didn’t have vinyl…just plywood subfloor after I ripped up the carpet.
Francine Johnson McGee October 21, 2012 I also did this treatment all over my house. I did it right over the vinyl in my kitchen. I used the same paper she used in most rooms, but in the kitchen I used vintage cookbook pages with some light stain over them. Since my vinyl floor has a little bit of texture to it, that comes through, but you can’t notice unless you’re looking for it. People are always reading the recipes on my floor. It’s kinda funny. Test your paper with the glue 1st if using printed pages. I used a book of victorian trade cards in one of my bathroom floors, and the image from the other side bled through. It’s not too bad, I am going to try and save it with some stained urethane, but if that doesn’t work I’ll just put something else over the top of it. That’s the beauty of this project. Get a hole, just put down another piece of paper and some more poly. We put our poly on in thick coats, but we weren’t doing stairs. It has held up well for over a year. I use a shark steamer to clean them, which I don’t do often enough, but both the cookbook pages and the brown paper hide the dirt much better than my crappy vinyl or uber cheap carpets ever did. I LOVE it.
Robin March 14, 2011 AMAZING! I’ve seen this done on walls, but never on floors- it turned out awesome! I might just have the right piece of furniture to give this a try on- love your blog! Reply
Suz in the Tules March 14, 2011 Lovely! And a lot less costy. Plus, I would hate to cut flooring for the stairs! Reply
Laurie March 14, 2011 Very well done. I did this on the top of some desks and end tables. I love this finish on furniture. I will have to try the floors. Reply
Tanya March 14, 2011 I just love this. My cousin did this on an entire focal wall in her living room a few years ago. Your stairs turned out great =) Reply
Kassi @ Truly Lovely March 14, 2011 HUGE improvement!! Funny how your style and tastes change the longer your familiar with blogging, huh! haha! I’m the same way! We don’t have stairs… anywhere, but it’s a cool idea to try! Reply
julie March 14, 2011 That is awesome. I would do it in a heartbeat if I knew that the paper would hold up. Did you put a varnish or other kind of clear sealant on the steps? I have seen crinkled up,torn pieces of brown paper bag on walls and that is really beautiful. Great texture and hues. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home March 14, 2011 Julie- I have it on good authority that it does, from several people who have used it in their homes. The only sealer is the floor grade polyurethane, the same way hardwood floors are finished. You can always lightly sand and re-coat if spots are getting worn (but there are 6 original coats, so it would take a long time to get to bare paper). Also, patching is easy…just sand lightly and glue down more paper. Reply
julie March 14, 2011 That is awesome. I would do it in a heartbeat if I knew that the paper would hold up. Did you put a varnish or other kind of clear sealant on the steps? I have seen crinkled up,torn pieces of brown paper bag on walls and that is really beautiful. Great texture and hues. Reply
Shannon March 19, 2011 omg – you are a genius!! That looks SO good! I will def. be trying this little bit of wonderfulness! lol – LOVE IT! Reply
Kendra @ Creative Ambitions March 19, 2011 LOVE this idea! I think it looks great!! Brown paper flooring… who would have thought?? Kendra Reply
Pamela Manes March 19, 2011 Wow, I am so impressed with how this has turned out…looks great and I can’t wait to see the stained stairs on your other stairs! I have been seeing a number of great, original ideas here lately and that’s why I love Blogland! Great job! ~Pam pamspaintparlor.typepad.com Reply
Pamela Manes March 19, 2011 Wow, I am so impressed with how this has turned out…looks great and I can’t wait to see the stained stairs on your other stairs! I have been seeing a number of great, original ideas here lately and that’s why I love Blogland! Great job! ~Pam pamspaintparlor.typepad.com Reply
cristie March 19, 2011 What a great idea as I’m sitting here looking at my ugly stairs….think I’ll try it. How well does it hold up? Great tutorial. Thanks. Reply
Ellie March 19, 2011 That’s amazing! It seriously doesn’t look like the same staircase! Stopping by from FJ’s SNS. 🙂 Reply
Pat March 20, 2011 Wow! who’d of thought to do that on the stairs or the floor even, I’ve done a piece of furniture this way, but didn’t think of doing it on the floor. I like how this turned out. I could do this~ Pat Reply
kendra Caudill March 20, 2011 I loved this idea! I used it on my bathroom counter after reading this post. It came out wonderful. http://kendrazblog-kendra.blogspot.com/2011/03/my-bathroom-revamp.html Reply
kendra Caudill March 20, 2011 I loved this idea! I used it on my bathroom counter after reading this post. It came out wonderful. http://kendrazblog-kendra.blogspot.com/2011/03/my-bathroom-revamp.html Reply
