Why Traditional Rug Designs Never Go Out of Fashion

There’s something comforting about traditional rug designs that makes them just as popular today as they have been at any time in the past. Whether it’s that Persian or Oriental feel to your rug, or something made closer to home, it seems traditional is perfectly suited to the job of decorating the floor of any home, wherever you chose to lay that carpet.

It’s not just older people that go for the traditional design either, it’s popular with the younger generation too and has continued to be a favourite over the years.
Whilst the latest weaving and design techniques mean you can get almost any design onto your carpet, many people still opt for the traditional look when it comes to choosing a rug. You can go for a runner, octagonal, circular or square rug but they all have that clean cut design and promise of opulence that sets them apart from other designs.

Different Types of Traditional Rug

Many of the traditional rugs we know and love today have their origin in the East. Bokhara rugs are knotted by hand in Pakistan whilst Kasbah rugs are often to be found in the markets of Morocco. You can now find these kinds of traditional rug manufactured in places as far flung as New Zealand and in a variety of different materials and weaving techniques. The design remains popular though, wherever it is made.

Other rugs have grown out of the English carpet industry, particularly through the Victorian times when manufacturing was at its height. These include makes such as  and English Manor which both have their own history. The first Axminster was woven for Chatsworth House back in 1830 and still adorns the floor of the library there today.

What they all have in common is the ability to make a floor look stylish and opulent without being overbearing. There are plenty of traditional options to choose from, with prices to suit most pockets, including:
• Persian: Originating from Iran, the designs for Persian carpets were symbolic and often woven by nomadic tribes. Early fragments of Persian carpets date back to well before the birth of Christ.
• Ziegler: Distinguished by its broad border and muted colour tones, Ziegler rugs make a stylish addition to any room.
• English Manor: A design that rose out of the French renaissance period, if you want a traditional carpet with ornate medallions and florals then this is the rug for you.
• Sherborne Grange: A favourite with many households, this rug uses a central motif and often incorporates flowers such as irises and lotuses.

These traditional carpets used to be the province of the well to do and became a sign of affluence in late Victorian times and the early part of the 20th Century. They continued to be a popular design for flooring in many homes during the 70s and 80s. In more recent times they have become an affordable and decorative way to make your floor look stylish and are still a first choice for many, even with new designs coming onto the market.

Which rugs are easy to clean

What rugs are the easiest to clean? It may sounds like a simple question to answer, but there are so many variables to consider and let’s not forget the easiest rugs to clean may not be your preferred texture. A machine washable rug is the logical answer but a typical lounge size rug is just too big to fit into a standard washing machine, so these are usually only made in small bathroom sizes. When we say clean do we mean stains or general maintenance like vacuuming? If you need to wash a rug my advice is; don’t do it yourself, find a reputable specialist carpet and rug cleaner. So, to save going around in circles let's first establish that this article refers to general maintenance and spot cleaning.

Some quick general rules to consider before buying a new rug. Lighter colours are are more likely to show soiling and dark colours are likely to show dust and hairs. Plainer rugs will show more tracking and wear than a patterned rugs. Busy designs with many contrasting colours will appear to wear better because your eye focuses on the design rather than the traffic paths. Longer pile lengths take more maintenance than short piles.

Read the full article at rugzone.co.uk

What rug should you use in front of a wood-burning stove?

I have a friend who imports and sells multifuel wood burning stoves. He tells me they efficient and look superb as they glow and radiate with warmth in the winter. So, I asked him; “why don’t you have one in your home?” Apparently his wife did want one but he said no, because; “they are hard work as they need a thorough cleaning at least every two weeks”. And, there is also the constant opening and closing of the stove door to refuel.

A well covered traditional designs in man made fabric 

Prime place for rug you would think, but as you open the stove door to refuel, out spits some hot ash. And that’s another black spot on the rug! It has to said, fire and fabric just don’t mix. While it is highly unlikely that any rug would actually ignite, it will get damaged if hot cinders make contact with the pile surface. So what is the solution?

I have spoken to many customers about this very problem. Many have a sheet they lay on top of the rug before they open the stove door, while others move the rug to one side, providing it is small enough. Some even have a small rug to go on top of the large rug. But human nature as it is will mean we open that door the one time we don’t have any protection, and out spits the cinder.

