Decorating with Carpet
Carpeting is a powerful decorating tool that can be used as a subtle or dramatic room enhancement. For this reason, selecting carpet for your floors provides many opportunities for you to tap into your creative side. The articles in this section will help you focus in on what color, size and texture carpet would best suit your lifestyle and personal style.
Planning Your Carpet - Décor [top]
By Cathy Crane
Decorating can be scary. It's overwhelming to see the selections in the stores. All sorts of things look appealing, but which is right for you? Most people are in terror of spending their money for what might turn out to be a dreadful mistake.
How can you make the right selection? How can you spend your money wisely? How can you be a smart shopper? Ask the right questions? Know when a salesman is trying to pull the wool over your eyes?
This article is is intended to help. Its first premise is that you are truly the only one who knows what feels right to you.
The second premise is that you need information, knowledge of your options, so that you can pick the product or products that will work best for you.
The technique we will follow is:
First, name the realities that your decorating will have to accommodate. These consist of who will use the room, what activities will go on in the room, how long a time will be spent in this room, and what the room itself is like. No matter what's going on in the stores, these are realities you have to address.
Second, name the adjectives that you would like to describe the room when it's finished. Never mind at this stage how you get there from here. To find any route, you first need to know your destination.
Third, the adjectives you select will suggest certain uses of the decorating tools of color, pattern, and texture. This booklet will describe how to use these tools to achieve the look you like, particularly in reference to carpeting.
Does the room have a view of the outdoors? That's a wonderful asset. You might make the room seem larger by creating an indoor/outdoor effect.
What is this room adjacent to? Do you want it to seem connected or separated from the adjacent space? Rooms that are seen together should be compatible in design.
What words do you want to describe the room you design? Consider the realities of your room's use. Pick at least one adjective in each category.
Maintenance
- Easy To Clean
- Waterproof/Moisture Resistant
- Durable
Atmosphere
- Warmer
- Cooler
- Changeable with the Seasons
- Lighter and Brighter
- Darker Or Dimmer
- Quieter
- Noisier
Sense Of Space
- Cozy
- Spacious
- Indoor/Outdoor
Lifestyle
- Country/Rustic
- Informal
- Semiformal
- Formal
Fourth, all the decisions that need to be made in selecting carpeting will be tied into the adjectives that you want to describe your room, so that you will know what will work for you. You will know what to ask for when shopping, and what alternatives will still achieve the look you're after. This website poses the questions that need to be addressed to select the correct carpeting. You'll know the right answers for you.
© 2006 DoItYourself.com
Planning Your Carpet - Room Plan [top]
By Cathy Crane
When planning your new carpet, consider the following factors:
The persons using the room.
- List them and their requirements.
The activities that will go on in the room.
- Consider what mood would be conducive to the activities.
- Consider what the wear and tear will be on the furnishings.
How often and for what periods of time will this room be used?
- What mood would you want for that time duration?
- What will be the wear and tear on the furnishings?
What is the room itself like?
- Consider its size, shape and lighting conditions.
- What are the room's assets and liabilities?
- You're going to want to make the most of its assets and downplay its liabilities.
Describe the room you want to create:
- MAINTENANCE:
- ATMOSPHERE:
- SENSE OF SPACE:
- LIFESTYLE:
- MOOD:
- HOW DO YOU WANT THIS ROOM TO BE?
Who will use this room?
Consider the age, size, sex, hobbies and special interests of this person. What would make this person comfortable? What would be easy to maintain? What will go on in this room?
The room needs to be designed to be conducive to the activities that will go on in it. For example, for sleeping, you might want a calm mood. For active child's play, you might want a stimulating mood. (It's supposed to be good for a child's I.Q.)
For how long will this room be used?
If you just pass through the room, as you do in an entry hall or in a powder room, the room needs to make its impact fast or it has missed its opportunity. You can use stimulating and dramatic effects in rooms like these. If you spend a long time in a room, and you want it to be restful, you would choose calm and peaceful effects. If you spend a moderate amount of time in a room, often you want it to be relaxing in mood.
Another decision that emanates from the length of time spent in a room is the wear-ability of materials. If a room will be used occasionally and treated delicately, you can use perishable materials. If it will be used constantly, and rather roughly, you had better choose materials that can stand up to the wear. Spending more initially for something that will look good for longer is a good economic decision.
What is the room itself like?
Do you need to compensate for its flaws? For example, if you have a small, dark room, you might want to make it look more spacious, as well as lighter and brighter. If the room is enormous, you might want to make it feel more cozy. If it's long and narrow, you might use various decorative devices to improve its seeming proportions.
© 2006 DoItYourself.com
Planning Your Carpet - Maintenance [top]
By Cathy Crane
In order to cut down on carpet maintenance, you'll want to choose a carpet that is:
Easy to clean
Fibers: The newest stain-repellant nylon carpet fibers are a boon. You can even get off red wine without a trace 24 hours after the spill!
Colors: Dulled colors can help you hide dirt. You might select a carpet by the entrance that is the same as the color of the earth outdoors. You might conceal your dog's hair by choosing a carpet in a color close to his coat.
Patterns: Patterns can conceal dirt and spills. For a rug under the dining table, pattern is better than plain. Even tweeds and heathery mixtures camouflage soil.
Waterproof - Moisture Resistant
Fibers: If you want a soft rug or carpet for the floor, choose one made of man-made fiber. Nylon, polyester, and polypropylene olefin (used in indoor/outdoor carpet) are nonabsorbent and resist moisture and mildew. Avoid wool; it absorbs moisture.
Durable
Soft-surfaced floors can cushion falls.
Surface Texture: Uncut pile (the kind that forms loops) wears far longer than cut-pile carpeting - especially when short and closely packed. Children can run their trucks over tight low-level loop pile. High shaggy pile is warm and friendly.
Density: Tight construction of carpet is essential for good wear, so choose one with dense pile for heavy-traffic areas, such as halls, stairs, and children's bedrooms.
© 2006 DoItYourself.com
Created on 07/21/2008 04:02 PM by gerardo
Updated on 07/21/2008 04:21 PM by gerardo
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