Jen @ Domesticated Nomad March 21, 2011 Love it! I have awful basement stairs that I want to fix up, but haven’t made up my mind yet. I think you may have made up my mind for me. Thanks for the inspiration! How’s it holding up? Do you allow shoes on it? Just curious. It’s so affordable I’m willing to take the chance, but I am a little worried even with the poly what the wear and tear is like. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home March 21, 2011 Jen- We are a “shoes on” house. So far it’s been fine, I just sweep/mop them like I do on my hardwood. I know of a few people who have done this to their stairs and said it held up great. Right now I have 6 coats of poly on the stairs, but I will eventually sand them again and do 2 more. Reply
Jen @ Domesticated Nomad April 2, 2011 I just wanted to let you know that I am getting ready to start this, and I started blogging about it, where my inspiration came from. I put the link to you in my post. 🙂
andi March 21, 2011 hi Rachael, I saw your guest post on Tater Tots and Jello. What a great idea and outcome. My sister did this to her basement stairs and I featured it on my blog with a big shout out to your tutorial and website. Thanks for sharing your good ideas! Reply
andi March 21, 2011 hi Rachael, I saw your guest post on Tater Tots and Jello. What a great idea and outcome. My sister did this to her basement stairs and I featured it on my blog with a big shout out to your tutorial and website. Thanks for sharing your good ideas! Reply
Selina@CreativeJuicesDecor March 25, 2011 This is CRAZY! I am blown away. Brown paper. Keep us updated a year from now how it is holding together. In any of your research did it say? Anyway, I just love it and what a difference it made from the before shots! Good job!!!!! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home March 25, 2011 Thank you Selina! I will definitely post back about it, but I have read it lasts 7+ years. I’m sure it’s like any floor-if you take care of it, it will last longer. I try to sweep and mop it regularly so that dirt doesn’t dull the finish. Reply
Nancy March 30, 2011 That looks great! I just yelled up to my daughter, “I have a solution to my stairs!!” She wondered what needed to be solved. We already tore the carpet off our stairs and painted them white. I was planning to stain the treads but there were spots where knots had been filled in with putty so that wouldn’t work. I considered painting them but couldn’t come up with a paint that looked good so I just left them white. They look fine, but I was hoping for something different on the treads to break it up and I think this might be just the solution! I love all the ideas I’m finding lately. I’m in the process of painting my bathroom counters to look like granite and they look great!! Thanks for the idea and your tutorial! Reply
Katy March 31, 2011 I have this treatment on the walls in my hallway and my friend saw it and borrowed the idea and did the floors in her kid’s rooms. She used marine grade poly due to the amount of stuff her kids spill everywhere. She loves it! Holds up really well and goes with every change of decor that growing kids will go through. Great tut, by the way. I used wallpaper paste instead of glue, but it is all the same… Reply
Sally April 1, 2011 My problem is solved!!!! i absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE the stairs!!! My hubby will think I’m nuts, but is used to these kind of ideas!!! Only question….how slippery? we are a shoes on family too, but lots of just socks too…what do ya think? thanks so much for this post!!! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 1, 2011 Sally- I usually am barefoot or shoe clad, but I have been down in socks a few times. No one in our house has fallen, but we don’t have children. I guess it’s a judgment call, but unless you’re running or not holding the railing I would say it’s pretty low risk. Or you could get some of those skid socks (like at the hospital) lol! Reply
crazy4years July 8, 2011 Learned from a contractor that it works to toss sand onto the final layer of wet finish. Use a shaker if you aren’t handy at even distribution. This too will wear away eventually, but not real soon. Use a fine grit to avoid aggravation, like silica or craft sand, or sift your sand through a colander if using play or local sand. It doesn’t interfere with appearance unless you sprinkle waaaaay too much. Lowers the slick factor considerably and can be redone in a couple years if needed. Reply
Susan April 2, 2011 This is WONDERFUL!!!! Do you think, to make it darker, you could add some dark stain to the glue mixture??? Did the paper darken up pretty much from the original dry paper? I’m gonna do this!! Thanks so much for posting! Saw your link on Tatertots&Jello!! Suz Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 2, 2011 Susan- I wouldn’t mix the stain and glue for fear it would mess with the adhesion, but you could just do more than one coat to make it darker. The color I got was from one fairly heavy coat, but after it dries you could see if the paper will accept more. Reply
Susan April 4, 2011 Did the stain soak into the glue? My thought was that the glue sealed the paper so it wouldn’t accept the stain…. ?? I saw that you stained your steps to your upstairs and not the ones to your basement. I guess my question is does the dry glued paper accept the stain?? Suz
Lovely Crafty Home April 4, 2011 Susan- It does, the paper dries back to it’s original color and everything. The paper soaks up the stain REALLY well, so if you don’t want a deep color (like my mocha) I would suggest going really easy on it for a first coat.
