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Update: A simple seam in a hallway took me four hours yesterday
The customer insisted on a patterned carpet with a huge repeat, and I had to match it across three doorways. I've been doing this for twenty years and I've never seen a pattern that tricky to line up. What's the most time you've ever lost to a pattern match?
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emerycarr3mo ago
Was it one of those patterns that looks fine from a distance but up close you realize the lines are all slightly wavy? Those are the worst. I once spent half a day on a single stair runner because the floral print was staggered in a way that made no sense. The client's face when they saw the final match was worth it, but man, my back was killing me.
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evan2953mo ago
I mean, I just chalk line the whole thing first now. Saves me a ton of headache on those big repeats.
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the_sean2mo ago
That chalk line trick @evan295 mentioned is a lifesaver for keeping things straight. What really gets me is when the pattern repeat is just a hair off on the roll itself, so even perfect cuts won't line up. You have to pick a dominant line in the design and follow that, even if it means wasting a bit more material. It's a gut call every time, and you only know if you were right once the whole section is down.
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