Many customers will buy cheaper rugs and just replace the if it gets burnt, this often means using a rug produced with man-made fibres. Which on fabrics like polypropylene that have a very low melt rate, will burn black and turn to a consistency of hard toffee. If you choose a rug made of manmade fibre, get one with random black spots and a heavy traditional design that will hide small singes.

See how wool burns compared to other fabrics

If you choose a wool pile for your rug you will have the peace of mind that small singes will just dust off, leaving just a slight scar. It is still best to go for pattern that has good coverage. Back in the days when it was legal to smoke in public places wool was always the specified fibre for social areas such as pubs where it was likely that cigarette could be discarded in the floor.

To sum up: using wool is preferable in front of a woodburning stove as it will resist small burns and protect your fitted carpets, if you must choose manmade fibre go for a buy design.

Should you buy a handmade or machine made rug?

We all want to spend our hard earned cash sensibly, but when it comes to buying a new rug you can be faced with the dilemma of not knowing whether to go for a handmade or a machine made rug. Which is better, what will give more durability, what is going to keep its good looks longer? These are possibly just some of the questions going around your head. And to be perfectly honest with you, it’s virtually impossible to come up with a generalised tried and tested formula.

My first line of advice is to ignore how it’s actually made and start with the colour, texture and size. Once you have narrowed down the options take it to the next stage, then the next until you are happy your choice. Personally I don’t give a hoot how it’s made, if the rug is of a colour, design and texture that appeals then it goes on my floor. That being said, it also has to have the approval of my wife who will not have a rug with a harsh feeling fibre.

You are likely to have a rough budget along an image in your head of what you want, once you start to look you’ll probably be swayed by fascinating designs and captivating textures. There are some great ideas out there, but at the end of the day you will probably be brought back down to earth and choose something practical at an average price point. Which will revert you right back to the handmade or machine made dilemma. The big irony here is; that could include a cheap to medium priced handmade rug or a medium to high priced machine made rug.

As an experienced online retailer of rugs we at Rug Zone try to offer products that we consider good value for money and will not generally cause problems during use. So rather than going around in circles like a politician in a debate, let me give you benefit of thinking like retailer.

Machine Made Rugs
Machine made rugs, and I refer mainly to woven Wilton production, are definitely more predictable and consistent than their handmade counterparts. But they are often limited on colours and textures due to manufacturing techniques. Most Wilton rugs are produced using polypropylene fibre because it feels good is stain resistant and wears well. As a retailer these give us very few problems.

Handmade Rugs
Handmade rugs that fit into the popular price ranges are usually hand tufted and the majority are produced in China and India. When we are talking about wool pile surface a higher priced product will usually buy you better quality fibre and finnish.

It’s only natural to expect more from a higher priced product, you have to remember though, these rugs are fantastic value for money because they are genuinely made by hand, by individuals on extremely low wages. In general the flooring trade anticipates some small inconsistencies with handmade rugs, we tend to call them “characteristics”. You the consumer may be unwilling accept the fact that you can buy two of the same item but they have slight differences. It’s just the nature of any handmade product, however usually when you pay a slightly higher price you are also buying better quality control which means a more consistent product.

120 x 170cm Carved Wilton @ £59.99

120 x 170cm hand tufted @ £99.99 

The bottom line is, buy a rug because you like the look and texture and forget about the forepart, that's really all we do as retailers.

A quick note on hand knotted rugs
These are at the top end of the price scale and fit into the handmade Persian rug genedra. I see many rugs on offer that claim to be hand knotted but I believe many are simply hand loomed, which isn’t the same. If you are thinking of buying a new or reconditioned hand knotted rug it’s a big purchase so best visit SpongoBongo or Goodweave

Can men aim? The big question!