Carri Siebenmark April 4, 2011 I wonder if it would work on concrete floors? My basement floor is so ugly and want to make it better. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 4, 2011 Carri- I bet it would, but I would be sure to brush the floor itself with glue while you’re laying paper so it doesn’t draw the moisture out from the paper. Couldn’t hurt to try! If you do, let me know how it works out! Reply
Michaela April 22, 2011 This is so very cool! We’re getting the house ready for market, so I won’t be trying this here. We are planning on painting our concrete stairs in a colour that brings out the colour in our vinyl tile that we laid a few days ago. I was a little worried about painting them & not being able to walk on them, but I never thought to do every other step. GENIUS! Thanks! Reply
Michaela April 22, 2011 This is so very cool! We’re getting the house ready for market, so I won’t be trying this here. We are planning on painting our concrete stairs in a colour that brings out the colour in our vinyl tile that we laid a few days ago. I was a little worried about painting them & not being able to walk on them, but I never thought to do every other step. GENIUS! Thanks! Reply
Pam April 22, 2011 I live in a slab and tried this in my daughters bedroom on the concrete floors in there. It was worth a shot but did not hold up. I treated the floors first with a concrete sealer. Then I layed the paper floor. Then I poly’d 4 coats. Looks? Great. Did not stick, it has been installed for about a year and you could peal the entire floor up in one sheet – it did not stay adhered. At the edge, she dropped a glass of water, it got underneath and soaked the paper. And we moved her desk without help once and tore a hole in the floor. SO, from my experience, I would never try this on concrete but I have seen that it works when adhered to wood. 🙁 Pam Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 22, 2011 I am wondering if it’s the sealer that caused it not to stick? Reply
Kelly April 22, 2011 FUN!!! I’m not kidding I had a similar idea the other day to decoupage my front entry! (although I think I like this idea better!) Wow I love it, turned out great! Reply
gina April 22, 2011 The stairs look so great! My sister did that type of treatment with brown paper grocery bags to her bedroom walls years ago. It looked like leather and I have always wanted to try the technique myself. This has inspired me again! Reply
kathie chipman April 22, 2011 Oh. My. Goodness. I hardly know what to say ~ but I LOVE it. You have inspired me! Thank you 🙂 Reply
kathie chipman April 22, 2011 Oh. My. Goodness. I hardly know what to say ~ but I LOVE it. You have inspired me! Thank you 🙂 Reply
Cathy April 22, 2011 Wow, that looks fantastic. I also was inspired by all of the beautiful stair makeovers but ripped up my carpet and… its particle board! Bumby and lumpy… do you think this could cover that? Probably not, darn, but yours looks amazing. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home April 22, 2011 Yes!! Mine were particle board-ish also. Just sand them smooth and go to work 🙂 Reply
Eileen April 23, 2011 This is so freaking awesome! I love brown paper. I recently used it to decoupage some maps onto a laminate dining table in my florida house that needed help. I would use this technique for a piece of furniture for sure. I have never seen this, and it looks so great!! Reply
Parents of a Dozen April 26, 2011 I REALLY like your stairs. I am going to be taking off the carpet on our basement stairs soon, hopefully. I think they are going to be worse than yours. Maybe I will try your idea. I recently redid our main stairway. You could see the post here. http://parentsofadozen.blogspot.com/2011/04/our-steps-redo.html Reply
The dresser that glue built: Part 1 | Cubicle 57 July 21, 2011 […] first part of this story does go pretty smoothly. I started with my dresser and this floor covering tutorial from Rachel at Lovely Crafty Home. Only 86 stairs/floor… sub street dresser. But this street find needed legs. I refused to […] Reply
The dresser that glue built: Part 1 | Cubicle 57 July 21, 2011 […] first part of this story does go pretty smoothly. I started with my dresser and this floor covering tutorial from Rachel at Lovely Crafty Home. Only 86 stairs/floor… sub street dresser. But this street find needed legs. I refused to […] Reply
Pam July 29, 2011 I thinking of doing this to purge my house of all the ugly stained carpet. However, I live in the frozen tundra of Wisconsin. Do you have any idea how these are in colder climates in the winter? I don’t think I’d do this treatment in our main living areas…just thinking stairs, hallway, dining room. and maybe bedrooms. Reply
