stucco, carpets, and needless decor rants

[KristyHall]

a random rant.

I hate stucco (the sort used purely for the lumpy decor on ceilings and walls) and carpet.

It makes cleaning a house difficult. And drives allergies nuts.

Do not come near my house with stucco nor carpet. I'll stick with area rugs i can pull up and clean, and smooth walls with high quality paint that can be scrubbed.

Am I weird that I scrub walls?

Someone said my hostility is misplaced, but I hate those things with a passion.


Oh and If i have to use a 12 foot ladder to clean a light fixture, i do an internal temper tantrum.

Yes, I am the home decor grouch.

there you go, a rant from me to lighten your day (or make you roll your eyes). Now I have to go hug a chicken.

 

[sourland]

Stucco story: My older sister's first home was stuccoed throughout the interior. My nephew's room was one of those that was stuccoed. Picture a loaded diaper, an imaginative finger painting kid - - - the room was never right after that. I happened to be visiting and was the one who discovered the 'art work'.

 

[KristyHall]

Stucco story: My older sister's first home was stuccoed throughout the interior. My nephew's room was one of those that was stuccoed. Picture a loaded diaper, an imaginative finger painting kid - - - the room was never right after that. I happened to be visiting and was the one who discovered the 'art work'.

yuck!

And it is near impossible to clean decorative stucco. How did they manage to get the wall somewhat clean?

 

[GardenerGal]

Stucco story: My older sister's first home was stuccoed throughout the interior. My nephew's room was one of those that was stuccoed. Picture a loaded diaper, an imaginative finger painting kid - - - the room was never right after that. I happened to be visiting and was the one who discovered the 'art work'.

Eeeeyooooo

If that were my house, I'd be spraying undiluted chlorine bleach on those walls like it was paint.

 

[GardenerGal]

a random rant.

I hate stucco (the sort used purely for the lumpy decor on ceilings and walls) and carpet.

It makes cleaning a house difficult. And drives allergies nuts.

Do not come near my house with stucco nor carpet. I'll stick with area rugs i can pull up and clean, and smooth walls with high quality paint that can be scrubbed.

Am I weird that I scrub walls?

Someone said my hostility is misplaced, but I hate those things with a passion.


Oh and If i have to use a 12 foot ladder to clean a light fixture, i do an internal temper tantrum.

Yes, I am the home decor grouch.

there you go, a rant from me to lighten your day (or make you roll your eyes). Now I have to go hug a chicken.

When I bought my house, it came with new carpet and fresh paint. Under the carpet is a floor of southern yellow pine, but a mess -- stained, splatters of paint, etc.. So I left the carpet, which was the cheapest kind of beige "contractor's grade" stuff that is used in low-cost apartment rehabs.

Now it's 18 years later and honestly, the stained wood floors are more appealing to me now than that carpet. I pulled it up in the dining room and a neighbor who's a rug-layer put down some really nice cocoa colored natural sisal carpet that was left from a job he did... I only paid for his labor ($200) and it was at least a $1200 piece of sisal! In the front entry I had tile put down from the door to the woodstove so no more tracking mud and crap on carpet. And the living room, I just ripped out the carpet and put down a jute/sisal area rug to cover the crappy-looking wood. Someday I'll start sanding and polyurethaning it a little at a time.

Now, on to the rest of the house! By winter I want to get rid of at least one more room-worth of carpet.

Stucco, a whole 'nother topic. My sunroom has that kind of ceiling, and every time I swat a fly, a shower of "stucco snow" comes down on me. There are bare areas along the edges of the soffits and skylights where the stucco came off. It's annoying. After the carpet caper is done, I'll take a bucket of white semi-gloss and redo the ceilings. But I'll put drop clothes on the floor, unlike the previous owners.

 

[sourland]

Chlorox and water, repeated scrubbings and flushing with fresh water. Every time the humidity got above 50 % the room smelled like --- well you get the picture. Eventually I think they plastered over the stucco and painted with an oil base paint. For many years I referred to that kid as 'The Artist'.

 

[KristyHall]

When I bought my house, it came with new carpet and fresh paint. Under the carpet is a floor of southern yellow pine, but a mess -- stained, splatters of paint, etc.. So I left the carpet, which was the cheapest kind of beige "contractor's grade" stuff that is used in low-cost apartment rehabs.

Now it's 18 years later and honestly, the stained wood floors are more appealing to me now than that carpet. I pulled it up in the dining room and a neighbor who's a rug-layer put down some really nice cocoa colored natural sisal carpet that was left from a job he did... I only paid for his labor ($200) and it was at least a $1200 piece of sisal! In the front entry I had tile put down from the door to the woodstove so no more tracking mud and crap on carpet. And the living room, I just ripped out the carpet and put down a jute/sisal area rug to cover the crappy-looking wood. Someday I'll start sanding and polyurethaning it a little at a time.

Now, on to the rest of the house! By winter I want to get rid of at least one more room-worth of carpet.

Stucco, a whole 'nother topic. My sunroom has that kind of ceiling, and every time I swat a fly, a shower of "stucco snow" comes down on me. There are bare areas along the edges of the soffits and skylights where the stucco came off. It's annoying. After the carpet caper is done, I'll take a bucket of white semi-gloss and redo the ceilings. But I'll put drop clothes on the floor, unlike the previous owners.

I don't blame you on wanting to replace all that. The tile sounds very pretty. do you have pictures?

 

[KristyHall]

Chlorox and water, repeated scrubbings and flushing with fresh water. Every time the humidity got above 50 % the room smelled like --- well you get the picture. Eventually I think they plastered over the stucco and painted with an oil base paint. For many years I referred to that kid as 'The Artist'.

 

[GardenerGal]

Chlorox and water, repeated scrubbings and flushing with fresh water. Every time the humidity got above 50 % the room smelled like --- well you get the picture. Eventually I think they plastered over the stucco and painted with an oil base paint. For many years I referred to that kid as 'The Artist'.

LOL!
That's what I was thinking... Chlorox the living H-E-Double Hockeysticks out of it.
But why is the stink still coming back after that? Did it get absorbed into the wall?

 

[GardenerGal]

I don't blame you on wanting to replace all that. The tile sounds very pretty. do you have pictures?

Let me see if I have anything in my Web Shots albums, but I don't think I have any floor photos.
The tiles are alternating aqua-blue and a warm pink sandstone color, ceramic. And some are rectangular and some are square, so it's a nice mix of color and shape. Boy, do I hate carpet! But I love tile, wood, stone, and nice area rugs. Just like you, I want things that can be moved and cleaned. Carpet is a pain in the you-know-what.