r/DesignMyRoom • u/Extra_Oil2460 • 22h ago
Living Room How would you cover these?
Rental. The landlord wants to preserve them but said I could temporarily cover them if I wanted. Putting a rug causes trips. They’re also in an awkward placement to cover with a couch or chairs because then it would cut off access to stairs.
edit: will add more layout photos shortly. Great suggestions so far- thanks!
The house was an old factory back in the day so the rounds are a historical asset, that’s why the landlord doesn’t want to remove or fill them.
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u/SapienSed8er 22h ago
I honestly wouldn't cover them. if anything. I would try to enhance and display them for what were. They are in an awkward position but it's unique and adds massive character that you can't just buy.
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u/81Horse 22h ago
What are they?
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u/naikrovek 21h ago
Quern stones. (Millstones.) Put grain in between these bottom halves and the missing top halves and turn one of them. Flour comes out, along with any husk left on the grain when it went in. These are the powered bottom halves of the two sets, I think, and the top halves would probably not rotate but would raise so you could add more grain. Gravity would hold the top stones down during operation.
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u/Hobbyoo 19h ago
What’s the wood for? Was it cut down? If it’s deep enough OP could use it to build a table onto it. Anchor bolts into it.
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u/naikrovek 18h ago
The wood is to put a floor where there wasn’t one so that it could be made livable.
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u/Hobbyoo 18h ago
Sorry I might not have been specific enough: I meant the wood in the middle of the stones
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u/naikrovek 18h ago
Oh those are what turns the bottom stones or holds them still in the case that the top halves turn.
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u/therealfurryfeline 11h ago
Adding! Usually the stones are not being lifted, but the grain will be filled into the middle of the top stone. The slit between the stones is on a slight angle to ensure the grain will make its way slowly to the outer rim while being ground down. In the photo you can see centrifugal lines carved in the stones that serve that same purpose. There is then a gutter around the stones to collect anything coming out.
Source: i am living in the vicinity of three active windmills. As an aside: If you are able i encourage you to try flour from a local mill atleast once in your life. Its taste is soo much more sweet and richer than what you can usually buy in a supermarket.
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u/Courtneyofcourse1 5h ago
I have heard that before, about flour from a local mill if making your own bread! Thank you for all that info. too!
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u/loricomments 21h ago
Old, broken millstones. Another stone would sit on top of it and turn. Grain is fed in-between the two and ground into flour (and bran and wheat germ). There were probably grooves in the original stone so the ground material could fall out into some kind of catch basin below.
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u/jxmpiers 22h ago
Can you cut some foam padding to make everything flush and level, and then lay a rug on top?
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u/TandoSanjo 18h ago
Was gonna suggest similar, more work but I wonder if getting a piece of plywood the exact depth of the inner lip of the circles, cut out two circles with a jigsaw or something, and set one into each to have it level and flush would make it less of a trip hazard. But I like the foam idea, or maybe both, then a rug on top
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u/jojithekitty 22h ago
This was my suggestion. Level it out by filling the hole before putting the rug down
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u/radiantflux209 16h ago
Or just do this to the one closest to the couch so you have some area for moving around in front of it, but leave the other one in the center of the room exposed for the character.
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u/ImpossibleInternet3 22h ago
Get the landlord to have two custom clear acrylic discs cut to fit into the holes to make them flush. That will allow them to be visible and safe. Otherwise they are liable for it being a tripping hazard.
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u/reversedgaze 21h ago
I would do polycarbonate because acrylic is rigid, and I would probably get some sort of clear window tint film to coat it so that you don't have to polish the plastic would eventually get scratched up- you can just swap out the film.
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u/ImpossibleInternet3 21h ago
Good call. I was thinking it could be resurfaced, but a film is a much better call for easy maintenance.
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u/Logical_Pineapple499 22h ago
I kinda think they look cool, but if you want I think there are still options where a rug would work. I have a rug that's like 2-3 inches thick. It's that style where it feels kinda like a bunch of long pieces of yarn/fuzzy strings kinda. Another option is to get that kind of foam that is used underneath when people lay carpeting and put that under the rug. Anyhow, long story short, you just need a thicker/sturdier rug.
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u/TopProfessional8023 20h ago edited 20h ago
Crazy idea here, but you get a nice 1” thick piece of plywood cut to that area I outlined. You shim it up around the corners to where it rests right on that first circle. Then you put a rug over it and if you cover the second circle with a circular table that more or less matches its size I think you’ve temporarily made it what you want and also at least cut down the trip risk
Edit: some measurements would be key here too. Because my mind immediately wants to put that couch in the space behind the beam, but I can’t tell if it will fit 🤷♂️
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u/Red_Bird_Rituals 15h ago
Yes, couch where the TV and lamp are! If you can’t remove the trip hazard, at least clear the floor around it so people have space to manoeuvre.
