In Praise of Rugs

Beneath all great lounge furniture lies a great rug, or at least we think there should. Chosen well the right rug will frame furniture and pull a room together. They add warmth and comfort in-part by blocking drafts and absorbing heat, but also by the rug’s ability to soften its surroundings. What’s more a new design gives an opportunity to inject colour and pattern into your home interior without having to redecorate.

With this in mind we’ve put together a selection of our favourites to inspire your winter hibernation plans.

Maggie Bunzl rug by Maggie Bunzl for Aram Designs

This geometric delight is by Maggie Bunzl and was designed for our 40^th anniversary collection. While discussing the inspiration behind the hand-knotted pure new wool rug, Bunzl said “for a long time I have been using natural earth pigments and vegetable dyes in my work. I find the decorative arts of the women of West Africa continuously inspiring, mud cloths from Mali, the mud-decorated compounds of Ghana and the wild and colourful interiors of Mauritania.”

Papercutoutalphabet rug by Alan Fletcher for Aram Designs

Another design from the AD40 range is Alan Fletcher’s playful and bold Papercutoutalphabet rug, a prime example of the late great designer’s work. It is woven from pure new wool in the thick, flat style of an Indian dhurry.

Flash rug by Eley Kishimoto for Aram Designs

Established in the early 90s Eley Kishimoto is renowned for graphic repeat prints, which are readily applied to clothing, accessories, home furnishings and art installations. Aram director Ruth Aram worked with the designers to choose a number of existing print designs which she believed could be incorporated into woven lengths. A favourite of the collaboration is this hand tufted pure new wool Flash rug. Chains rug by Eley Kishimoto for Aram Designs

In contrast to ‘Flash’, Eley Kishimoto’s Chains rug features a calm and versatile design. It is available in four colour ways and is made from hand tufted wool. St Tropez rug by Eileen Gray for Aram Designs

At one point in her career Eileen Gray’s rugs were the most popular of her designs. Over time their success waned only to be reintroduced by Aram Designs to great appeal. This abstract piece, the St Tropez rug, was inspired by the famous peninsular. Its contemporary production uses 100% pure new wool, which has been dyed using natural vegetable pigment. Blue Marine rug by Eileen Gray for Aram Designs

Eileen Gray designed her Blue Marine rug especially for her E1027 home, a modernist triumph overlooking the Mediterranean at Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. Its vivid colour palette of cobalt and sky blue, cream and black evokes Gray’s summers spent in the French Riviera.

Sitawi rug by H & B Scheufele Design for Walter Knoll

The pattern of Walter Knoll’s Sitawi rug was taken from an abstracted photo of an African desert plain in bloom, taken by the company’s CEO Markus Benz. It forms part of a collection of luxurious designs all inspired by the continent’s dramatic landscapes.

Safara rug by H & B Scheufele Design for Walter Knoll

Safara is another design from Walter Knoll’s African-inspired range. As with the Sitawi rug, it has been hand-crafted in Nepal under ecologically sustainable and socially responsible conditions. The rich, dark pattern is created using 50% wool, 40% silk and 10% nettle. It is truly a work of art for your floor.

Most of these designs are on display in our Covent Garden store.  They are a small selection of the rugs that are available in-store and online.