Design

Wall to Wall - not really.  Let's call it room size carpet, not really AREA Rugs.  So what are they really? 
Big pieces of carpet.

You've got beautiful wood floors, terracotta, or stone but you want to soften up the look in some areas
and see the hard surface also.

If you want a solid color, make it a beautiful texture or texture pattern. Here a splash of real color would
do the trick.  Colors like chocolate, pumpkin, pale peach, lime or coral.  Big chunky texture, but soft, is a
great look.

Borders are cool - not as a rug but inset in the broadloom - around the bed or a foyer area or down the
hall but maybe just on one side. 

On the staircase use bolder things.  Skin designs, stripes, leafy designs, Asian touches, very small
geometrics or large geometrics.  No medium scale here.  Wilton loop is perfect here but not in the old
lattice designs or the fleur de lis.  This is not the place to be boring or deadly traditional.

Lots of choices are out there. 

Hospitality Designers! - I love 'em!

And I love to hate 'em.  HD Vegas is coming up.  May 15 - 17. 
When I see a creative move, an idea that develops with a continuity that give an installation
 a breath of fresh air, it's worth going through some of the awful ones - maybe.

Clever, clever installations are out there in beautiful colorways and in design motifs that are terrific. 
Designs that are combined, adapted, and innovative for the specific installation have a jazz about
them that is immediately obvious and a delight to us product designers.  In these installations
you can see the nuances that evolve as you walk through and the PLAN is revealed.  Yes, it was
planned and the designer knew what scale was about and envisioned what it would look like on the
floor and in THOSE colors.  (Ever notice a color in a border or worse, in a field that disappears on
the floor when you are just a few feet away?) The design falls apart.  Or the opposite, when one
pops out in the wrong place.

is not creative and doesn't do the design firm, the upholstery or carpet industry any favors.

Since the Egyptian or more likely the Mycenaens, it's said that no new designs exist.  Inspiration is
one thing and I love it.  Look for it in places that are not upholstery, that old standby of  "do something
like this."

SOME OF MY COMMENTS, FAVORITE RESPONSES, ETC.

.  Don't down-play DESIGN.  It's as important as performance, reliability, etc. and if  you don't have good design you won't have the opportunity to show the other two.

.  Function has become more dimensional.  It embraces psychology and creativity.  We need to renew our creativity.

.  There's no final destination . . . . just an evolving and exhilarating journey.

.  Let's go for a fusion of IDEAS!

.  Show the client new possibilities.

.  Create a "consulting" attitude.

.  Mix designs, use two or three scales of the same design.  On scale number three, change one of the accent colors.
Not everyone wants fine hardwood floors  through out  or even your Mother's antique orientals.  (Send them to me if
that's the case.)

.  Custom handmade is fabulous and they don't have to be 3" thick unless you like tripping over them.  Subtle contrasts
in color, luster, and texture are beautiful within areas or an entire room.  Create your own heirlooms.

What is happening between Traditional and Transitional???

.Design-wise the Traditional designs are becoming much larger scale with more contemporary nuances.
Contemporary background-texture designs behind conventional motifs.

.Transitional designs  also are bigger scale now and are being colored in very contemporary ways and
with suggestions of contemporary motifs in combination with  transitional  elements.

See combinations of black, light grey, charcoal, and beige.  Or wheat, lime, apricot, robin's egg blue, and chocolate
used to breach the gap between Traditional and Transitional in terms of color.