Jan 14, 2014

(stupid?) product review: insta grip

ok.
 i admit it. 
i am a sucker for anything that says "as seen on tv". i guess it is the lazy consumer in me...i think that that ONE amazing product may indeed solve some of my legitimate concerns. 
yes---i have trouble opening opening jars!! maybe i need one of these??

and what if my house burns down because my dryer has too much lint??
maybe this gadget will ease my stress:


of course, not all of these products actually live up to their claims, as i sadly found out the duvet donuts. you can see my review of those here.

well, i was at the grocery store a while back when i spotted this:

i wasn't really sold, but then i noticed THIS claim:
what??
a DESIGNERS DREAM??
oooo....too tempting! i HAD to get it, right?

the claims:
"reposition able"
"easy to use"
"keeps rugs in place"...(and can be used for scrapooking and all sorts of other stuff, which i wasn't interested in the least)

here has been the scene at my back door lately:


and even worse---the hallways leading to my garage, laundry room and mud room:
this has honestly bee driving me nuts since we moved in. this is a pretty thin, indoor outdoor rug, and the rug pad is always shifting underneath it.
(PS--i ordered this rug from overstock for $35! it is currently out of stock, but you can view it here.)

i have trimmed the rug pad, and adjusted it, and it still looks like this after a day or two.
very aggravating! (and sorry for the messy floors. when i took this picture, it was after we were cutting wood in the garage for our kids closets.)

if there was even a chance that this stuff was going to work, i was willing to give it a try.
here is what came in the package:
two sheets, and two rolls of varying widths.

the directions said to clean the floor first, so i did.

then, it said the trim the insta grip, and stick it to the back of the rug.

then , peel back the lining and place the rug where you want it.

lets revisit those claims, shall we?

*repositionable?
yes---i found this to be true. it took a couple tries to get the hallway runner in the right spot, and it easily came up. 

* easy to use?
yep. i thought it was very easy to use. i still have a lot left after laying both rugs--probably enough for two smaller rugs or one larger one. 

*keeps rugs in place?
well, this is the BIGGEST question, right? i mean, who care if it is easy to use and reposition able if it DOESNT WORK, right?
well, i have to say that i am really impressed! it really has worked wonders on both of my rugs!


i have had it down for about 6 weeks now, and neither rug has budged---even with the heavy traffic that the garage hallway gets...and we have been pummeled with snow, and the entire family has been coming in and out of the garage with snowy boots on, and the rug has stayed in place beautifully.


the verdict:
(NOT stupid)
i was super impressed with instagrip. it has solved my issue of both of my rugs shifting and sliding around. worth the trip to the "as seen on tv" aisle in your local supermarket.

this item was purchased by me, and the review is my opinion about my experiences with this product.

8 comments:

  1. I have the exact same problem; so I'll be looking for a supply. Those no-slip sheets leave residue on my floors too. (Nothing that doesn't come off with a floor cleaning...but still!). I prefer indoor/outdoor rugs for washability, but getting them to stay in place has been the bane of my life. Thank you, A!

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    1. i hope you enjoy this as much as i did! i am a convert! :)

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  2. Do you have problems when you want to clean the floor? Do you just lift it up then reposition? I need to get some of that!

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    1. i haven't had any issues yet. i usually run the vacuum over the rug, and then sweep around it. i haven't pulled it up yet to sweep underneath it, but i have peeled back the corners a bit and swept. the instagrip sticks to the floors more than it sticks to the rugs, but i think it would still work fine if i pulled it completely off to REALLY clean the floors! great question!

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  3. We have those things under our rugs. But, it was just something I found at menards, not an as seen on tv thing. Menards is like Lowes, but local to the midwest mostly. Anyway, It works well. But, when you want to remove/move the rug it's a little messy. Dust attaches itself to the floor where the gripper was located. If you have to pull up the gripper from the floor, you have to roll your fingers over the stickies to get them to ball up for removal. Mine actually left a mark/ haze in the areas where it was. You can see it in the light if you look just right. Not sure if yours will do it, but just be aware. But, I have them where I will always have rugs. Like the foyer, kids rooms, etc.

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  4. Oh, I forgot. I just put it in the corners. Not all the way across on the smaller rugs. It works just fine that way too. The large rugs, I put all the way across the top and bottom in two big strips. It doesn't move.

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  5. Gonna have to get some! We got rug slippage issues over here!
    xo~Jill

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  6. Those carpet things work great! I even used larger strips in college on a wall for a collage of photos.

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