Lovely Crafty Home July 30, 2011 Pam- I can’t speak from experience, but I’d imagine as long as your house is mostly climate controlled you’d be ok. Most paint/stain products will have working temperatures on the can in the instructions, so as long as you’re within that range it would perform normally. Hope that helps! Reply
soccermom August 2, 2011 LOVE your floors!!! Did you sand between each poly layer? What type of sandpaper did you use? I just finished a test area, and have a fairly rough finish. Any tips/hints for a smooth, cleaner finish? Reply
Lovely Crafty Home August 2, 2011 Soccermom- Thanks so much! I actually did not sand between each layer, although you certainly can (I’d imagine it would be very time consuming). You raelly want to make sure that the floor is free of debris before you put stain on. The first few layers of poly might have some texture, but by the time you are at coat 10-12, it will be much smoother. How many coats do you have on now? Reply
soccermom August 3, 2011 I think I probably had the debris pieces of brown paper (from smoothing the paper when it was saturated with water/glue). I have 4 coats of poly on now. At what point did you do a light sanding? I love the way this looks!
Lovely Crafty Home August 3, 2011 Are you doing stairs? I only sanded lightly after the first coat on stairs, but when I did my floors I did not sand at all between layers. To be honest, I don’t think it matters too much. I think if you are doing a small area, you could try sanding lightly now- but if it’s a whole room, just keep going with the poly and it will smooth out.
Inspire Me Heather August 4, 2011 Your stairs look fantastic! I linked this to my hardwood floors post too, well done! Reply
August Moulton August 25, 2011 Oh wow! I am so amazed, A few questions: How do you make sure it holds up on the rounded corners of the stairs? Do you put the stain on before the Poly? So in a step by step, I would first paint a layer of glue mixture, followed by saturated paper pieces, followed by another layer of glue. Let dry, then follow with Poly? Am I understanding it right? Thanks for the tutorial! I plan to start this early next week and I am so excited! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home August 28, 2011 Hey August- the paper is wrapped around the underside of the stairs and it hasn’t peeled or anything, I just applied the glue all the way under the tread, then the soaked paper, followed by the stain and then poly. Reply
August Moulton August 25, 2011 Oh wow! I am so amazed, A few questions: How do you make sure it holds up on the rounded corners of the stairs? Do you put the stain on before the Poly? So in a step by step, I would first paint a layer of glue mixture, followed by saturated paper pieces, followed by another layer of glue. Let dry, then follow with Poly? Am I understanding it right? Thanks for the tutorial! I plan to start this early next week and I am so excited! Reply
Kallie September 1, 2011 Hi-o! Saw this on Pinterest a few weeks ago and am planning to do it in my entry this weekend. It’s a horrible, 50 year old brick floor with a horrible blobby patch of concrete floor where we took out the horrible, huge 50 year old indoor waterfall. (HORRIBLE.) I am so, so excited about this change. (FTR, we’re doing a coat of FixAll first to even out the floor, fill in between bricks and unify the concrete/brick intersections.) Anyway: my question: I realize the two stairs projects were in cramped quarters, but would you have used a roller (lint free obviously) to apply the stain or the poly? Or is it strictly a job for a brush? Thanks so much! I’ve looked all over the internet and your projects and comment threads are the most informative paper-flooring source! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home September 1, 2011 Hi Kallie! Yes I did use a lambswool pad (stain) and sponge pad (poly) for the larger areas! Reply
Joey R. September 17, 2011 This is sooo cool! I am thinking of doing this to get rid of our nasty carpet as well! here’s my question…what do you think of doing this in a bathroom? I am wondering if it would hold up well next to a shower. I am so sick of carpet in this room (who puts carpet in the bathroom anyway?? Hel-lo!). Thanks for your input and your website ROCKS! Reply
Lovely Crafty Home September 17, 2011 Joey- I know it’s been done in bathrooms, but I personally haven’t done it. To be honest, I’d be a little nervous about a bathroom BUT since you have carpet in there, I feel like I’d go for it. I mean it can’t be worse than carpet. I would just make sure you put 12+ coats of poly on there and use a rug! Thanks so much for stopping by! If you decide to do it, let me know how it goes! Reply
Marie September 23, 2011 This is amazing!! I’ve been looking for something beautiful for our basement, but the project has been on hold since I lost my job and thought we couldn’t afford flooring. I think we can afford this! And it’s incredibly pretty! Thank you for the tutorial. Reply
