An Oval Office Area Rug Accident

I would be curious what the area rug pattern in the Oval Office was at the time (typically, each new administration redecorates the office) but apparently Gerald Ford's dog, Liberty, didn’t care for it.

One day Ford's dog, Liberty, made a mess on the rug in the Oval Office. A Navy steward rushed to clean it up. "I'll do that," Ford said. "No man should have to clean up after another man's dog." WashingtonPost.com

His reaction to Libertys commentary tells us a lot about Fords character. As the saying goes, you know a mans character by the way he treats people he doesn't have to be nice to. I think whatever people thought of his politics the country truly respected this man.

Area Rug Plays Part in Ongoing Da Vinci Code Mystery

Dan Brown, author of the Da Vinci Code, left some cryptic messages in a hotel in Scotland. Was he just having fun or was this an attempt to make news and keep discussion of the book going.

Brown recently checked out of the Witchery Hotel in Edinburgh but not before leaving behind a cryptic code (93065) in permanent ink under one of the rugs in his £275-a-night Armoury Suite and leaving a riddle in the guest book. HotelChatter

I was kind of wondering how they found the writing underneath the area rug in the first place. For over $360 dollars per night I hope they weren’t sweeping the dust under there.

Rudolph Makes For a Bad Rug but a Great Sausage

The Casper Wyoming Star Tribune has a story about how Rudolph doesn’t just “deliver the presents, he is the present”.

"I'll tell them it's Rudolph," Hicks, a retired lawyer who moved to Alaska in 1971 from the Boston area, said with a devilish grin inside the bustling Alaska Sausage and Seafood shop. Behind the counter, workers hustled to fill holiday orders, including the ever-popular all-reindeer package. CasperStarTribune.net

As far as we are concerned reindeer can stay in from of Santa’s sleigh. They may taste good but the make bad rugs.

They (hides and pelts) are ideal for hanging on a wall or sofa back. But reindeer hair is hollow and easily breaks, so it wouldn't last long as a rug. CasperStarTribune.net

I waited to post this until after Christmas, I think if Santa had seen this before then he wouldn’t have come any where near my house.

And You Thought Vacuuming Was Simple

So you bought that all wool Shaw area rug from their W E Poole Collection that you fell in love with. It gets delivered and as you spread it out you vow to take good care of it. The most important step in caring for your carpet is vacuuming and you need to do this thoroughly and frequently, particularly in high traffice areas. Bear in mind that walking on soiled carpet permits the soil particles to work their way below the surface of the pile where they are far more difficult to remove. Frequent vacuuming removes these particles from the surface before this happens.

Now when I am talking about frequent I’m not talking about just spring cleaning or even once a month. For rooms with light traffic you really need to vacuum the traffic lanes twice a week and the entire rug once every week. For those areas with heavier traffic the traffic lanes should really be vacuumed daily and the entire area rug about twice a week.

Now you want to stop thinking in the back and forth, making sure the whole thing is covered mind set. You will want to make up to three passes of the vacuum cleaner will suffice for lightly soiled areas, but you may need five to seven passes for more heavily soiled areas.

We will talk about vacuum cleaners in another post but for now break out that machine you have that is gathering dust in the closet and take care of that Shaw area rug investment you have lying in the middle of the floor.

There is one other alternative, just rope off the room as a friend of mines mother did when we were young. Come to think of it I am probably still not allowed in that room.

Nourison Grabs Up Paula Paquette

Home Textiles Today is reporting area rug manufacturer Nourison has hired Paula Paquette. With this hire they brought on board someone with a whole new perspective. She has more than 20 years experience on the retail side of the industry and she has a lot to add.

Starting her career as a linens and area rugs buyer at Caldor, then working as the home fashions merchandising executive at Kmart and finally as Vice President of decorative housewares at Linens ’n Things, it is no wonder Executive Vice President Rita Karmiol says “We…believe we will see accelerated growth come from the area under Paula’s direction.” Paula will assume the newly created post of Vice President, soft home at Nourison Area Rugs.

An Explanation of Area Rug Fibers

In this blog John Tredor explains the different fibers that area rugs are made from. He goes through each of the most prominent fibers and explains where they are from and there advantages and disadvantages.

“Natural fibers used with carpet are produced either by insects, animals, or even plants. The fibers that are produced by insects or animals are known as protein fibers. Those that are made by plants are known as vegetable fibers.” carpetscentral.blogspot.com

This will help people figure out what type of material they should be looking for before they start to look at area rugs. It is very thorough and well written.

Does Your Insurance Cover Your Area Rug?

I found this Blog about insurance and what it does and doesn’t cover. I was surprised to find this information in a motor freight and trucking blog but I know this to be true. I live near the ocean and use to work in a building by a tidal river that flooded every few years and have seen the insurance implications. All the right conditions had to be met for the area to flood, strong on-shore wind at the same time you had a new or full moon tide. But if this happened, anywhere from an inch or so up to about 6 inches of water would flow in the back door and out the front. Would your insurance cover this?

