I'm back from Surfaces 2009 and thought you might enjoy some carpet style trend info from the show.
Let me confess to you up front. Given the big news [Mohawk Purchases Wear-Dated Brand], I didn't get a chance to wander as I had hoped, camera in hand, absorbing flooring influences.
However, I do have friends in excellent places who were able to do so - namely, Shannon Bilby who blogs at the WFCA's Floor Talk!
Shannon has written up a wonderful series of posts discussing what she observed at Surfaces across flooring categories - carpet, area rugs, tile and hardwood.
More specifically, check out these posts relating to tile and hardwood:
+ Trends in Tile - Shapes, Sheen, Shades, Sizes, Style
+ Trends in Hardwood - Shapes, Sheen, Shades, Sizes, Style
As it relates to carpet and area rugs, before referring you to those posts, I thought I would summarize her observations.
As it relates to carpet and area rugs, before referring you to those posts, I thought I would summarize her observations.
First, she says that "area rugs this year are all about texture." Texture from thick yarns as well as from "felt discs and sculpted carpets." She refers to "linear striations, large oversized patterns as well as smaller scale more traditional patterns", color schemes ranging from soft shades to rich oranges, greens, greys and blues. For the full post, see Trends in Area Rugs - Surfaces 2009.
My friend Etienne Koth, from Flooring America, says she saw blue being used in combinations that she hadn't seen done before. It looked really fresh. [Think yellow with blue, and orange with blue...]
What struck Shannon most on the carpet side was a renewed emphasis on quality of product rather than quantity. That's something I've heard discussed quite a bit [most recently it came up in Consumer Choices And The Retail Experience] both at Surfaces and beyond: quality matters again.
Although neutrals reigned in product displays, she saw a wealth of delicious colors: oranges, greens, blues, grays and earthy shades of brown. Shannon says: "the oranges and blues were muted and rich. The greens were light and lively. The browns were earthy, coffee inspired and looked like great candidates for hiding traffic!.. and beautiful heathered products that have more range of color than I think we are all used to seeing in once piece of carpet."
In terms of patterns, she noticed all kinds of geometric patterns - grids, lines, texture on texture...
The three examples shown here, by Mohawk, come from the Wear-Dated booth and illustrate what Shannon describes - tonal, textural, linear-inspired and geometric patterns:
Gridlock, Metro Oasis and --- [I will get them properly identified]. The fourth pattern in the booth was Urban Links [see Greer's Carpet Fashion Underfoot: Urban Links Carpet Style].
Shannon reminds and urges you in her post to be sure to feel the carpet styles as they are delicious under hand and foot!
For her full post on carpet, please read Trends in Carpet - Surfaces 2009.
As it relates to color, I was able to attend Mark Woodman's presentation titled "Seek, Experience, Inspire" during which he urged us to seek inspiration from everywhere - be it the color of a Brazilian drink influencing what color to launch the new Saab 903 to unexpected textures and cultural combinations. He stated that "Color will take on more importance as an easy way to update a space, product or home.... The economy is key but consumers still want excitement with their value."
I'll capture some of his color observations in a separate post.
As it relates to color, I was able to attend Mark Woodman's presentation titled "Seek, Experience, Inspire" during which he urged us to seek inspiration from everywhere - be it the color of a Brazilian drink influencing what color to launch the new Saab 903 to unexpected textures and cultural combinations. He stated that "Color will take on more importance as an easy way to update a space, product or home.... The economy is key but consumers still want excitement with their value."
I'll capture some of his color observations in a separate post.
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2 comments:
I never have been a huge fan of residential carpet. I usually prefer hardwood or tile. Recently I have been drawn towards carpet, but not the average homeowner carpet. My eyes have been drifting towards commercial carpet. We are going to be redoing our entire downstairs flooring in the next year and I think I want to look into commercial carpets. The design options and patterns seem to be endless. That in combination with the low pile of the commercial brands seems to be what appeals me the most. I was reading an article about commercial carpets in residential homes. That article can be found here: http://floortalk.wfca.org/2009/05/26/at-home-with-commercial-carpet
Any thoughts or ideas on a good manufacturer of commercial carpets? Particularly that specializes in beautiful colorful (and maybe intricate) deigns. :)
Thank you for the good read.
Barb, thanks for your comments. The post you point to by Annette Callari is a particularly inspiring one. In terms of manufacturers of commercial carpet, there are many but I'm not sure that they all sell to consumers. I suggest you work with your local retailer first as s/he may carry commercial grades and will also be qualified to install your carpet.
I hope that helps.
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