Recently, a German landlord tried to sue his ex-tenant for the cost of repairs to a bathroom caused by his bad aim when using the loo. The case actually went to court but was thrown out because the court upheld a man’s right to pee standing up – the landlord had contended that it was reasonable for all property owners to insist that their tenants pee sitting down. It was hailed as a blow for male freedom and their inalienable right to do what comes naturally but at the time it divided a nation – mostly into those who pee and those who have to clean the bathroom. Bathroom rugs should always be washed at least weekly, but if there is a houseful of chaps whose aim is less than perfect, this should be more often. Bathroom rugs need to be washable at high temperatures to rid them of any germs that have taken residence and also to prevent nasty niffs. Because the bottom line is – most men can't aim!

Do aim aids work?
If the men in your house are a little … random … there are sticky gizmos you can place in the bowl of the toilet for them to aim at which are great fun and also minimise clean-up. They are often shaped as targets but you can get them in all different shapes. If you don’t feel flush enough to buy one of those, you could kill two birds with one stone and use one of the stick-on toilet-fresheners instead and leave instructions for them all to aim at that. The secret is to make clean-up easy and so some flushable toilet wipes to hand is probably a good idea. Bathroom rugs will make freshening the room easier – if you have fitted carpet (not generally recommended in a bathroom) a rug will stop too much mess on the floor which will get a bit whiffy over time.

Accidents do happen

Hopefully, when talking of accidents it is only small children who are the subject (although the elderly can also get caught short). If you are in the middle of potty-training, you may want to get a few extra bathroom rugs to put down – a plastic bag underneath might also be a plan. The thing is that if you make the child think there is something ‘naughty’ about using the potty, this sometimes very fraught stage in their development can get very tricky indeed, so keeping things as normal as possible is always best. If you keep a bathroom rug with a potty in every room (discreetly – even small children like their privacy) you can start to remove extra ones as the child’s control improves. Most people find it only takes a short while before the child is taking themselves off to the bathroom on their own. And then the fun can begin – can men aim? And if so, at what age does the skill kick in? With toddlers, only time will tell.

Kid’s rooms revisited – the floor doesn’t have to be a Lego graveyard!

Everyone has a memory of treading unexpectedly on a Lego brick when tiptoeing across a child’s bedroom floor – either as that child, sneaking downstairs for an illicit biscuit or as a parent or babysitter trying not to wake the child with unwisely loud cursing. And it does hurt – a lot! Keeping kids on message when it comes to keeping their bedrooms tidy is a bit of a mission, though – tidying is boring; playing isn’t. But most children – except the real tinies and of course the ubiquitous teenager – like to have a neat environment. It is more calming and certainly most people of any age would rather live in a tidy room than in a pigsty. So, how to make them keep their room looking good, all the time?

Buy some new stuff and they will want to look after it

If their room is just full of tatty bits and pieces inherited from older siblings there is no earthly reason for them to keep it neat. Would you? Instead, gather them round the laptop and go shopping – set them a budget and tell them that they have to stick to it. Also make sure you retain power of veto – kids can be weird. A nice bedroom rug will immediately appeal to the girls, especially if it is fluffy and a bit princessy. For the boys, there are lots of children’s rugs for sale which are in football colours and if they are not sporty, you can also get some that are printed with roads or other play scenarios. For the really little ones, you can perhaps run to several children’s rugs in different colours, for playing farms or zoos. Whatever you decide, let the child in on the decision-making.

Big kids get homesick too

When your eldest is going to university, there is a lot of emotion sloshing around the house. He or she is bound to be playing it cool and pretending they don’t mind leaving home. Mum and Dad are probably in bits. But here’s the secret – they don’t want to go any more than you want them to, but it has to be done. They will be feeling a bit cut loose in their room in halls or in a shared flat or house so buying them some bits and pieces to make it feel like home is a good plan. A bedroom rug chosen with Mum or Dad will always be a reminder that the family are still there and best of all, it doesn’t look quite as childish as a teddy sitting on the bed – boys in particular will really appreciate that! A bedroom rug is also a handy purchase, because it can go from digs to first flat to a first real home and will keep some continuity – kids need that more than they will ever let on. So whether you are buying a bedroom rug for a toddler to hide his Lego in or a student about to fly the nest – make it a family affair.

