The starting point for a scheme can come from anywhere. Artwork is obviously a great place to begin but have you ever thought about a bespoke, bold coloured rug to tell your story?

I have worked on a few projects now, where we have incorporated a customised rug into the scheme and the inspiration for each one has come from wildly different places. You can read about them here.

This is Sally’s flat before

Sally’s flat had always worked for her in a practical sense. She likes to live simply and quietly but she said she never felt like she had a home that she enjoyed coming back to.

She is well travelled and loves picking up mementos. In fact she showed me this plate that she’d recently brought back from India and thought it might be good inspiration for her new living room scheme.

Living Room Interior Design Scheme

This was the scheme we created for the living room:

Designing a Bespoke Rug

It didn’t take long to realise that with every purchase Sally made, she wanted it to have as much personal meaning as possible. So when it came to choosing the rug, we began to think about how it could have a more bespoke feel and bring another memory into her space.

Cue a conversation that we had both recently seen an exhibition of the work of Lee Krasner called ‘Living Colour’ at the Barbican in London. We both loved it and talked enthusiastically about all the incredible colour and texture in her work. Take a look at it here.

The scheme took on an exciting new turn! I looked at a few of the artist’s smaller pieces and adapted a design that could work for the new design scheme. 

As with the other rugs I have created, once I’ve found an image for a rug design, I develop it in Photoshop as this allows me to change colours and shapes. I just love how these designs begin and take on their own journey.

Making the Bespoke Rug

The design was further developed and sent over to our lovely rug makers over in India. The wools were dyed and the design drawn onto the canvas.

Here is the rug almost completed. This is a tufted rug with a mix of wool background and viscose pattern which creates a slightly reflective surface. It is then hand embossed to give a more defined look with neater lines.

The Finished Rug

And here it is in its new home!

Sally already had a large Ikea bookcase filled with photo albums and keepsakes, so we painted it to match the wall colour and curated it a little.

Sally’s wish was for the space to reflect her and I really think we achieved that goal, especially with the addition of a bespoke rug. A recent text from her out of the blue confirmed this!:

‘It’s such a lovely feeling to have a home, thank you!’

If you think that a bespoke rug could be a good starting point for a new scheme for you, get in touch and I can give you more information about how it all works!