Nadine October 10, 2011 Your stairs look beautiful! I have a bi-level house and when we pulled the stair’s rug up we found it was attached with swirls of black adhesive all over each tread! We can’t sand them due to asthma issues and they have (literally!) stayed like that for years because we had no idea what to do. Finally, this might be the solution we need! We also have cats and I was wondering how you kept yours from stepping on the wet stairs until they dried? Our cats’ box & food are downstairs and we & everything else are upstairs so they won’t tolerate being locked up away from us for very long. Thank you for such a great & inexpensive idea! ^_^ Reply
Lovely Crafty Home October 10, 2011 Nadine- I did actually lock mine in the basement (where their food and box are) for a few hours after, but for the most part they stayed off of it because I think the wet/stickiness of it was a turn off haha! I would recommend putting them up while you’re working, but in general we didn’t have any big problems. They step so lightly compared to our dog (which we kept off them completely…I had my husband carry her upstairs in socks lol). Reply
Nadine October 10, 2011 Thank you for your reply. ^_^ A few hours sounds better than 1-2 days and I’m glad to know they mostly avoided the wet stairs on their own. I was worried they’d get it on their paws, lick it off & get sick. Your puppy isn’t small & your husband had to take every other stair. Did you take a picture? That would be great to see! I’m sure your puppy was very confused when your husband suddenly started to do that! ^_^
Well, I Guess It Happens October 14, 2011 […] trying to track down the brown paper floor tutorial so please please please come back! It’s here, and […] Reply
Well, I Guess It Happens October 14, 2011 […] trying to track down the brown paper floor tutorial so please please please come back! It’s here, and […] Reply
Tammy Kitts October 14, 2011 Wow this is awesome on the floors, I done my previous house walls in this and used cedar fencing as the waynes coat, in my living room I stayed with the color of the paper with the new Cedar fencing, same as in hall and made shutters like a country saloon with saloon doors down hall, beautiful, the bedroom was done with a different Type of glue that gave it a weathered look and used weathered cedar fencing. In the masterbath we used packing paper it’s thinner than the Painters paper and it was a cream color to Give a vintage look, this technique is beautiful but would Have never thought to use on the floors, thanks I think I will try this in my new place. Reply
Guest Room Paper Floor…DONE! October 14, 2011 […] the how to, check out this post and this post. The updated hallway view…ignore the awkward hallway furniture and jagged […] Reply
Compulsive in Texas October 14, 2011 I love, love, love this idea! I just ripped up the carpet on our front stairs and was trying to think of something different to do. This is it. I had already ripped up the carpet on our back stairs and refinished them to look like old repurposed crates. Now I know what I will do on the front stairs. Love your blog! Reply
Nancy October 14, 2011 This is a great idea and I would love to see pics … but for some reason the pics on your page aren’t loading for me. 🙁 Reply
rachaelevans October 16, 2011 Nancy- have you tried reloading the page? My site crashed earlier this week so there might be some leftover “funk”. Reply
Debbie October 18, 2011 There is a flash update this week, so maybe you need to update your Adobe. Now for your flooring…..I love it! I am redo a small room in my single-wide mobile home and am going to use your tutorial for the floor. I currently have some carpet that looks like that old asphalt that was popular when I was a child (with the white, pink and grey in it) and I hate hate HATE it. I was so thirlled when I found your beautiful site and the great looking floor! I will post pictures on my blog when i get it up and running. Thanks for sharing this technique. You saved my sanity! Reply
DIY Newbie October 18, 2011 What did you use to apply your polyurethane? Was it a small brush? What if I’m doing a really large room? Any suggestions? Reply
rachaelevans October 19, 2011 I used a paint brush (I used waterbased poly so I could wash it out) on the small areas and a large sponge mop applicator for large rooms. Reply
DIY Newbie October 18, 2011 What did you use to apply your polyurethane? Was it a small brush? What if I’m doing a really large room? Any suggestions? Reply
Jessica October 24, 2011 I just finished this on my kitchen counters. I used a mocha colored stain and it looks fantastic!!!!! I have done several things to my countertops but never loved them, this I love! Reply
