Review: Rug Pad USA

I never knew I could be excited about a rug pad, but owning a home changes the definition of excitement for people like me.

Shortly after I scouted the prettiest rug on the internet for our guest room, the folks at RugPadUSA.com reached out to me to see if I'd like to review one of their rug pads. Perfect timing.

To select the perfect pad, I started off by using the Rug Pad USA buying guide, which lets you input your floor type and rug size so it can recommend the best pad for your needs. Based on my input - hardwood floors and an 8 x 10 rug - the site recommended the RUGPRO, which is described as an "ideal combination of natural rubber and felt, this low-profile, high-grip rug pad keeps medium-sized rugs in place and laying even with floors." The rug pad is custom cut based on your measurement, so no need to worry about adhering to standard sizes.

Maybe it's because I've never owned a nice rug pad before, but I was pretty excited to roll this thing out. 

I've only ever used Ikea's rug pads before, which work just fine once their down, but because they don't have a rubber lining underneath, it can be quite difficult to get them to stay in place before rolling out your rug and getting everything to align.

The RUGPRO was incredibly easy to position and once it was where we wanted it, we rolled the rug right on top without either shifting around. No adjustments or wiggling needed. Maybe it's because we're just such seasoned rug rollers at this point, but I have to believe the rug pad served its purpose here.

The RUGPRO retails at a little over $100 for the 8' x 10' size, which seems comparable to similar products from other retailers. Because our rug was so affordable, this is something that would have fit into our budget well.

Rug Pads USA is offering Under A House readers an addition 5% off of the current 20% off markdowns. Use promo code UNDERAHOUSE at checkout through 5/23/18 for a total of 25% savings.

This is a sponsored post. Rug Pad USA sent me their product free of charge and compensated me in exchange for a review. This post and review is of my own opinion.

Guest Room Progress

My body aches all over, but not for nothing. We spent the entire weekend painting every inch of the guest room - floors, ceilings, walls, and trim. It's amazing what paint can do.

I was a little nervous about covering up the hardwood floors with paint, but couldn't be happier with the result. After sanding, I primed the floors with primer (I use Zinsser Bulls Eye 1-2-3) using a roller brush. After that dried, I applied two coats of Benjamin Moore Floor and Patio Low Sheen paint in Soot using a paint brush. It could probably use a third coat, but I'm going to lay out the area rug first and touch up the edges as needed.

You'll also notice that the fireplace has gone on to a better place. As lovely as this rustic fixture was, it was in the way and it was dirty and it drove me nuts.

I'm a little sad to cover the crisp black floor up with an area rug, but it will bring in some much needed color to the room, plus it will buffer the noise and keep the room warmer in the winter.

I'm also looking into some colorful light fixtures and cords. The heavy lifting on this room is almost over - stay tuned for the fun parts ahead.

Pink Doors

Ever since I saw this home tour, I've had pink doors on my mind. I'm working to get out of my monochrome rut - both in my home and in my wardrobe - but I always gravitate towards black. With a colorful rug going into the guest room, I'm using this room renovation as an opportunity to play with color and see where it takes me. A step out of my comfort zone, but what could go wrong?

Probably the most famous pink door is the #thatpinkdoor in Palm Springs. In fact, it's so famous that the owners had to post a "no photography" sign in their front yard to ward away bloggers and media. It's some real pink inspo.

Image via PurePhoto . com

Image via PurePhoto.com

Like the home owners in the Curbed article I mentioned earlier, I'm going to go with Sherwin-William's Haute Pink for the guest room door. If it goes well, it might make its way over to the bathroom door, as well, although this is color to be used in moderation.

Here We Go Again

After a brief home improvement hiatus, we're back at it. This time, we're tackling the front bedroom, which currently services as a guest-TV-storage-exercise-lounge combo room. This combo isn't working too well, so we took a hammer and crowbar to the parts that needed to disappear for good.

Saying Goodbye

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Step 1: tear away the silly bump-out closet taking up already limited square space. Step 2: see what's hiding behind the mantel.

We plan to use the existing tiny closet as a built-in book shelf and are currently figuring out exactly what to do with the part of the wall formerly concealed by the mantel. We've got some brainstorming to do here and called in a contractor for an expert approach on this front.

 

Painting the Floors

Image via Oliver Yaphe

Image via Oliver Yaphe

Image via One Kings Lane

Image via One Kings Lane

I've done it before and I'll do it again. Since the majority of the floor will be covered by an area rug, sinking money into refinishing the hardwood doesn't make sense for us right now. I'm looking into black-painted hardwood floors as continuation of the painted steps and landing I'm working on wrapping up. I'll be using Benjamin Moore Floor & Patio Low Sheen Enamel on this after sanding and priming the heck out of the surface.

 

Using Elbow Grease

The walls and trim need some love. With my favorite friend Ready Patch by my side, I started patching the cracks and filling the gaps. Once it dries, I'll sand before priming and painting.  These little details are the opposite amount of fun as demo work, but they make a huge difference. Tedious, but necessary.

I'll use Benjamin Moore Simply White on the trim and my very favorite Benjamin Moore Moonlight White on the walls.

 

Furnishing it

To keep the room as versatile as possible, we're looking into Ikea's UTÅKER Stackable Beds. They can transform into two singles, one queen, or an L-shaped couch quite easily, so they'll allow us to keep the room serving several purposes. So that it continue to serve as a storage space, we'll keep a dresser and such hanging out.

So that's the plan. I'm beyond excited to get this space working for us. Stay tuned for what is destined to be another adventure.