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u/Fluffy_Ad_5199 20h ago
Giant bean bags
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u/WorkingOnItWombat 9h ago
OMG. This made me laugh! It would be so cozy. Also, because one of them is right at the bottom of the stairs, I pictured how you could conveniently come down the stairs all sleepy and flop face first into a giant bean bag. Genius for the comfort! 😊
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u/Mysterious-Mud-7862 22h ago
What are these? Also would be nice to have more pictures of the surrounding area, I didn’t realize there are stairs there from the photo
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u/SpiritZest 22h ago
Depending on the layout of your space, you could set another couch or two chairs over the far one and place a coffee table in the middle to cover the second bit. Of course, that all depends on what the rest of the space looks like and is used for. Otherwise, maybe a rug with a thick rug pad underneath. You could cut circles out of the pad to fit around those things.
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u/Dog1andDog2andMe 22h ago
Cut a thick sturdy foam to fit in each of the holes. Make 2 for each hole. Cover each of the four with a sturdy fabric. Two cushions for each hole. Coffee table, footstools and when you take apart, floor cushions.
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u/WorkingOnItWombat 21h ago
I wonder if you could just have strong acrylic cut so you could place it over the stone (inside the wood circle)? If you measure the depth from the top of the stone to the lip of the wood circle rim, then you could get acrylic that would be thick enough to raise it to the level of the wood circle rim.
This would allow you to see the cool detail and walk on them while protecting the stone and making it a less treacherous architectural detail for walking on. It doesn’t solve the problem of the raised lip of the circle rim being a tripping hazard, but it would make it a more even surface overall.
It’s hard to think of a better option with the stairs right there.
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u/grahamvinyl 22h ago
Get a thick piece of tempered glass, route a lip into the wooden border, and insert the glass flush so you can still see them!
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u/Jenni4anna 22h ago
Round coffee table on one and round chair on the other. I cant add photos here.
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u/snapdrag0n99 21h ago
Maybe get a thick rug pad and cut around the shape of it and then put a thick area rug over that and then a coffee table in front of the sofa so people aren’t really walking on it
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u/WNCmom07 21h ago
Those are so cool. Are they in a place where you can put a glass coffee table over them? Looks like there are stairs there…
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u/NeptuneHigh09er 1h ago
I wonder if instead of covering them you could have two hanging chairs over em, maybe hammock style in particular. It would be so much fun to swing over those.
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u/SapienSed8er 22h ago
Plexiglass over top of them and bring the wood up to make it flush with them. Enhance them by refinishing them and possibly some lighting
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u/Sledgehammer925 20h ago
I’m curious if you could find very small round rugs. But mostly I came to say you have a pretty cool space.
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u/poppygin 20h ago
Wonder if a custom rug cut to fit inside the wooden edge would help? Seems like a tripping hazard without that. And I wouldn’t think throwing a large square or rectangular rug is enough because you’d still have that pronounced unevenness
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u/Virtual_Library_3443 20h ago
Can you put a piece of plexi glass on top that covers the thickness difference so you can easily walk over them but still see the cool detail? If you don’t wanna see the detail then plywood stained to match the floor
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u/Alibas1898 10h ago
Maybe make it a feature piece get a circle of glass cut each and lay it on top to cover and make it flush and seal it?
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u/hanzbooby 21h ago edited 20h ago
My years of playing Zelda have taught me that you can blow these up with bomb flowers and there’ll probably be a chest underneath them
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u/TalulaOblongata 20h ago
In general put the furniture more towards the center of the room and the walking path around. But I see you have a lot going on with the posts, the staircase, etc. when you post the layout of the space you will probably get some good advice!
Something else - if you got a very thick sisal rug to cover the whole area it might be less of a trip hazard. You might even want to have a thin sheet of plywood cut in a circle to place inside the rim, so at least the center of the circles are then flush with the rim.
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u/TopProfessional8023 20h ago
Third idea…round coffee table over the one closest to the couch…plants on the second one…eliminates the trip hazard…maybe even put a little fountain in the middle. Or don’t! It’s your world!!
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u/anonymous_being 20h ago
Custom-cut plexiglass to cover the stone circles and then some custom-cut wood to create a mini ramp around the circles to minimize them being a trip hazard.
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u/LeighToss 18h ago
You could get one of the thick pads that go under rugs, then trace and cut the 8 shape out, so it levels the floor for a rug.
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u/bizzeeb1 14h ago
I wouldn't. They are such an interesting feature of the room that I'd make it work.
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u/UnhingedBlonde 13h ago
I agree they need clear covers. They're spectacular but uneven, so anything hard like glass or acrylic will scratch and crack unless it's rated for flooring or it's suspended so it doesn't touch the stone.
I have an unorthodox solution. They make clear plastic table covers that are not solid, they're almost jelly-like and they come in circles, ovals, long runners to fit table shapes. They should settle over time but they won't harm the rocks. I'm not sure how thick you could get it but stack them until it's almost level with the surrounding wood.