Blog Swapping with Rachael from Lovely Crafty Home « Measured by the Heart October 25, 2011 […] are so lucky to get to hear from Rachael from Lovely Crafty Home!! I have a craft crush on her flooring tutorial. Read on you will see. And then go follow her cus you don’t want to miss out on one thing […] Reply
Lacie October 25, 2011 I get TONS of brown craft paper in my boxes as packaging material. I’m so excited to have found an awesome use for it. Thanks for the great idea 🙂 Reply
Lacie October 25, 2011 I get TONS of brown craft paper in my boxes as packaging material. I’m so excited to have found an awesome use for it. Thanks for the great idea 🙂 Reply
Lori Herning October 26, 2011 I really love this idea! We are getting ready to finish our basement and I wonder if it will work on concrete floors or if we would need to put down a subfloor. What do you think? Reply
rachaelevans October 26, 2011 Lori- I have never done it on concrete, but I know people who have. Instead of glue you have to use poly, but it should work! Reply
Jen November 7, 2011 Just finished “bagging” an end table top. Needs to dry then will add the varnish. So far so good though!! 😀 Thanks for the brilliant idea. The table was originally headed for the dump! Reply
Lynne Sheley November 8, 2011 We recently purchased a church that we will be using as our Youth Facility. The basement had horrible carpet that needed to be ripped up. The carpet did not have any padding so when the carpet came up, the glue stayed on the floor, when we saw your idea we were so excited…it looks amazing! My question; 1.Do we need to remove the old glue first? 2. Someone had said to use “poly” instead of glue on cement…is that polyurethane? 3. When do you apply the stain? After you glued it to the floor, or before? is the stain a wood stain? 4. Was the polyurethane a high gloss..? Can’t wait to get started, thank you for sharing!!! Reply
Autumn November 13, 2011 Oh my gosh I absolutely love Iam going to attempt this in my back antique room I have been wanting to redo the floors and put wood down but that would cost so much so for a year and a half I have been patiently waiting for a idea or a project to pop in my head and wa la you did that is amazing I do have a few questions if you could please help I m doing it on a smooth cement do you think that would work just as well?? If not no problem to place the plywood hubby’s great at that stuff also I’m not much for polyurethane pretty much despise it. You said you put 10 coats or so on your project and sanded it, you waited two days per coat then sanded it then polled coat number two and so on and do forth?? I’m just trying to judge so I store all my furniture in the right places!! Thank you do much for posting this me and my husband are so very excited to try this and to see amazing results!! Reply
rachaelevans November 13, 2011 Autumn-Here is a complete guide to the flooring http://www.lovelycraftyhome.com/2011/11/09/the-ultimate-brown-paper-flooring-guide/ Reply
Shannon Jones November 21, 2011 This is AWESOME!! I live in a trailer I have lanoleum in my small bathrooms and kitchen I don’t like do you think this would work on them since they are like particle board? Reply
Joy November 24, 2011 We are in the process of turning our small one car garage into another room for our house. There is a set of UGLY stairs leading into the house that I was just tonight (while painting the walls )thinking about what we could do to them that would hold up and look good! enter Pinterest 🙂 gosh I love that place. We have a big roll of the paper in our closet since my daughter uses it for paint paper. Looks like I have my fix now!! I can’t wait!! Reply
Joy November 24, 2011 We are in the process of turning our small one car garage into another room for our house. There is a set of UGLY stairs leading into the house that I was just tonight (while painting the walls )thinking about what we could do to them that would hold up and look good! enter Pinterest 🙂 gosh I love that place. We have a big roll of the paper in our closet since my daughter uses it for paint paper. Looks like I have my fix now!! I can’t wait!! Reply
Dina Bartlett January 9, 2012 My question is what if I used the white artkraft paper? I love this but want to do a lighter color. There are tons of colors to choose from, but so undecided and scared to use it without input. Reply
rachaelevans January 10, 2012 Dina, I’d imagine white paper would work the same way but maybe white would be harder to keep clean? Reply
Jan Walters January 11, 2012 Great idea and what a great job you did. Thanks for the inspiration! Reply
Amanda McEwen January 13, 2012 If I owned my own home I would totally utelize this…but since I dont…i think my computer desk may need a leather look makeover hmmmm Reply
Lori February 1, 2012 Hi, I absolutely love this! I have a room I would like to try…there is old carpet in there and I know there is linoleum underneath. After ripping out the carpet, do I also need to take up the linoleum or can it be done over it? Thanks! Reply