Tired of upcycling and recycling? Let’s make ‘round-cycling’ the new trend

Whenever you turn on the TV these days, or so it seems, there is someone on there telling you how to save money on your food bills (it usually comes down simply to buying cheaper food, so let’s not go there) or how to turn your unwanted wardrobe into a darned fine kennel for a dog you haven’t got but might be buying any minute because you can afford one now, having taken to buying cheaper food. Well, upcycling and all the rest is all very well and fine but some of us just don’t have the time for making teapot stands out of broken china – how much broken china does the average household end up with in a week, anyway? So why not start a trend – let’s call it round-cycling.

How does round-cycling work?
Seeing as how it has just this minute been made up, it can work any way you fancy, but the basic principle is that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Take an example that every home has experienced. You have a shaggy rug that is still perfectly okay but you are tired of seeing it every day when you come home from work, so you buy another. But then this means you have a perfectly okay shaggy rug and nowhere to put it. One option is to put it in the bin, but that would be a shame. Charity shop? Car boot? Or hey – here’s a thought: why not use it upstairs on the landing? It would go with that bathroom rug a treat. Then, what do you do with the very good quality wool carpet runner on the landing? Well, it would go really perfectly at the end of the bed. Which means there is no room any more for the round rug which is in the bedroom. But that will go a treat in the dining room, rather than the coir fibre natural rug that is in there at the moment. That can go in the kitchen. And the kitchen rug?

Here’s where it gets clever
You go into work the next day and tell everyone about your new invention of round-cycling and someone tells you about their neighbour, whose son has just moved into a student flat. They have bought him a lovely rug for the kitchen, but fear it may be spoiled, so you give them your old one instead. But this leaves your colleague’s neighbours with a brand new washable rug which they hadn’t expected – hold on, though! Their hall runner is looking a bit the worse for wear, so they replace it. The old hall runner can go in the conservatory, to mop up dirty paw prints from the dog they can now afford because the kid has moved out; round-cycling doesn’t just have to apply to rugs, you know! Look around the house and you will find lots of things to round-cycle, from pots and pans to furniture and all without picking up so much as a nail!

Do all your visitors have wrinkled noses? How to freshen up your rugs

Does my house smell is something that most people worry about from time to time. In this day and age there isn’t much excuse for a smelly home because there are so many different products on the market to keep it smelling nice but most of them tend to mask rather than remove and prevention is very much better than cure. It is difficult to avoid cooking smells while the dinner is actually in the oven and indeed, the smell is a large part of the enjoyment of any meal so no one wants to get rid of it altogether. It is when it is still hanging around two days later the trouble begins and the problem is that smells linger in fabrics and most especially in carpeting and rugs. Buying cheaper rugs and carpets and replacing them is one option, but keeping them clean isn’t too difficult however it is important to treat some fibres with care.

Never soak a wool rug

Wool rugs are lovely but they are difficult to clean if they get a really bad spill on them because they should never be soaked with any liquid. If something like wine is spilled on a wool rug it should be blotted as far as possible and any cleaning fluid should be tried on an inconspicuous area first. But for simply freshening up, you can dust some bicarbonate of soda into the pile and leave for a few hours or overnight. After that, the wool rug should be vacuumed gently and if possible given a thorough shake outside. The bicarb will have soaked up any stale smells and the rug will smell like new again. Some people like to sprinkle some lavender on the rug at this point and this will certainly make it smell nice, but this is not recommended for light colours, because the oils from even dried lavender can stain.

If you can wash your hall runner, then do

Some rugs are of course much more prone to being smelly than others and in particular these are bathroom rugs, kitchen rugs and hall runners. Hall runners have to take whatever the visiting feet throw at them and grubby shoes can carry all kinds of things into the house on them, which can get ground in and smell quite nasty. The trouble is that few people are aware of the smell of their own house and it is a bit ironic that the smelliest rug – the hall runner – is the one that people encounter first. Ideally, these rugs should be washed weekly and if you have two to change around regularly then so much the better because you should always make sure they are completely dry before putting them down again – if they are damp, they will smell musty after a while and so the matter will be even worse. Bathroom rugs should certainly be washed or aired at least once a week and more if the family is large. Natural rugs are a good choice in the kitchen, being easy to vacuum and also easy on the feet on the usually hard floors in that room.

