The "marble" is actually the brick hearth, sprayed with drywall mud (but I'm glad it looks like marble in pictures!). Most fireplaces in New Orleans don't work like normal wood burning fireplaces - they used to hold coal and then, in all the houses I've ever owned, seemed to be converted to some (must have been inefficient and dangerous to boot) gas operated space heaters. They were still in this house and operational when we bought it. So no, the fireplace doesn't actually work (the chimney was capped off in the attic). Because the hallway/bathroom was once a bedroom, the wood floor was already cut to accommodate the fireplace hearth, so we didn't mess with it. All we did was remove the mantlepiece to facilitate traffic flow. I think I will go with a runner and tuck it over the hearth with a little padding to even out the edge of the transition. That seems like a workable solution to warm up the space and not crowd the runner (or the walkers in the hallway!). Maybe next you all can help me figure out to do with the incredibly nice rug from Turkey that my in-laws gave us as a wedding present to go in our formal Garden District living room. Sadly, try as I might, I cannot find a place in this house where it will go...unless I just decide to not worry about it being smack dab in the middle of the traffic pattern of my storefront (it's a pale gold/spa blue/spring green/cream oushak)! Right now it's in our bedroom (all wrong) and the only other place it could conceivably go is in our breakfast room (under the table...where we eat neatly, but I've noticed my daughter's friends...not so much!) At 8x10 it always seems too big or too small for the space. Does that make sense? Moving house is so difficult. How do other people keep the same beautiful stuff for years and in many different homes?!

You have to be careful about starting and stopping before the very last step (actually the hallway floor) depending upon how thick the runner is. Believe it or not, neuromucularly your feet are "programmed" after each has taken one step up or down. You should actually be ok, the more problematic situation is when there is bare stairs and carpeting at the top: since it is a "higher" step, due to the carpet thickness it can trip you up sometimes. What could potentially happen here is that your food expects to meet the step before it actually does since the last step is "lower" due to the absence of carpet. If you notice this you could place an area rug at the top.

I had thought about finding some carpet and having it bound.. will have to look into it. where would I take the runner from HD to be bound - any carpet place? I will have to look into those.. I did at one time but didn't know what I would do with the unfinished edges?

Thought I would post the AFTER pictures. I bought this rug through Houzz and am very happy with the color, design, and pile. I do have to tape down the one end to train it to lay down since it does not clear the outside door. Thanks for all your help !!! Another success story.