rachaelevans February 1, 2012 Hi Lori- If the linoleum is in good shape and doesn’t have a lot of texture (i.e. faux tile with grout grooves), you can go right over it. Just keep in mind that the paper will not hide imperfections, so I don’t usually recommend it over non-smooth surfaces (especially tile because of the grid effect). Hope that helps! Reply
Lori February 1, 2012 Hi, I absolutely love this! I have a room I would like to try…there is old carpet in there and I know there is linoleum underneath. After ripping out the carpet, do I also need to take up the linoleum or can it be done over it? Thanks! Reply
My Paper Flooring Project using Craft Paper or Paper Bags | Adventures in Mothering February 28, 2012 […] So, searching Brown craft paper, I found a project for redoing your floor with craft paper and Elmer’s glue-all. Perfect. Praise God. The original post that I learned how to do this from is located here. […] Reply
rachaelevans March 1, 2012 Pam- Just as beautiful as the day I did it! Really! I haven’t added poly or anything. Reply
Carli St. Michel March 20, 2012 I was looking for rolls of Kraft paper at Staples, but it seemed awfully thin. Could you tell me more about the paper, what brand, weight etc. or what stores carry it. Our Home Depot does not have it. Thank you so much, I really want to do this, preferably this week when my husband is out of town. Reply
rachaelevans March 20, 2012 Carli- I’d be really surprised if any HD didn’t have it…did you look by the fabric drop cloths in the painting section? I would check Lowes also. I have even seen it at Walmart with packing supplies. Generally it should feel like a paper grocery bag, maybe slightly “lighter”. Reply
Carli St. Michel March 21, 2012 Thanks for the info. I will check Home Depot again and Lowes and Walmart. Staples has an 18# Kraft paper on line, but presently sold out.
Latasha April 1, 2012 I really want to try this for my kitchen, but not sure if it would last on the vinyl that I have or the concrete that is underneath. Could you give me any suggestions??? Thanks in advance. Reply
rachaelevans April 2, 2012 Latasha- If the vinyl is in good shape, I’d test out a 50/50 glue/water mix in a small area and see if it sticks. Hope that helps! Reply
crissy April 29, 2012 I was reading about brown paper floor and was wondering about how slippery the stairs are to walk on and if you added anything to applying Reply
rachaelevans April 30, 2012 Crissy- they are about as slippery as hardwood, you could put a runner down the center if you like to help! Reply
Brown Paper + Walnut Stain = Mocha Love June 14, 2012 […] You’re probably tired of hearing about my basement staircase makeover. […] Reply
Schellie August 2, 2012 Your floors look beautiful! Now that it has been awhile how have they held up? Also, I saw the question about putting this on top of vinyl floor but I didn’t see the answer. Can you put it directly on a vinyl floor or do I have to peal up the vinyl squares? Thanks so much for your help! Reply
rachaelevans August 2, 2012 Schellie- My floors are still lovely, I used a floor finish called Holloway House Quick Shine about twice a month and they look brand new. Obviously there is some wear and tear- light scratches from the dog- but they are still holding up well. I will try to remember to take some pictures and add them to the post sort of like a then and now 🙂 Here is my post about vinyl: http://lovelycraftyhome.com/2012/05/24/out-west-where-home-depot-is-still-my-home/ Reply
The dresser that glue built: Part 1 | Cubicle57 September 18, 2012 […] first part of this story does go pretty smoothly. I started with my dresser and this floor covering tutorial from Rachel at Lovely Crafty Home. Only 86 stairs/floor… sub street dresser. But this street find needed legs. I refused to […] Reply
Tracie September 21, 2012 Can you paint it instead of staining…like a whitewash. Looks awesome! Tracie Reply
Carla October 8, 2012 It looks like I’m a little bit late to your blog, but I am so glad I finally found you. We, too, have a pet worn carpet on our 25 year old staircase. I have been pondering the situation and lurking at blogs for about 2 years or so to find a solution. Here is my situation: We have 12 steps up from a tiled foyer and hallway. At the top of the 12 steps is a 3′ x 3′ landing, a turn to the right and then 2 more steps to the second floor hallway. I want to paint the steps, but didn’t know what to do about the landing that is just subfloor under the carpet. I didn’t want to have to do some expensive treatment on the landing when I was just painting the steps. The tile in the foyer is a 16″ Congoleum tile that is a mxture of brown, tan, dark gray and a little black….it is a good dirt color. I am thinking of painting the risers white and the treads a dark grey . On the landing I would like to use the paper treatment. After installing the paper, could I paint it gray and then poly it? I I am really nervous about starting this project since it is the very first thing you see when you come in the front door. You seem fearless about trying new things. I love your blog! Reply
