Bad carpet choice, reassurance?

Coco00

Hi all, I’m hoping someone might have a few calming words after I now see I’ve made a bad choice over a new carpet!
I discovered I’d need to re-carpet my flat before moving in, due to hidden pet damage (the smelly kind) which I really hadn’t budgeted for. It’s my first place on my own, so it’s all a bit stressful, as I need to buy basically everything as coming from a shared house. I stupidly did it in a massive rush, trying to fit everything around work, and moving out, and only brought one sample book back to look at.

Anyway, I chose the colour well, I really like that, and it feels good too, but it turns out that it shows up every single footprint, vacuum mark etc- I thought that only happened with plush expensive ones! This is pretty low end 100% polypropylene, heavy domestic short pile twist, about 8mm ish, lightish matt grey, with a good underlay as I had to do like for like with that. My old one years ago was a super budget, possibly the ‘landlord’ slightly speckled type, and I really loved it, it definitely didn’t show anything, so I guess it must have been a completely different sort. 

Has anyone found that they flatten down and get less obvious marks after a while? I’m hoping that when I’ve got furniture, rugs etc, that it won’t be so noticeable, but I’m so annoyed with myself, and a bit down about it to be honest. Live & learn I guess!

Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated, thanks

victor2

It probably will "settle" after a while as you establish the heavier traffic routes. And as you say, much of the rest will be covered with rugs and/or furniture in time. You like the colour, so that's the main issue. We had new stair and landing carpet a few years back. Nobody could walk on it in shoes (which we still follow, but it's easy with stairs), but footprints showed at first. Now it's got some wear in the middle of the stairs, footprints don't show on that, but still looks good.

twopenny

It may be a mistake, or it may not. You'll only know with time. I've been living with a new red and brown patterned high quality carpet the previous owners put down. I'm desperate to replace because of covid and bout of ill health it's still there. I have put cream rugs down to take the edge off the startling pattern.

But you are stuck with it so I'd concentrate on getting the other stuff done and in by which time you will probably barely notice.

If it's all going to be costly at first have you considered the charity shops? You can get some good quality things from cutlery to new beds. People get them for guest rooms and they don't get used.

I've gathered some really nice stuff from there at a fraction of the price new. The only thing I've never seen in good condition is sofas, chairs yes, sofas seem to be collapsing on the seats when you sit. No one has a spare sofa they don't ever use.

Chloe_G

Our hall, stair and landing carpet does that.  We were really surprised - it leaves footprints like you're walking in snow.  Also if you go upstairs wearing a fleecy type dressing gown the material sticks to each step as you walk!  We've had it two years and I can't say it's got a lot better but it has flattened down and we don't really notice the footprints now.  (Our's wasn't an expensive carpet either.)

Coco00

Thank you all for the helpful comments. 

I actually went back to the flat yesterday briefly, and it wasn’t quite as bad looking, as the light was slightly different. I agree Chloe-G, it is like walking through snow, or sand in this case, but apparently lots of people really like that! The place I’m moving from has quite a good wool carpet in one room, and it has settled down, but now looks basically like two very different colours all the time in big areas, so I’m hoping it’ll end up like that rather than the actual footprints, but I’ll just try and concentrate on everything else first really. Thanks victor2 for your comments on that.

Thank you twopenny, there’s a second hand furniture shop here which I’m definitely going to check out, and I love a charity shop, so I’ll be able find a few bits I’m sure, and Facebook market place seems to have quite a bit too. Onwards!