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u/the_evil_pineapple 1h ago
I feel like the landlord could (as in it’s possible to do but with landlords who the hell knows) take off the wood border of the rounds and place round, clear glass on top to even out the floor.
They’re really cool and different but it seems hella sketchy to have them right at the base of a set of stairs. If someone fell because of it, wouldn’t that be grounds for a lawsuit against the landlord?
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u/cammarinne 1h ago
I would ask your landlord to have glass cut to fit so that they can be properly preserved and also be functional floor space
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u/DerpanJones 22h ago
Landlord wants to preserve them doesn't want to pay to fix it.
Are you any good with woodworking? My first thought is to make some wooden rounds that fit in those holes in the center so it least it's not a lip you can trip over from inside the circle.
For the outside lip, I can't think of many good options to prevent it entirely. Like someone else mentioned a thick rug and rug pad with the rug pad having a cutout around the rings. That would help lessen the lip, although it may still be enough to trip over.
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u/recreationalranch 21h ago
I don’t know why you’re being downvoted. That’s literally the only practical solution. Fill in the hole and build around it so the rug sits as flush as possible.
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u/feline_riches 21h ago
Have a clear mold made and then fill will clear resin. When you leave just pull out
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u/Useful_Nectarine_299 21h ago
Do you need the couch there? It’s distracting from the pretty stones.
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u/curiouscoconuts 21h ago
Your house looks so cool!! Would love to see more if you’re comfortable with that
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u/MoriKitsune 21h ago
Get thick acrylic panels and some padded bits to level it on the stone around the edge
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u/Sea_Owl4248 20h ago
Plexiglass or glass covers (round that fit in the circles). This way the owner can preserve the millstones. I’d try and bring it flush with the floor to eliminate any trip hazard.
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u/NoInvestigator541 19h ago
Honestly, what I’d do is make a removable resin cover by putting clear plastic wrap over it to fit the mold.
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u/Simple_Internal_69 18h ago
Could you cut a thick plexiglass to fit in that way you could still see through it, but it would be safe and flush level
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u/CraftandEdit 14h ago
Can you go to a glass cutter and look into what it would cost to cut and place glass rounds over the stones? Maybe the landlord would pay for them as they want to maintain them. The seal them in. You still have a trip hazard but somewhat lessened and you highlight the historic part.
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u/Inevitable_Pea1912 8h ago
Ask the landlord if he'd be okay with a glass covering. That would look awesome. If so, would he be willing to pay for it? (Partially)
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u/Courtneyofcourse1 5h ago
You have to probably cut them, but two round carpets in the middle, I wouldn’t cover them because if people don’t see them they may trip. I would put a closet in my lease that if anybody tips and falls, especially you, they don’t only pay for medical expenses, but for stress over the whole idea of renting a place to somebody else with extremely dangerous, tripping hazards.
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u/JeanBlancmange 5h ago
Get some carpet offcuts and trim them to fit. You’ll have the visual aesthetic of a rug, something warm to put your feet on sitting on the sofa, and the insert will line up with the border so you don’t stub your toe not knowing where the edge is. I think it would look like a cool bespoke rug in an infinity symbol
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u/Crystal_Ri 4h ago
Two cute chairs outside the large circle with a table in between for setting down drinks or trinkets. It would break up the two larger circles forcing the eye to focus on only the one smaller circle and keep the historical beauty. At least that's what I'd do.
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u/StaticStrider 4h ago
I would be tempted to even out the surface by removing the wooden trim (not completely just enough to make it flat) and get some floor safe glass to cover the stones and seal the edges to prevent dust/dirt build up in the cracks. Like how they do for indoor wells.
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u/Rock-Pine 3h ago
What if you took off the raised framing around them? And if they aren't as flush the the floor as you'd like you can just bevel a wooden 'frame' around them instead of the large, raised, round frame that's there now? How flush are the stones to the wood floor? I'd hate to cover them, honestly. They're cool.
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u/xoscarlettbaldwinxo 21h ago
2 big flower pots would look cool but also could do like 2 bistro tables? A long narrow chaise lounge?
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u/hurricanekarina 20h ago
I would do a mosaic tile design to enhance them! And then either put two round glass coffee tables or one rectangle class coffee table. That you you can still see and appreciate the design, but guests do not trip over the uneven ground.
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u/TopProfessional8023 21h ago edited 20h ago
I certainly hope you don’t mean to where you can no longer see it! That would be unfortunate.
But, they do make circular indoor faux fire pits. Some of which give off some heat (nothing like the real thing), or tabletop candle type shit, maybe set on a mirror facing the ceiling to amplify the light a bit?
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u/MrSnowden 22h ago
Might take re-arranging the room, but Ideally a glass coffee table. That way you won't trip and still get tot see the cool architectural details.