Rachael Evans October 8, 2012 Carla- I’ve never tried painting the paper, but I don’t see why not! I’d get a piece of scrap plywood and cover it in paper, then paint it (maybe try a few different colors to see what you like best, and how many coats you need). Hope that helps! Thanks for stopping by 🙂 Reply
shelly November 26, 2012 This looks so amazing. Can this be done on a rough concrete floor or would I have to put a subfloor down first? I think this will be my spring project for next year! Thanks for the great information and idea! Reply
Rachael Evans November 26, 2012 Shelly- if the concrete is not in good shape, I’d advise either using a concrete re-surfacing type product (like a self leveling repair type product) or laying sub-floor. I just don’t think you’ll be happy with the results long term if the surface doesn’t start out pretty smooth. Reply
GMAof5 December 3, 2012 Did you sand between coats of poly on your stairs and how long did you wait between coats? Reply
Rachael Evans December 4, 2012 Yes I did on the stairs, I waited anywhere between 4-6 hours, but longer is probably better 🙂 Reply
Agnieszka December 5, 2012 Hi, first all project is fantastic! Pity I didnt see it before puttine laminate floor.. It would save my money.. huge time. Did anyone tried it on tiles? Or maybe would you know it will work? I have absolutly hideous tiles on the kitchen & hallway floor and no money to change it. would really love to cover them but I cannot buy paint for floor tiles in Ireland and cannot find anything thin enough to cover. Reply
Rachael Evans December 5, 2012 I have not tried it on tiles, but you should be able to get adhesion with either glue or poly. As long as you don’t care about seeing a faint “grid” from the grout underneath, I say go for it! Reply
Suelo de papel reciclado - Decoracion - EstiloyDeco January 17, 2013 […] Una vez el papel esté bien seco, coloca dos o tres capas del barniz, dejando secar bien entre ellas y lijando ligeramente si lo deseas. Ya está listo tu nuevo suelo, hecho completamente con papel reciclado. Si quieres más información y fotografías, visita JoyFolie o LovelyCraftyHome. […] Reply
Paper Floors: An Eco-Friendly, Frugal Idea « Joyful Momma's Thoughts and DesignsJoyful Momma's Thoughts and Designs September 23, 2013 […] So, searching Brown craft paper, I found a project for redoing your floor with craft paper and Elmer’s glue-all. Perfect. Praise God. The original post that I learned how to do this from is located here. […] Reply
What Can You Do With A Paper Bag? — A Cultivated Nest March 13, 2014 […] DIY Paper Bag Stair Makeover at Lovely Crafty Home […] Reply
SA Springer April 11, 2014 The stair treads going to the second floor in our 1916 Foursquare are hideous. Once golden oak, they’ve been painted four times, once with a dirty mustard that both chemicals and heat haven’t been able to get off. I’d been thinking about the paper bag treatment then found your article. Just what the doctor ordered! I’m going to try your method of paper bag flooring on the steps as well as add silica or sand to the final polyurethane. With two large dogs, I’m not sure it will last, but anything is better than what we have now! Many thanks for posting such a well written set of instructions! Reply
Julie December 28, 2014 i did this treatment in the upstairs hall, stairs, and downstairs hall. Instead of stain, I used rit dye mixed right into my glue/water. It’s beautiful and the upkeep is so easy! Reply
Thoughts and Designs: Thoughts and Tips for Life; Designs and Tools for Living It March 16, 2015 […] So, searching Brown craft paper, I found a project for redoing your floor with craft paper and Elmer’s glue-all. Perfect. Praise God. The original post that I learned how to do this from is located here. […] Reply
Rachael Evans January 23, 2016 Check out a photo I posted this morning on my instagram @lovelycrafty 🙂 Reply
An AMAZING (and Budget-Friendly) Flooring Makeover December 28, 2015 […] For more on this project, head over to Lovely Crafty Home, or you can see her tutorial here. It sounds like this may have been a pretty labor-intensive project, so I’m sure Rachael […] Reply
26 Brown Paper Bag Crafts - Crafting a Green World November 23, 2016 […] 21. stairs. Okay, these aren’t paper bag stairs, exactly, but stairs covered in paper bag flooring. Regardless, they look amazing. […] Reply
16 Ways to Repurpose Paper Bags - Dukes and Duchesses March 13, 2017 […] to the paper bag floor treatment above, these brown paper stairs are a really neat way to update a […] Reply
