WWII was raging and the United States was operating in a wartime economy. Of critical interest to both the government and industry was the dwindling supply of silk used to make parachutes and other military textiles. DuPont’s chemical and textile engineers came to the rescue with a synthetic replacement for silk, which they called nylon. This new fiber quickly found its way into myriad markets, including both commercial and residential carpet manufacturing.

Now, 60 years later, the essential chemical structures of nylon carpet fiber remain virtually unchanged. What have continued to change and improve are ancillary processes like dye methods, carpet construction and finishing technologies. What this means to finished carpet is a constant improvement in on-the-floor performance in places like your house! And the exceptional performance extends to both plush (cut-pile) and loop pile constructions.

Critical to nylon’s success as the world’s most-used carpet fiber is its characteristic colorfastness. Solution-dyed nylon (where color is introduced prior to nylon’s extrusion into fiber) is essentially impervious to the color-damaging effects of exposure to direct sunlight or bleach! Even those nylon fibers dyed after extrusion are intensely colorfast due to the latest technologies for preventing soiling and staining.

Nylon carpets will easily retain their original shape and appearance when they are properly constructed, installed and maintained. They respond well to current commercial cleaning methods, promising years of satisfactory use. The reality is that today’s nylon carpets will never wear out; they simply get ugly at the end of their wear lives.

Carpet colors, trends, styles and fashions have come and gone, but carpet fiber options have remained essentially the same! Nylon and polyester are today’s leaders in residential carpet sales as their quality has continued to improve. Still, despite wool owning but a fraction of the overall market, it remains the standard for luxury. Stay tuned for upcoming blog entries, where each of the fibers will be highlighted.

Nylon. Owner of all the sales records for 50 years with products and styles that have continued to lead the residential market. Today’s nylon carpets look good, resist stain, and perform well at reasonable prices. Sensibly maintained and installed over a quality cushion, nylon carpet easily performs well for 10 – 20 years.

Polyester. Once scorned as poorly performing, polyester carpets have made a significant comeback. Creeping into nylon’s market share, polyester carpets now account for up to one-fourth of residential carpet sales. The draw is price;  The key is to ask for yarn with multiple plies and multiple twists.

Wool. For hundreds (maybe thousands?) of years, wool has been a fiber known for distinctive beauty and charm. Nylon “uglies out” as it ages, but wool – as it gracefully grows old, looks good year after year. Given basic maintenance, wool carpets will perform wonderfully for 20 years or more. It’s not unusual to find beautiful 30-year-old wool carpets – even if they do have a threadbare spot or two!

Understanding Color Part 3: Color Blending from Room to Room

With today’s open-concept designs, homes feel larger and more connected when you have only one or two types and colors of flooring. But how do you get each space to feel different in color and personality? The best decorating trick is to determine three colors that work well together, and emphasize one in each space, with the other two colors coming in as accents.

The first step in coordinating your colors is with upholstery fabrics. We can help you look for fabrics that bring in at least two of your three colors.  Remember to collect florals, stripes and geometrics in your colors, to allow you to combine patterns in your rooms. Once at home, determine which fabrics work best with your flooring and paint choices.

The next step is to select the primary color for each space. Does your kitchen have dark cabinetry? You may want to choose to feature the lightest color. Make sure you select a warm tone for your dining room, to encourage energy and discussion over meals and gatherings. You may already have furniture that features the colors you have chosen, and that may help you determine what colors to emphasize in each space. Curtains, throw pillows and accessories can carry colors from one room to another, making them seem cohesive while still creating some differences.

By mixing different levels of your three colors in each area, while staying consistent in using those three, you will have an open space that feels connected, yet interesting and individual. Have fun, move accessories around, until you have the color balance that works for you. If all of this advice makes you raise and eyebrow and say, “huh?” – just call us. We will help walk you through each and every step until your rooms are all perfectly coordinated, blended and balanced!

Understanding color part 2: Warm vs. cool neutrals – which choice works best for your home.

Much of today’s decorating advice encourages taking  chances with colors, and that’s good advice. However, using neutrals well can help balance your color palette and give the eye restful moments in a space. The challenge comes with choosing the right neutral or neutrals for your space.

Warm neutrals include blacks, browns, tans, gold, and beiges. White, ivory, silver, and gray are traditionally considered cool neutrals. However, the line is much fuzzier than it is with colors. For example, black can definitely come out as a cool neutral, while a creamy ivory feels quite warm. Both warm and cool pigments can be used to develop a particular neutral, which can lead to confusion.

The best way to determine how a neutral will work in your home is to compare it to other neutrals in the room. Does it look grayer or more gold? This distinction gets easier with time. Look for blue undertones in cool neutrals, and orange and yellow undertones in the warm neutrals.

When you come to an appointment with us, be sure to bring samples of the other room colors and neutrals with you. With paint, never choose your color without trying a small sample on poster board or on various walls. The pigments that make up paint chips are different from the pigments that make up paint, so the colors will not be an exact match, particularly with sensitive neutral tones.

