Carpet is back and it’s bolder than ever
Plush, patterned floors can be the stars of the show, says Tom Moon
ASIMPle maxim has long governed thinking about flooring: ‘wood is good’. That is, if anyone considered it at all, because flooring has often been an afterthought. Now that is changing. excuse the pun, but we’re not entirely out of the woods. After all, grey stained oak is still the thing, but after a long spell in the wilderness, carpeting is becoming fashionable again.
Interior designer Sophie robinson ( sophierobinson.co.uk) says there is a trend towards fitted carpets in strong colours and patterns.
At one time, ‘fitted carpets throughout’ was such a selling point that it would be trumpeted in estate agents’ descriptions of their smarter properties. Deep, thick piles were favoured in boudoir- style bedrooms and some homeowners went so far as to take them into the en suite.
Then fickle fashion flipflopped. New homeowners started dumping the carpets in a skip at the first opportunity and taking a sander to the floorboards.
But in the past year or two, carpets have been staging a comeback.
‘Designers now look at flooring as an integral part of a home and carpets can become the focal point in the room,’ says Sophie.
The Alternative Flooring Company ( alternativeflooring.com) has collaborated on collections with designers such as Ben Pentreath, Margo Selby and liberty — the first time liberty has used its fabric patterns on carpets and rugs.
Pattern can be practical. ‘our wool carpets don’t show dirt; they insulate; they’re resilient; they reduce noise,’ says lorna Haigh of Alternative Flooring. ‘ Small geometric patterns are hot at the moment, but liberty’s classic Flowers of Thorpe (£149/sq m) is selling well. ‘ People choose their carpet and then build their colour scheme around it.’ That means you can go to town on pattern. ‘ It can guide the rest of the scheme,’ says Natalie littlehales, of Brintons ( brintons. co. uk). ‘ We are seeing a return to patterned styles in fashionable colours such as dusky pinks.’ The Scottish design house Timorous Beasties, known for its cutting-edge fabrics and wallpapers, has produced a range of dramatic carpet designs for Brintons (£89.99/sq m). Butterflies, botanicals and garden-inspired patterns are a theme.
Yellow ruskin Butterfly is such an arresting shade, it will have everyone staring at the floor.
For renters, rugs are popular because they can be rolled up to move on. Floor Story ( floorstory.
co. uk) offers made- toorder rugs or pieces with bright designs by Camille Walala (from £375).
You’re unlikely to want a carpet in your kitchen or bathroom, however, and it is here that we find another comeback. Sales of luxury vinyl tiles are rocketing.
‘Five years ago all the TV shows were about “blanding down” your house because you would probably be selling it in the next couple of years, says Mark Findlay, at flooring specialist Harvey Maria ( harveymaria.com). ‘These homeowners are now more likely to be staying put.’
So, when it comes to the latest trends, bag a carpet and join the vinyl revival.