Old and new can make a stylish and eclectic mix

Now, this isn’t another of those blogs about an eighteen year old marrying a ninety-five year old millionaire – it’s about how to mix and match different eras in your home and it will be a lot more successful than that marriage, that’s for sure! Lots of people decorate with very strict rules about what can be mixed with what and it can end up looking a bit sterile. After all, when they were ‘new’ and ‘newish’ Art Deco and Art Nouveau turned up on the same mantelpiece – people didn’t throw things away just because a brand new trend had surfaced, so there is no need to keep things apart now. When you have paid for a traditional rug, for instance, there is no need to change it because you have made the rest of the décor more trendy – the fact is, the two styles will get along just fine.

Don’t throw the baby out with the bath water

Although your traditional rug may not be an antique of the future, it has a place in any décor. And if you have bought modern rugs and now want a change, the same thing applies. Just think of all those people who had Flotaki rugs back in the day – it’s a sure bet they wish they had kept them now, because they are right on trend. It isn’t everything that deserves to be kept no matter what, but you will know what you like and what you don’t want to part with. A natural rug will keep its good looks for years and a wool rug will never date. The real rule with buying anything if you want it to stand the test of time is to spend as much as you can possibly afford. Traditional rugs in particular are examples of where this rule bears fruit – if you buy a really good, hand knotted rug you really could be giving your grandchildren a nice heirloom. But if your pocket won't stretch to that just yet, why not by a lookalike and get the pleasure of the look while you save up.

Take care of things and they will last

It isn’t too obvious to say that if you look after things they will last longer – many people abuse or neglect their belongings and are then surprised when they fall to bits. When you get your traditional rug home – or any rug with an unusual pile or finish – you will find care instructions with it and these are there for a reason. Many traditional rugs have a silk finish whether or not they actually contain the fibre and this is ruined if you use the beater bar of your vacuum cleaner. Switch it off if your cleaner has this facility or use the tool – you will ruin the pile if you are too rough with it and your traditional rug will be ruined. Traditional doesn’t mean tired and tatty, so take care of things and they will last a lifetime.

Hair standing on end? Natural fibres can help cut static

What with central heating and a lot of man-made fibres in clothes and furnishings, lots of people these days suffer from static build-up, often causing painful discharge of sparks either from one person to another or from a person to an object, such as a metal bowl in the kitchen, a doorknob or light switch. If you are very unfortunate you will find you have an almost permanently statically charged cat, which makes for interesting times; it really makes them grumpy. There are various things you can do to prevent this, such as tumble drying with an anti-static sheet in the drum and wearing as much cotton as you can, but one thing that will make a big difference is using natural rugs on your floors. Natural fibred hardly ever hold a static charge and you will be much more comfortable if you use wool rugs or ones made of bamboo or coir as much as possible.

Humidifiers can help as well Although most people worry about their homes being damp, dry air is a real problem if static is causing you discomfort. You can choose to have a device which puffs out small amounts of steam on a timer or you can have other gadgets that spin water in a tank and this humidify the air. If you have a raffia or coir natural rug you can damp them down very slightly in very dry weather – they won't mind this and in fact it will keep them supple. The problem with many man-made fibres is that every time you step on them they rub together under the weight of your foot and each time they do this they build a charge, which then gathers until it is earthed by something – and here we are, back at the poor unfortunate cat. Natural wool rugs don’t do that because the wool, raffia, coconut fibre or what have you don’t have the same properties. Although you will probably have a lot of sources of static in your home, natural rugs will ensure you don’t make things worse just by walking across the floor.

How to be more comfortable in a static environment With so many gadgets around all giving off electrons the modern home can really never be free from the problem, but along with your natural rugs you can make other changes to make things more comfortable. Keeping the air damper is certainly a way of doing this and using a natural bristle brush will help your hair be less static. When you are vacuuming or any other task involving a rhythmic movement, wear cotton if you can, so you don’t accidentally build up static in your clothes as your arm brushes your body. Use fabric softener or, preferably, dry your clothes outside so they discharge to the air. And, whatever you do, if he is looking fluffier than usual and a bit out of sorts – don’t touch the cat!