Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Living Room Reveal With Pacific Rug Gallery



A fun reveal for you today for #transformationtuesday! I'm excited to finally show you the finished living room with the fabulous updated rug from Pacific Rug Gallery. This has done so much to transform our space; we desperately needed more pattern, more color, more depth, and this was the perfect solution to that. I really wanted to keep with a traditional feel in this room, and the previous off-white Moroccan-style shag rug was much too modern for my liking (all new photos of the room were taken by the amazingly talented Tracey Ayton, I am so grateful every time I get to work with her!).


Just for fun, a little reminder of what this room looked like a mere 2 years ago ... the real estate photos when we toured the house before purchase. My oh my, you've come a long way from your 1989 decor, little house!



So as you can see below, my previous rug in this space was a bit wrong, at least in my eyes, and I think that the foundation of the room makes all the difference to how the entire room flows and feels. Take a look and tell me what you think; for me it was too much white/off white combined with the walls, it was a tad too large at 9x12 in a smaller space leaving very little border of the wood floor showing, a bit modern in pattern, and the most crummy part ... it never stopped shedding. I thought over the few years we had it that we could vacuum it enough to eventually stop the shedding, but it was relentless! Just a follow-up note to last week's post - this shag rug is hand tufted which I only learned after the fact would likely mean it would shed forever.


Compared to now:


Here's what I've learned after doing a little homework on sizing a rug for your space:

1) Make sure that ALL of the furniture in your conversation area can have the legs on the rug. There's nothing less inviting than a rug floating in the middle of a space with no furniture on it, and it's ideal to have all furniture at least with the front legs on. For me, I still wanted to see a bit of wood bordering the room so an 8x10 was the way to go. Most rooms best suite an 8x10 or 9x12, and though these will mean more investment, it's totally worth it.

2) If you LOVE a rug that is on the smaller side (say 6x9), buy a large sisal rug and layer the unique rug on top of it. I've seen this done so beautifully often.

3) Make sure that your rug has at least 6-10" on either side of the sofa. If the width of the sofa is a similar width of the rug, everything will look off. Your room will look narrow and the rug will look too small!






This particular rug is a hand-made, hand knotted rug with a hand-spun wool pile and cotton foundation. It has over 200 knots per square inch (and this means ZERO shedding) and the design goes back over 300 years with a long history in classic Persian rugs. I personally love something with history because it let's me know it's not going to go out of style. However, the rug is a brand new weave made with vegetable dyes and natural colors and the current weavers have created a modern version of the original traditional design.

You'll likely find similar patterns referred to popularly as “Transitional Design” in today’s market. What was really important to me before committing to a rug I know I will have for years and years to come was the durability. The pile of the rug is relatively thin making it versatile and easy to clean, so it is certainly very functional for everyday use. I've never had a rug that could literally be passed down to my kids, and I could not be more thrilled about getting rid of cheaper alternatives from my home!

(Above: pattern play with Mary McDonald's Vanderbilt pillows and Schumacher's Pyne Hollyhock from Arianna Belle)

(Above and below: gorgeous floral arrangement from Floralista, coffee table is Bernhardt | photos by me)


It feels so good have another patterned surface layered into the space, and one that is going to be durable, clean, and more natural fibers for my family. I encourage you to get as much info about the products you choose to put in your home before you purchase! I made a few costly mistakes and I'm so thankful to be headed in the right direction now. To see more of the extensive and impressive collection from Pacific Rug Gallery, a family-owned and run company with a long history in high-quality Persian rugs, hop to their website here and my previous post here.


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Monday, June 4, 2018

Pacific Rug Gallery Q&A | How To Choose The Right Rug


(A sneak peek of my new rug which has totally transformed my living room)

When we bought our first home nearly 10 years ago, we had to fill it with ‘stuff’ of low quality on a tight budget, without taking much time or putting much thought into what we were filling our house with. Now, moving into the next stage of life I have wanted to be extra mindful of selecting quality and timeless designs. The rugs I’ve lived with for years have had every problem in the book - including constant shedding, falling apart at the seams, and not standing up to proper cleaning processes. That’s why today I’m excited to share a bit of insight with you on how to select a high quality rug that will withstand wear and tear, and truthfully be special enough to maintain & repair and pass down to your children as a family heirloom. 
I turned to Pacific Rug Gallery, a local family-owned business (my favorite type of business to support!) to help educated me. Before meeting them, I didn’t fully grasp the important difference between hand-tufted versus hand-knotted rug, now I finally understand why the quality of my past rugs was so poor! Hossein Daliri, owner of PRG, is personally trained in Persian rug creation and reconstruction and comes with a wealth of knowledge and experience.

