New Rug Designs 2010

RIMO Volume 1 Collection design 120-01

Although Britain is primarily a carpet-loving country, there is a growing trend for laminate and engineered wood floors. Many of Britain’s listed buildings also have exposed solid wood floors. The coolness and minimalism of a wood or laminate floor means that rugs have come into play to offer both a touch of warmth and comfort underfoot and acting as the focal point in a room. Rugs boast many advantages from a design point of view. If they are small, they can be moved around easily when you feel like rearranging furniture or you need to empty a room to clean the floor. A strong coloured rug can highlight details in curtains or a painting lending an air of harmony to a living or bedroom space. Rugs can hide stains, chips or markings on a wood floor and can help to bring a luxurious feel to a room even if you have a small budget. Splashing out on a special rug as your one big spend can lighten up a space and there’s nothing like sinking your toes into a soft rug as you lie on the couch or when you get out of bed in the morning. Other advantages, for people who have small children, or work from home, is that a rug can cushion a slip or trip and a really plush rug is a great place to lie down and do work on your laptop if you don’t want to feel tied to your desk. In recent years, interior design trends have seen a resurgence of natural fibre rugs such as jute, sisal, coir and hemp that add a clean, organic feel to a room and have sound ecological properties, being made as they are of natural and biodegradable materials.


Sisal Rug 'Mahale Weave' by Natural Rug Company

Sisal in particular is flame-retardant, very durable and has good sound absorbing qualities. Made by twisting and weaving the fibres of the Agave sisilana plant, a native species from Mexico, sisal now comes to us primarily from Brazil and China. It is low-maintenance and resists wear and tear. Because the fibres absorb dye so easily, it can offer the largest range of colour options for homeowners and designers. Coir mats and rugs make effective doormats or entrance matting as they are great for cleaning dirt and grit off shoes. Made from coconut fibres, coir is one of the most durable fabrics around. Natural fibre rugs look great in rooms with modern design complementing a natural-themed design or homes with a marine or seaside theme. Natural fibre rugs are also making an appearance outside the house, on patios and decking and in garden outdoor dining areas. Wool, of course, is the most popular of all rug fabrics and Britain has an immense variety of wools and wool manufacturers.



Left: Grading British Wool

We also import wools from New Zealand which produces many sought after varieties such as prized Merino. Wool rugs are great insulators, providing real warmth in winter and helping to cut down on heating bills. They are luxurious underfoot and help absorb humidity, ideal in our rainy climate. Again, families with young children will appreciate the anti-static and dust-retaining properties of wool fibres, making it easy to vacuum, and the fact that a wool stain can be generally be cleaned using soap and water, rather than harsh chemicals. The U.S has a vast tradition of independent rug designers and small artisanal workshops, a trend which is picking up over in the UK too. Homestead Weavers is a small artisanal rug weavers located in idyllic Brown County, Indiana where there is a strong artisan community. Chris Gustin holds workshops and produces colourful and quirky designs using recycled, reclaimed materials such as old sock and clothing yarns and plastic shopping bags. Artisans and new designers bring ecological concerns into their work, helping further highlight the concerns of consumers and focus our attention on the origins of our products. Speaking of her work, Chris says, “Recycling was a relatively new concept in the 1970s when I started weaving rugs. Looking for inexpensive sources of material, I used old clothing, sock toe-clips, denim and fabric roll cuts and anything else that would provide an affordable supply of fabric for my rugs. Reusing satisfied the environmentalist in me and helped me spread the concept of recycling. The idea to use plastic grocery bags (HDPE #2 in the U.S.) came from the disgust of seeing bags hanging in trees along the highways near where we lived. I was challenged to find a way to recycle the used bags to put them on the floor and get them out of the trees. I am still finding new sources of material for my "Recycled Rugs" from industry waste, although some of the sources have left the U.S. I feel that recycling is phenomenally important for the world. We need to reuse what we can and save something for the next generations.”

Left and Below: Rusts home with Chris Gustin's designed recycled rugs.














Jane Exley is The Woolly Rug Co.'s designer-maker of bespoke and commission hand-tufted Herdwick floor rugs. Jane is based in Ambleside, the English Lake District where she creates unique pieces from her living/work premises located by the river Stock. Inspiration is drawn from the immediate and uniquely beautiful landscape from the slate strata, colourful flora to the ever-changing colours and immutable forms of the skies then finally being translated into exclusive semi-abstract artworks for the floor. Her work recently featured at a Royal College of Arts exhibition, the rugs were commissioned by Littoral Arts to reproduce two of Kurt Schwitters' sketchbook ideas for his Merz barn in Elterwater, Ambleside. Moorland Rugs offers a bespoke service for the contract market although interior designers will also find everything here to suit all their client’s requirements. You can visit their combined retail shop and studio in Stanhope, Co Durham or make an appointment with their designer, Brian Sales, for a more detailed discussion on your requirements. Alternatively visit their website at www.moorland-rugs.co.uk which features many of their exciting ranges. The Moorland Rug Company offer stock and bespoke ranges to suit all budgets. Many stock items can be custom sized to your requirements. They offer 2 hand knotted qualities, featuring handspun Tibetan Highland Sheep yarn, that are both soft and durable. Alternatively they can supply handtufted wool qualities with your bespoke design incorporated into the overall effect. Existing designs can be recoloured or your own design can be adapted by their in-house designer to suit your scheme – almost any shape and size can be created. Brian has designed carpets and rugs for over 30 years and is well respected within the industry. Brian has an extensive design library containing 1000s of designs that can be used as a starting point for your rug and over 5000 colours in tuft form to match to. Working closely with your client, Brian will first produce printouts to show the design effect and where necessary he can then supply small trials showing how colours work together. Only when you and your client are completely happy will we then go into production. If you have ever hankered after a unique designer rug, or can rarely find quite what you are looking for off-the-peg, or simply prefer to express your own creativity …look no further than FLOR by heuga. With the exciting new Tonal Trends concept from the experts in stylish, versatile and ultra-practical soft flooring, you can design - and create - the rug that’s ideal for you.



Left: FLOR by Heuga 'Inspiration'

By selecting tile by tile from a carefully researched collection of on-trend colours and in either a neat cut pile texture (Puzzle Pieces/2) or a comfy high pile (Lazy Lounge/2), the possibilities are almost limitless. What’s more, it’s as easy to put together as it is to imagine using nothing more than our TacTile connectors, a sharp knife and a straight metal edge. And if you decide to change your mind you can just as easily change the design. Destined to be a well-loved creation that can be adapted to any home, your one-of-a-kind, bespoke FLOR by heuga rug could become the talking point of the room. When it comes to harmonising colours, the hard work has already been done for you. FLOR by heuga have worked closely with designer and colour expert Cenk to devise the Tonal Trends palette of warms, bolds, darks and neutrals that work beautifully with each other. The system is also great for solving tricky design challenges, especially when it comes to awkward shapes and sizes, as the dimensions and configuration of your rug are entirely up to you.