As part of the overall refurbishment of the interior of Seaglass, Rita and I wanted to make the interior more 'homey.' Although we love the abundance of teak in our Grand Banks, it can be a little overwhelming, plus taking care of it also takes considerable time to keep it looking fresh and new. This is especially true of parquet flooring, which gets a lot of wear during the year. Although we take our shoes off when we enter the salon, the cabin sole can take a bit of a beating. There can't be many GB owners out there that don't have some rug, mat, or runner to add a splash 0f color and make the cabin sole easier on bare feet.
Uncertain as to precisely what we should do to the boat's interior, we called in Kate Seremeth, who runs Tack Studios in Maine. She has extensive experience working on yacht interiors and was a delight to work with; and would heartily recommend her services if you are thinking of sprucing up your boat's interior or going for a complete do-over.
Amongst the other thing, Kate suggested the use of a fitted rug. She also suggested working with Colonial Mills,s who weave rugs out of Sunbrella material. Ubiquitous with yachts, there can't be many boat owners who have not used or at least come in contact with, Sunbrella at some time. Most known for fabrics for awnings, covers, and cushions, the Sunbrella material that the rugs are woven from is far softer and has a look, somewhat, of woven sisal but feels so much better underfoot.
Rather than buy a rectangular rug that fit the space, the lovely folks at Colonial Mills offered to make a bespoke one that would fit the space perfectly -- all I had to do was make the templates.
As you can see in the picture,s I made the template from stiff building paper,r and this was later transferred to Tyvek so that I knew that the template would not tear or distort, leaving me with the wrong size carpet or worse. If you look closely at the images above and below,w you will see a line drawn in black Sharpie a half inch from the edge. This is an important step and makes completing an accurate temple much easier. Basically,y the technique is this; you cut the template almost the right size but deliberately undersized by a small amount. This saves your time and your temper, as you are not trying to cut it accurately at this stage. With the paper pattern then taped in position,n you use a straight edge of known width and, as in this case with the spacer pressed against the woodwork at the floor's edge,e mark a line, which is the one you see above.
Here's a close-up shot of the technique in action. Then when I got home,e I laid out a large sheet of Tyvek, taped the brown paper template on it,p and once again lined my spacer along the black lines I made when I was on the boat, and voila, a perfect facsimile of the wooden sole. Even s,o as it was,s I spent several hours making the templates -- first the brown paper and then the Tyvek that I sent to Colonial Mills. Rita and I chose an aqua colo,r but there are almost a limitless amount of colors to choose from, so if you are not replacing the upholstery I was we were,e then you are sure to be able to get something to coordinate.
Overall I think the carpet looks great; it's hardwearing and has stood up well. Best of all,l it is somewhat unique,e and it draws admiring glances from jealous owners when we have attended Grand Bank's get-together. You will also notice the edges are whipped to prevent unraveling,g and this,s plus the overall weight of the carpet, keeps it lying flat on the floor. If I have one regret,t it is that I had some cutouts put in the carpet to allow the two table legs to make contact with the floor. If I did it again,n I think that I would have gotten four holes cut to allow the removable bolts that hold the table in place to pass through and allowed the table to sit on top of the carpet; the bolts would have helped hold the carpet in place and it may have looked a little neater. But then, I may be being overcritical of my choice. But judge for yourself and let me know what you think.
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