Where are all the square rugs??
The ultimate interior game changer.
I was listening to a podcast this week (an old episode of So, How Do you.. it’s a new find for me and sadly they haven’t put out a new episode for a year and a half, but the old episodes are very good) and they covered a few topics that are so important to me. They were speaking with Sophie Ashby about designing a living room and covered a few of my favourite design topics, notably televisions and rugs.
One, and maybe one of my more controversial design takes is that a fireplace should NOT have a television over it. And if you must put a television over your fireplace, at least hide it. Practical? Not always. But does it elevate your space? Absolutely. Do I still design spaces with televisions over a fireplace? Of course I do. It’s your house. But I will try and sway you in another direction. That’s a post for another time, but in the meantime, here are a few ways to design around your fireplace without a television.
This living room designed by Era Design House is a perfect way to do a fireplace if you must have a television over a fireplace.
And two, where are all the square rugs?!
I don’t mean literally square (other than when necessary), but as a designer rugs are one of the hardest pieces to source for my projects. They take the longest and getting them right is essential to tying the space together. When you take all that, plus how expensive they are, there’s a lot of pressure riding on one big piece of fabric. It feels like you’ve seen the same variation of the same rug over and over, yet you can never find the one that fits just right with your space.
I think I’m in love with this.
A good rug should add warmth, layers and an overall feeling of completeness to a space. But they aren’t to be rushed. I lived in my house for over a year before we settled on a rug, and if I’m being honest, I’m still not happy with it. But good things take time and one day I’ll swap it for one I really love.
A good rug should also be practical. I have a pet, a niece and a husband and let me tell you.. that combination leads to the need for a very durable (and easy to clean) rug. One company I absolutley love for practical, easily washable and beautiful rugs is Rug Nation out of Toronto. They have every shape and size and their prices are very reasonable. Cozey is also a good one for their designs and price point (and did I mention washable?)
But as a designer, I don’t always want to be practical, so let’s get into some fun stuff.
One of my favourite passtimes is scrolling on 1stDibs (isn’t that every interior designer’s main hobby though?). And if you have the time, patience and the budget to live out my dreams, you can find some really amazing pieces. Sometimes I’ll go in with key words, other times I’ll go to a category, find the design style I’m going for and click pages at random to see what treasures I can find.
Here are some of my favourites.
This 100% wool, hand-knotted Moroccan Berber Meni Ourain is as close to perfect as they come.
My love for Art Deco really knows no bounds. I love pieces that have a cohesive range of colours that you can really use to pull out different focal points and elements of your space.
Now, you want to talk a no-budget Swedish Mid-Centry rug option of my dreams.. here she is. She’s from 1933. The more you look at her (and swipe through her photos) truly the better she gets.
I could do this all day, so I’ll leave it here. I’m curious to know your favourite/least favourite item to shop for. Leave a comment and I’ll help you find it!
As always, you can follow here to see all of my favourite rug options that are sure to give your space the warmth and personality it needs.