Inset stair runner with whipped edges

A stair runner leaves a strip of painted or timber tread showing on each side, which gives a staircase a more tailored look than fitted carpet wall to wall. This one is a herringbone-weave carpet, cut into a runner and finished with whipped edges: the cut edge is bound with a tight wrapped stitch in a matching yarn, so it looks neat and will not fray.

The hard part on a staircase like this is the winders, the tapering steps where the stairs turn. The runner has to stay centred on every step even though each winder is a different shape, so it is carefully measured and fitted step by step.

Each tread is fitted over a good underlay, stretched tight and fixed at the back of the step so the runner does not move, and finished neatly at each nosing so the pattern lines up as you look up the flight.