S**t! There's PAINT on the carpet!

First, I apologise for my potty mouth. I assure you, swearing in this situation is entirely warranted.

Second, if you are our landlords and have stumbled upon this blog, don't panic and please skip right to the end of this post!

Picture the scene. An idyllic afternoon in the Kirsch household. Daddy is at work, Mummy is home after doing some overtime and Lily is painting whilst Ollie plays on the floor with his cars...

Wait. Where is Ollie?

Ollie?!

Oh sugar. Sugar. Sugar. SUGAR!


My baby, my darling, my gorgeous boy has managed to tip over a huge tin of white satin paint all over the carpet.

I screamed. I cried. I laughed. All at the same time.

Then I whipped out my phone, took a photo and then called my Mum.

I'll never know how he did it. That lid had been stuck fast when I tried to prise it open and touch up the unit I'd painted over the weekend. I'd given up and popped the tin by the back door so I could take it to the shed.

Remembering this experience sends shivers down my spine. I ended up in hysterics and cried pretty much all afternoon. But. I lived to tell the tale, and here are my top tips for dealing with a similar situation:

1. Put the baby in the bathtub
This way they can't do any further damage by crawling around whilst you attempt to clean up.

2. Scrape as much paint as possible off the carpet
Don't rub, it will only make it worse.

3. Pray the paint is water-based
It should say on the tub and it makes the whole removal process a lot easier.

4. Call for back-up
My mum was amazing and turned to DIY-Google for instructions whilst I sobbed washed Ollie in the bath.

5. Be prepared to make sacrifices
Unless you have A LOT of kitchen towels, you're going to need to use whatever absorbent materials you have to hand. I spent ten minutes lamenting the use of my Cath Kidston tea towels. But, in the end, it's cheaper to replace them than a carpet.

6. Pour water and washing up liquid
Pour it over the stain, then blot straight away with the tissue/towels. Then keep going. Don't pour too much and always have the towel ready for blotting to stop it from spreading out.

7. Don't leave the toddler unattended
Lily had been happily painting before disaster struck. She was then amazing and was really good looking after Ollie and keeping out of the way whilst I got to work. However, at one point I glanced over and saw Lily, paintbrush in hand, stood on a dining chair, and I shrieked like a banshee.

8. Keep pouring and blotting
It is a long process, but it works.

9. Get a takeaway
Maybe it's just me looking for an excuse but the idea of cooking on top of two hours of working on the carpet was about to send me to a soft padded room and so I grabbed a meal for Ollie from the freezer and ordered a curry for the rest of us.

10. Pick your poison
It might be wine, or gin, or chocolate or (like me) cake. Whatever it is, you deserve it.


As they say, all's well that ends well and the carpet is now back to it's old self. Helped along by a friend who lent us their steam cleaner it's looking lovely and new, all substances are in the bin back where they are meant to be and I'm saving the photo for when Ollie brings his first girlfriend home for dinner...

brummymummyof2 A Cornish Mum
Teentweentoddler said...

OMG! I would have cried too. Well done to you and your mum for getting it out X #wickedwednesdays

Anonymous said...

Oh no! I would have had a breakdown! It sounds like you handled it well. #wickedwednesdays

Mommy's Little Princesses said...

Oh my wolly word *hugs*. I think you handle this nightmare really well bless ya. As for Ollie ha-ha all I can say is good luck!xx #wickedwednesdays

Kim Carberry said...

OMG! Sorry but this made me laugh out loud....Eek! I think If I had been in your situation I would have been sobbing too.

Bex - The Mum From Brum said...

Oh god, this is my worst nightmare. We're in the process of finishing our house ready to sell and there's paint tins all over the place. They will be in the garage imminently...

Natalie said...

Oh no, this truly would have been the time where I just flopped on the floor and thought F*** it I am done. I would have just panicked and been useless. #WickedWednesday

Kate said...

Oh goodness! I think I'd have had the same response as you too. I'm amazed it came out - high 5!

Sounding Like My Mother said...

I think you were remarkably restrained. The air was blue when my dh dropped a tin of gloss on our laminate floor (and that was relatively easy to clean up!) God I hate decorating... #WickedWednesdays

LLM Calling said...

I am impressed. Personally I might have taken a paint brush to the paint and embraced a new form of carpet painting creativity. but you're way is much more sensible #wickedwednesdays

Madeline said...

Oh my God I would have freaked out! Putting the child in the bath is a brilliant tip, knowing me I wouldn't think of that and would just get stressed out trying to stop them making more of a mess! x

Anonymous said...

Awww I am so glad you were able to control the damage! #wickedwednesdays

Unknown said...

Wow! I found this horrifying and utterly hilarious at the same time! Well done you for getting there in the end. I discovered your blog through A Cornish Mum's #TenThings, so I'm just about to have a go at a list myself...
www.thefitpixie.blogspot.co.uk

brummymummyof2 said...

I WOULD HAVE HAD A BREAKDOWN! Thanks so much for linking up! Can't wait to see what you've got lined up next week on #wickedwednesdays x

A Moment With Franca said...

OMG, I would have died too!! Wow you and your mum did a fantastic job. So impressed. And yes you definitely deserve a cake!! ;-) xx #wickedwednesdays

Our Cherry Tree said...

It was horrible! I cried and cried and cried! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

I did! I don't know what I would have done without my Mum there to talk some sense.x

Our Cherry Tree said...

Thanks for the hugs! I really needed them! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

It's OK, I would definitely laugh if it was somebody else! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

Seriously, hide the paint! I never thought Ollie would be able to get into it but you never know! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

I practically did, if it wasn't for my mum I would have still been sitting there sobbing hours later when my husband got home!

Our Cherry Tree said...

I was so relieved when it started to come out! I don't know what I would have done otherwise.

Our Cherry Tree said...

I'm certainly not a fan of decorating, and this has put me off for a very long time! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

Maybe if we owned our home I wouldn't have minded so much, but I didn't want to upset our landlords! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

I wish I'd thought of it sooner as we did have a few prints from my wannabe escapee! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

I would have ended up in a padded cell if it hadn't worked! x

Our Cherry Tree said...

That is exactly how I felt! I couldn't decide whether to cry or just laugh like a maniac.
Sounds brilliant! I'll pop by and take a look :) x

Our Cherry Tree said...

I almost did! Without my Mum I think I'd still be sobbing now. I'm almost dreading what mischief my children could get up to this week to beat this #WickedWednesday... x

Our Cherry Tree said...

I had a huge slice of cake. If I wasn't breastfeeding I probably would have drunk a whole bottle of wine as well! x

Alan aka omgitsagirl2015 said...

I love the way you whipped out the camera for a picture first.

Great job though. Carpet looks great after the clean up.

#tenthings

Stevie - A Cornish Mum said...

Oh my word I definitely would have cried! It cleaned you brilliantly but eek! Definitely one for the family memory bank :) Thanks for linking up to #TenThings it re-opens on Friday!

Stevie x

Mummy Pat said...

I am keeping this post somewhere safe so that I can look at it when we have a similar (potential) disaster. I get twitchy when the buggy brings in mud from the park onto our laminate flooring, so I cannot imagine what colour the air would've turned if satin paint would have been involved. :)

Mummy Pat said...

OMG. I kid you not. Our three-year-old just emptied a squeezy bottle of chilli sauce onto the floor. Never done any decorating like that before; I'd just been thinking how lucky we'd been that he'd grown out of that phase without any serious damage. You're never safe, are you? :)

Our Cherry Tree said...

Nooooo! I hope you got it sorted :) you're right, never really safe! x

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