Given the popularity of classic Persian rugs in design right now, I thought it would be helpful to do a little interview with the owner Hossein, about these rugs and what the different styles are, how to care for them and what to look for. If you are a designer, they have a enormous selection & a trade program which you can sign up for to receive information and discounts, contact them HERE and request info on the trade program!
Nancy Marcus: Where do you source your rugs from?

Hossein Daliri: Our rugs are sourced from all over the world including Persian rugs, Indian rugs, Nepalese rugs, Turkish rugs, Moroccan rugs and ….. What is important is that we hand select every single rug before bringing it into our Gallery.
(An example of a Classic Design pattern with the ever-popular blue coloration and center medallion)

NM: What are the important characteristics of a high-quality rug that educated customers should be looking for?

HD: There are many characteristics that need to be taken into account when deciding on a rug. Quality is often dependent on the knot count and quality, generally speaking, the smaller and more compact and dense the knots are, the finer the rug and the higher the quality. Also, the materials used such as wool, silk, cotton, or a combination of them are important in determining the strength of the pile to withstand wear and tear. 

NM: Can you educate us on the superiority of the hand-knotted technique over lower-quality hand-tufted rugs?

HD: Hand tufted rugs are woven using a special tool that looks like a gun. The knots are manufactured in the gun and thus, the time it takes to complete a hand tufted rug is by far less than the time required to weave a similar sized hand woven rug. Hand tufted rugs are completed by adding a fabric backing using special glue, which may wear off over time and causes the release of fluff and dried glue into the air, it is not very nice to breathe those materials which are generally synthetic viscose.
The hand-knotted rugs are of much higher quality and require much longer time to complete as every single knot is executed by the talented hands of the weavers. They last many many years and grow in value over time like a priceless investment. The materials used are wool, silk, and cotton in combinations or on their own.

NM: What seems to be the hottest trend in rugs right now?

HD: The hottest trends include the Transitional Design which is a perfect modern recreation of classic and traditional patterns usually with a combination of wool and silk or wool and cotton. The patterns tend to use more subtle colors that are easy to fit with most decor making them versatile and beautiful in various settings.
Another trendy style is the Vintage Design made exclusively by Pacific Rug Gallery where some rugs are distressed and overdyed to create a worn look with various colors. They are also versatile and work well with both contemporary and classic home decors.

(Beautiful Vintage Design with the current popular distressed and washed-out appearance)

NM: What is one rug design that a homeowner can select to keep a classic timeless look that will never go out of style?

HD: The Heris Design is one of the most timeless and classic designs that has been quite trendy and fashionable over many years. It is also still used in the transitional rug patterns as well. 

(Stunning classic Heris Design which is guaranteed to never go out of style!)

NM: How do you care for and clean new and vintage rugs?

HD: For home care, the best thing to do is vacuum regularly and expose the rug to air and light as much as possible to keep away moths and ensure the rug stays in good shape. We also recommend that the rugs be professionally cleaned once every 2-3 years (which is a service we provide).

(If the traditional-look is not your personal style, these high-quality rugs also come in hundreds of contemporary designs as seen above)
I paid several visits to the bright gallery on the North Shore of Vancouver where rugs are displayed like pieces of art along the white walls. Truthfully there were so many beautiful design options for my own living room, it was a tough decision to come to! I started by selecting my desired color palette, then the size appropriate for my room (8x10 in my case - I'll talk more about gauging size of a rug for your space in a future post), and then choosing a pile and material that would stand up to every day wear and tear. Hand-knotted wool & cotton was the way to go, and the rug I chose has over 200 knots per square inch (the higher the density, the higher the quality!) on a relatively thin pile which is easy to clean and very functional for everyday use.

(A huge shout out to Hossein, Mina (pictured here), Shahab, Majid, and all the staff at PRG for their outstanding knowledge & service!)
If you follow me on Instagram you may have noticed I shared my selections with you and even had the chance to have you vote using a poll. On top of that, the staff at PRG helped make it easier on me by allowing me to see my top 2 choices in the actual space before finalizing such a big decision. In home trials is part of the service they offer, now that is a true customer service experience I have rarely experienced!

A huge thank you to PacificRug Gallery for helping me in selecting such an investment piece that is truly like art in my living space. I was so impressed with the exceptional selection of rugs as well as rug repair and cleaning process services they provide. And I hope it gives all of you a chance to feel like you've learned something helpful about what makes a high-quality rug high-quality! I always assume, the more we know, the better decisions we can make. I cannot wait to share the finished room with you all, I had the opportunity to have the fabulous Tracey Ayton professionally photograph the finished living room with my rug installed and I’ll have the final reveal for you next week, stay tuned! 
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