“Many homeowners are also surprised to learn that flood insurance is not included under their regular homeowner’s insurance policy or renter’s policy.” motorfreighttrucking.wordpress.com

Your area rugs being literally the lowest thing in any room are most susceptible to flooding and water damage. If you are fond of nice rugs they may also be the most expensive thing in the room. Now I am not sure of the validity of this next statement.

“…a surprising statistic is that in general, you are 30 times more likely to lose your home to a flood than a fire.” motorfreighttrucking.wordpress.com

But even a minor flood could ruin an expensive area rug. It would be smart to take a look at your property and it’s propensity for even minor flooding and alter your insurance accordingly.

Rumor Of An Afghan Man Crafting A Rug For President Bush

A conservative blog discusses a rug that was supposedly crafted by an “Afghan man anxious to show his gratitude to President George W. Bush for this country’s efforts to bring democracy to Afghanistan”. Though there is a picture, I have never seen this story before and can’t confirm it. Whatever the real story behind it, it is certainly an interesting rug, not exactly the kind of area rug you would have your kids play on.

Exquisite Framed Rug Donated To Museum In Northern Iran

The Mehr News Agency reports that a prominent Iranian artist donated an exquisite framed rug to the Astan-e Qods Razavi Museum in Khorassan Razavi Province in northern Iran.

“Astane-e Qods Razavi Museum is a treasure trove of Iranian rare carpets date back to different eras ranging from Safavid dynasty to the present time.” Mehr News Agency

I would love to get a look at an Iranian area rug collection dating back to the 14th century. But I think for the time being I will hold off on any area rug tourist excisions too the Middle East.

Rizzy Rugs Expands U.S. Presence

An area rug company known better to European consumers is planning to expand its presence in the U.S. As reported in FURNITURE Today Rizzy Rugs plans to open a 4,500-square-foot showroom and warehouse in the spring of 2007.

“Much of the company's past growth has been in the European market. In recent years, (CEO Rizwan) Ansari began working with domestic furniture retailers to develop customized products for the U.S. market.” furnituretoday.com

This will make Rizzy Rugs a more attractive supplier to area rug retailers in the states.

Eco Friendly Inn Uses “bon voyage” Pattern Area Rug

An "eco inn", set to open on first day of spring and Earth Day, features a very interesting area rug.

“A handmade wool rug in a 'bon voyage' pattern leads down a hallway in the Topia Inn in Adams. The eco-friendly building is expected to open in March.” Northern Berkshires MA, TheTranscript.com

The Topia Inn, on Pleasant Street in Adams MA, used eco friendly materials when renovating the abandoned lodge building. The 100 percent New Zealand wool rug they chose is a very interesting “bon voyage” pattern. Here is a good picture of the area rug which they are using as a runner. I have been to Adams many times and it is a beautiful town. This inn could be an interesting place to stay if you go to visit. While there you may want to visit Tanglewood to listen to the BSO.

A Design Reality Show

The Television Blog TV Envy and the reality show blog realityblurred.com, among others, have stories about Bravo introducing a reality show called Top Design. It is most likely in the same vein as Project Runway and Top Chef. I am not a big fan of reality TV, or just reality for that matter when it comes to interpersonal tension, but in that these shows are so popular with so many people I felt I had to pass it along.

The New 'Age In Place' Trend Offers Good Advice

As an article in the Pittsburgh, Pa. Post Gazette states the aging baby boomer generation is “…giving rise to an army of experts who are eager to help people age in place.” The article has some practical and sound advice even with respect to area rugs. To keep people who are aging, and whose reactions may not be as fast as they once were, safe they are advised to always “Secure all carpets and area rugs with double-sided tape.” But this is of course sound advice for everyone whether you use double sided tape or a good non-slip padding.

Author Honored With A Hand Hooked Area Rug

One of America's most famous authors of children’s books, Virginia Hamilton, was honored by two sisters, Georgia Kay Glass and Toby Ann Baker, with a hand hooked area rug.

“The rug, which took 300 hours to research, 700 to plan and dye and 2,400 hours to hook, took a first place ribbon at the annual Pearl H. McGown Rug HookCrafters gathering Oct. 27-29 in DesMoines, Iowa. Among the 700 rugs on display only 15 earned that distinction.” By Tom Stafford, Staff Writer, Springfield News Sun.

That was quite an endeavor. For more about this you can find the article with pictures at the Springfield News Sun.

Safavieh® Introduces Martha Stewart Area Rug collection

A press release from Safavieh® says the will introduce a Martha Stewart Area Rug collection January 19 during the Atlanta International Area Rug Market®. The collection will consist of four categories with 32 designs. Martha’s MSLO’s (Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia) ideas and patterns and her own collection of antique area rugs are what inspired the collection. You can read the press release here.

The release explains that it “will include handmade and machine-made area rugs, as well as wire-loom rugs, targeting the consumer who desires great design at affordable prices.” Those prices are said to range from $200 to $3,000 “and above”.

Federated Department Stores is vying for distribution rights to sell the line through their Macy's stores.

This venture into the floor coverings industry should go a lot smoother than her initial work with Shaw and their signature flooring collection. That rollout came just as the allegation of her insider trading came to light. You can find a look back at that turmoil here.

I am curious to see what this collection will hold because whether you like or dislike her you have to admit she has come out with some beautiful products in the past.