Walking into my house was like stepping back in time- I'm sure at one time, it was a groovy, woody, 70s dream home....but now it's reminiscent of visiting my grandma. The entire front section of the house is paneled in real wood, a tongue and groove knotty pine paneling and carpeted throughout in VERY THICK fluffy green shag carpet.
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| It's so big because it's full of secrets...and stink. |
The carpet is actually so thick it feels like you're walking on grass! The house also smelled really musty and dusty, like it had been closed up for a long time. (I'm actually being really polite about the smell, it was more like a mixture of stale old house or dead fart...it really needed addressing ASAP.)
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| Retro 70s Living Room, Before |
BUT! Have you ever watched one of those home buying shows on TV and been mad at those couples on TV who refuse to see past an ugly paint color? This was like that, except I had to put on some thicker rose colored glasses.
I had been house hunting for a long time and I knew something like this would be snapped up very quickly, fart smell and all. I viewed this house an hour after after it had been listed with my realtor, so I was the first buyer to see it.
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| Retro 70s Living Room, Before |
The weekend after my closing, I knew this green shag carpet was the first thing that was going to go! My goal for the weekend was to tackle the musty house stink, it literally smacked you in the face when you walked inside...probably either from a) the water nearby b) house being empty and closed up, or c) the former occupant.
I tackled the stink by working to rip out the carpet and drapes. I bought a couple boxes of VERY THICK contractor trash bags and gathered the rest of the tools I'd need: work gloves, utility knives, pry bars, and LOTS of rolls of duct tape. It also helps to have a couple big cardboard boxes on hand for carpet tack strips (and friends to help).
It was pretty easy to pry up the edge of the carpet with a pry bar, then after that it all came up in one big roll. When we ripped back the carpet the first (of many surprises in the house to come, I'm sure) revealed itself........(making sure to wear gloves so I didn't get poked by a rusty tack strip) ...
Yes! Old flooring! Under the old green shag carpet we found some old pink and red 1950's linoleum in the cutest retro print. I would have considered keeping it but it was it terrible shape. What a great surprise for the very first day!
In order to put carpet out for the trash, you need to cut it up into strips and tape it so it's easier for the trash guys to get it at the curb. By the end of the weekend I had a HUGE pile of these rolls.
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| Living Room after removing green shag carpet! |
The toughest part of ripping out the shag carpet was that it was HEAVY, probably because it was also full of years of dust and whatever else. (We wore gloves and dust masks) After pulling out carpet and the curtains, this room already smells better! The house is clearly ready for a new beginning with me.
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