Carpeting the Stairs

A staircase runner adds comfort and safety, color, pattern, and a period touch.

- Brian D. Coleman

I'll admit I waited a while before carpeting my stairs. We'd spent a year replacing the worn-out, chipped and painted treads with hand-finished oak and were enjoying the beautiful wood. A couple of winters with wet shoes and muddy paws showed it was time to preserve that woodwork. I decided that a carpet runner would protect the treads but still show off the oak, while making the steps less slippery and thus safer. A stair runner is also period-appropriate for my Victorian house.

The first step was deciding on the installation method: either Hollywood or waterfall. The Hollywood (or French cap or upholstered) method wraps the carpet around the edge of the tread nosing at each step, fastening it to the riser for a fitted look. This is best on stairs that get a lot of attention, as at entries and landings, in principal hallways, in main bedroom corridors. The waterfall method is more casual. Here the carpet is secured to the edge of the stair tread but then drops straight down to the back of the next tread without being tacked to the riser. This technique is usually saved for thicker, harder-to-handle carpet and for secondary passageways such as kitchen or basement stairs. My staircase was meant to be a showstopper, so I chose the more formal Hollywood method.

The second step was choosing the carpet. Although most runners can be cut down from a larger carpet roll, it would then need hemming on either side to prevent fraying. I opted for a prehemmed runner. These are generally made in 27" and 32" widths. I chose the narrower option to expose more wood. The typical recommendation is to choose a runner width that will expose 4" to 7" of tread on each side. Use a carpet wide enough so that people won't step partially on the wood, which can lead to tripping. A handy tip to visualize the proper width: Cut the available widths out of paper or cardboard and test it on the treads.