The installer did it correctly, IMO. The runner has to be in a straight line, and starting at the bottom step. Your stairs narrow as they ascend.

Even if he had installed carpet on the treads only, the visual would still be off-side.

And yes, the runner is gorgeous.

Bet you are so happy to be back home.

Thank you Judy! Yes, it is so wonderful to be home:) I also want to add the stairs do not narrow as they ascend. They are all the same except the bottom 2 steps has the banister cutting in. Does this change your opinion at all?

I understand why this bothers you. It would bother me too. I think the installer should have started closer to the banister so that the overall effect going up would be centered. This appears to be a similar scenario, with the runner installed close to the banister as it curves ...

Here's a better picture. I'd have the runner reinstalled. (It's gorgeous, by the way!)

YES!! That is what I wanted! That is how it was before the fire:) Will my floors need to be refinished again and will the runner get damaged if they fix it?

i think if its uncomfortable to stay on the rug when you walk up the stairs you should change it. it would for me be a tripping hazard if one foot was walking on the edge of the carpet all the time. and would wear poorly.

looks alone, i dont know that i would have chosen this way but it does have a stately, interesting, aspect for an old house to be 'different'.

Oh my. I'm far from an expert but that would drive me nuts. Perhaps I'm a little OCD, but for me, just no, no no. I've no idea whether the installer did it "correctly" or not, but one would think that looks trump (oops) whatever his method was. So sorry to not tell you I think it's fine, but I do agree with you. Can you live with it?

I don't think I can live with it. It will always drive me crazy and always be the 1 thing I don't like about the renovation:(

By the way, welcome home!

You'll have to talk to the carpet layer but I would think he could remove it without ruining the carpet. Since the nails/staples will have to be removed from the carpet, the job (time factor) may cost more than expected. It looks as though it's attached under the edge of the steps and against the rise so I don't think you would need to refinish anything. But if tiny holes are left after he shifts it to the right they can be easily patched. Surely he didn't use any adhesive?

Carpet layer won't be thrilled but you're the one that has to live with it. Subconsciously, I would feel like I should walk up the stairs closer to the wall than the bannister.

If it's centered on the upper stairs, it is going to nearly butt up against the newel post on the bottom steps. The problem is the design of the stairway. I think you will get used to it. What I think would be smashing in a house this age, is polished brass runner rods. <https://www.houseofantiquehardware.com/brass-stair-runner-rods>;

They're pricey but oh my do they make a stairway look great when a runner is used!

The problem, in my opinion, with this runner other than how it’s centered is that it’s too narrow. Of course that could just be my mind playing tricks on me due to the position of it. ;)

That's a beautiful runner! If it helps to make a decision, here's a rough mockup of what it might look like moved a bit to the right.

Chicagoans, that was a helpful mock--up, at least for me. It doesn't look nearly as wonky as I was envisioning. I thought having carpet nearing abutting the newel would look "wrong" - it looks fine to my eye.

The first photo, showing what the installer actually did, doesn't look bad to me either though. It looks like a beautiful, elegant stair case in a beautiful, elegant house.

The stairs do seem to get narrower as they ascend - is that correct, or is it an illusion? If they do narrow, then I would leave the runner as it is. If they do not narrow, then I would want them reinstalled, centered on the main stairs instead of the bottom two.

I would want them reinstalled also. Sorry!

What runner is this? I love it and I’m looking for one!

I think your installer is full of it trying to pass that off as "correct". Chicagoan's mock up clearly shows how it should look. No one would look at that and think 'the runner isn't centered on the lower stairs'. It's obvious the newel post intrudes into the space on those 2 stairs - your brain does not register that as the runner is off center. It's a re-do and I don't think this should be on your dime even if the runner has to be scrapped and re-purchased. If nothing else, your hand rail is on the right and most people will walk up the stairs closer to the rail so the placement of the runner now is dangerous.

What I would do is make sure that the runner is centered on the top stair, which it is not in Chicagoan's mock up, but that may be because of an optical illusion. But I would also want them closer to the rail, which is where you will walk - you will not be that close to the wall when the walk on the stairs. Even in the first photo, the runner is not centered on the top stair, which makes me think that it may be an illusion that the stairs get narrower at the top.

It's a re-do and I don't think this should be on your dime even if the runner has to be scrapped and re-purchased. If nothing else, your hand rail is on the right and most people will walk up the stairs closer to the rail so the placement of the runner now is dangerous.

I agree with this 100%.

Had a photo of my last home and the stair runner. (Had I known you would have this problem, I would have taken the picture from the bottom of the stairs…lol)

I had newel post and spindles open for several steps (as you do). It looks like my runner was measured from the top (narrower) step and run straight to the bottom step…

So, yes, I change my opinion….Lars and I see the same distortion...

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JudyG it's not waterfall, you can see the carpet tucked under the nosing. The outlier stairs are only the bottom two, all the others are the same width. The runner needs to be centered in the majority of the treads. Look at the mock up Chicagoans did.