Winter Floor-cast: Carpet is “Very Cool”
Dream ‘til your heart’s content with a textured carpet from The Wundaweve Collection by Mohawk.
Lisbeth Calandrino
Enter ambiance with Antoinette, an Anso Caress® Nylon product featured in the Anso Visions Collection from Shaw.
Texturize your room with a dynamic carpet pattern as shown at right, with Reflect from Mohawk.
Inspired by ancient carvings, Masland’s Fretwork combines superb detail with rich texture to create a stunning presence.
Shandur from Fabrica captures the subtle striations and color variations found in ancient “Tibetan” or “Nepalese” rugs, in a carpet that has a remarkably hand-spun appearance.
From Gulistan’s Ultimate Luxury Collection is Pandora, a delicate, small-scale diamond-grid geometric patterned carpet, perfect for a sophisticated room style.
Fashion meets classic style in this sitting area below, courtesy of Millennium Nouveau by Solutia, using Wear-Dated carpet fiber.
Add romance to your room with the delicate design of Joni, in Parchment, by Liz Claiborne, shown below.
Above and below, Zoroufy® stair rods from their Heritage® Collection add a beautiful accent to your stairway.
Winter. It may be cold out there (or not, depending on where you live). Either way, “cozy” is in. And that means carpet, largely because of its distinctive personality. It’s a matter of softness and elegance, and styling capabilities available only in a soft flooring product.
Obviously, carpet makes a wonderful home companion for those who live in the northern climes, but if you happen to live in a very tropical climate you should not discount carpet as a possibility for your home.
In the colder climates, carpet really does help to insulate the floors, particularly when you come in on those cold days and take your shoes off to wiggle your feet. It’s almost like wrapping your feet in a sweater. For cooler climates, you may want to “warm up the house” with color, but stop to think that eventually the house will get warm when Spring and Summer come. Just be cautious about what color you choose.
Same goes for warmer climates. Consider the types of colors to “cool your home.”
In warmer areas, look for colors that provide an open feeling and will not intensify the sensation of heat, especially in the Summer. Just use lighter shades of the hue you want to decorate with. For instance, red is a very intense carpet but can be lightened with a second color, such as white, or even by adding gray to take away the “heat.”
So what’s new and “in” for carpet?
The neutrals are back.
Beiges –– all of them –– have never really been “out,” of course, but one set of neutrals with a lot of character, those deeper browns, have come back rather strong. Maybe it’s part of the trend for bringing the color of nature into our homes.
Although there are other neutrals like gray, many do not have the same warmth we feel with rich browns. We have only to look at the world of fashion to see the trend unfolding.
Fashion magazines are showing many shades of brown; just take a look at patterned stockings returning in warm chocolate shades. You also will find the use of gold threads with browns in both clothing and in
carpet. (You can make yourself a bit of an interior design guru by looking at clothing trends, then applying them to décor. Fashion is where it all starts.)
In carpet, trends are toward elegant patterns. Many are being shown on textured carpets such as looped berbers. The result is a three-dimensional look. A pattern-on-pattern gives the flooring an elegant, artistic look, like a painting on the floor.
Green leaves joining those browns give us an all-around neutral look. Add some crimsons and warm yellows and you have striking fashions in both floor covering and clothing. At this point, you should be thinking that carpet is like a wardrobe selection for your floor.
Patterns are the look of luxury in any type of fiber –– olefins, nylons or wool. (When buying patterns, though, investigate the type of fiber you’re buying. Fibers vary by performance characteristics.)
When it comes to selecting which pattern, ask yourself and your retailer how much maintenance is required. Think where you plan to put your patterns (a bedroom or a high-traffic hallway). Consider that busy patterns will help hide soil; if you are using a pattern in a heavy traffic area, you may want to have a busy pattern. Patterns will not hide soil problems as effectively as multicolor cut piles, so use patterns sparingly and give thought to the type of pattern you are using and where.
If you have been considering natural fibers, such as coir and sisals, you may want to add area rugs to create the layered look. The layered looks are fashionable in clothing as well as in flooring. It’s time to bring out those area rugs that you have been using on the patios and put them in your living room!
If you are installing wall-to-wall carpet, consider combining some hard-surface elements as decorative pieces. Think of it as accessorizing.
Decos and trim pieces in ceramic, wood or laminate make for unusual looks, but they usually take a skilled craftsperson for the installation and a flooring design professional who understands the use of sizes and dimensions and what will look good in your space. How about asking to see photos of jobs your potential designers have completed so you can see their capabilities? They may even offer to have you look at completed jobs. 