Take your time when selecting neutrals for a room. Going neutral can be just as tricky as pulling in color. The right neutrals can integrate a space, emphasize texture, and create the right environment to let your colors pop. We are here to help with these decisions, but wanted to help you better understand color! If you missed part 1 , click here and also stay tuned for part 3!

For most of us, the last time we heard about warm vs. cool colors was in grade school art class. But their impact on your decorating decisions are much more involved than the sloppy color wheels we all painted back then.

Warm colors are yellows, oranges and related colors such as orange-reds, yellow-greens and browns. Cool colors come from the blues, with blue-greens, purples, bright pinks and blue-toned reds. Some people compare warm tones to the colors of a sunny day, and cool tones to the colors present in rainy or foggy weather.

Warm colors seem to advance in a space. A room strong on warm colors will be inviting, even invigorating, and for that reason, warm colors are often selected for living and dining rooms. Cool colors, on the other hand, tend to recede, creating an environment that is calm and reflective. These colors work well in bedrooms or nurseries.

Most rooms are combinations of warm and cool tones. Because of the nature of warm colors, they tend to dominate a room, making a cool room feel much warmer. Many colors can change from warm to cool depending upon the blend of pigments. The blue-brown color scheme that has been so popular in recent years is actually a warm combination, because the blue has a bit of green in it.

Take a minute to look at your rooms before you make any color changes. Do the colors mirror your goals for the space? Does your dining room feature warm colors that encourage lively discussions over the dinner table? Is your bedroom a soothing place, with soft cool colors to calm and relax you before sleep? If you’re not satisfied, just a few color changes – rugs, curtains or bed and table linens – can help you cool or warm any room to your satisfaction.

Steps to Selecting the Right Area Rug

Part Two: Shopping for the Right Rug

Before you head out to shop for your rug, make sure you have done your homework. This includes calculating the size or size range and collecting samples of every color you may want the rug to contain (for help on this, see Steps to Selecting the Right Area Rug Part One).

Once you arrive, the number of rug choices may seem overwhelming. This is where you can rely on us. We can help assess the items you already have in your home and help determine which style will get you the look you are trying to achieve.  If needed, ask to have the rug swatch placed near a window so you can see the colors in natural light.

We are familiar with our rug suppliers and can help direct you to the best supplier for your needs. We  can help advise you on rugs that will last for generations and generations  or rug that can be purchased inexpensively to get the job done. Whether you want patterned, solid, striped, whimsical, natural fiber, cotton, nylon or wool. We can help you select an area rug to compliment any rug in your room.

Read on for things to know before you start shopping!

The right area rug can define a space within a larger room, bring furniture together to a cohesive whole, add warmth and color and soften a space. Before you begin shopping, ask yourself these questions:

What size?

• For a dining room, a rug should run at least two feet beyond the table edge anywhere you have a chair – providing space for people to push their chairs back and not drop off.

• To keep rooms looking their biggest and best, the dimensions of the rug should be two to three feet less than the size of the room, providing a good balance between the room and the rug.

• For a rug under living-room furniture, the best size is one that captures at least the sofa and coffee table, and preferably any related chairs or side tables. That way, the rug becomes a frame for the furniture.

Most important: Take the time to measure your space. Do not assume that you can “eyeball” the size. Rugs often look different within a large showroom than they will once you get them home.

What style?

Take a good look at the space the rug will fill. Are there a lot of patterns? Keep the rug simple. Is it a bit bland or beige? Let the rug introduce color and pattern. Do you want the rug to stand out in the room? Choose a tone that contrasts with the floor material. A color or tone that is similar to the floor will keep the rug in the background. Think of a rug as the art on a previously blank wall. Select something that you love, but that will also complement what is already there.

What type?

Will there be a lot of traffic on the rug? Select a durable material such as wool or nylon. In a dining room, a darker color or a pattern will reduce the evidence of dining mishaps. In a high traffic area or one with small children, consider an indoor-outdoor rug, even indoors, giving you the option of bringing it outside and hosing it off to clean.

When you shop…

Bring a couple of digital photos of the space to remind you of the look of your room. Also bring whatever you have to remind you of specific colors in the room – a throw pillow, and fabric or paint samples.

Take these simple steps before you shop to help ensure that your rug purchase will be a success!

Looking for a way to take your child’s room to the next level with a little extra style and design? We’ve got just the thing! Disney and Shaw Floors have teamed up together with a collection of Disney inspired carpets and area rugs.

Collections include:

* Winnie the Pooh

* Disney Fairies

* Cars

* Disney Princesses

* Toy Story

* Hannah Montana

The collections include wall to wall patterns and area rugs that show off each theme. If you are concerned about how the wall to wall carpet will flow into other areas of the house, no worries! There are complimentary patterns for the whole house or adjoining hallways or rooms. There are even wonderful shags in each collection that can be used in the same room or other rooms.

Think of the possibilities of creating a design inspired room for your child or children! We can help you decide if a patterned wall to wall carpet is right for you or if your child’s room calls for a Disney area rug. Let’s explore the options together!