Painting the Floor -- Do You Dare?

on July 14, 2011 at 3:45 PM

We've all heard that a coat of paint is the easiest way to bring new life to a room, but what if the paint went on the floor instead of the wall?

While it could be a little risky to cover up original hardwood, it might be just the thing some of your less attractive floors need (cement laundry room anyone?). And while some of these examples look extremely time consuming, I think there are some definitely doable ideas as well. Shall we take a look?

The glossy faux bois in this kitchen draws your eye in immediately.

This lace and floral stencil ones are what I meant when I said time consuming. The hard work definitely shows and adds a wow to the rooms.

Chevron seems to be the pattern of the moment, and this super-high-gloss version looks extra glam.

Stripes are always a classic. You can go with simple white or take a more colorful, geometric approach with a painted area rug look.

After looking at these, I'm craving a painted floor project. If I had a garage, I think I'd start there. Bikes and cars would look happier with a painted parking spot.

What do you think, too time consuming or worth it for the end look?

Filed Under: decorating, diy, inspirations, renovating, thrifty solutions

Comments (15)

GlowWorm889

on Jul 14, 2011 at 4:54 PM

I would never cover up hardwood floors with paint. When I was house-hunting, I saw it all the time in beautiful old colonial houses. Gorgeous oak or pine floorboards...covered in gray paint. Made me want to bang my head against the wall.

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Facebook comment from Lisa Baker Baer

on Jul 14, 2011 at 5:55 PM

I would never cover it entirely, but a small touch of it could really make the hardwood pop instead of fading into the background as a neutral. I think I would love a simple black stripe around the perimiter of the room...like a border. the checker board is pretty cool too.

Facebook comment from Allison Priest Leonard

on Jul 14, 2011 at 11:14 PM

my mil's aunt painted the upstairs of her old house green. we fell in love with it.

winterrose82

on Jul 18, 2011 at 1:12 PM

I would only do that to hardwood floors if they were already nearly destroyed. I wouldn't paint lovely, good condition wood floors. I think cement floors would look great painted in a cellar, sunporch or garage.

Facebook comment from Jacquelyn Stager

on Jul 30, 2011 at 9:07 AM

can you paint over linolium?

Facebook comment from Debora Messina

on Jul 30, 2011 at 9:19 AM

I have old commercial tile in my kitchen, can you paint over the tile? Do you need to polyurethane after or will a high gloss paint stand alone?

Nonmember comment from Liz

on Jul 30, 2011 at 10:11 AM

I LOVE THIS!!!! I will definitely look into how to do these projects. I'm sure its time consuming but the look (and savings) is totally worth it!

Facebook comment from Sherry Brown

on Jul 30, 2011 at 11:44 AM

Did it, had inlaws that did it, the floors mark up easily and paint peels off. We were told we didn't need a sealer but don't fall for it. You do.

Nonmember comment from annabelle

on Jul 30, 2011 at 12:13 PM

I would never paint my floors--especially the kitchen. I like my lovely wood floors (stained, of course)--they make the rooms look smart. A rug in the living room and bedrooms, et al with wood around the sides looks smart and elegant.

Facebook comment from Michelle Tafoya

on Jul 30, 2011 at 12:36 PM

Have a not so perfect large area that we painted and although it takes almost no upkeep, it does peel and will probably need to be redone sooner than later. Pretty durable, its in a rental home and they have a large dog. We placed a huge area rug over it so it is working but I would love to try the chevron or pattern once they move out. Had we gone through the expense of refinishing the floors, we would have then had to turn away 90% of our potential renters because people just don't take care of floors and we don't expect them to either.