Tales from the Inside: "A Rug Revelation"

I don’t claim to be an interior designer, but having worked behind the scenes in the home furnishings industry for close to twenty years I’ve picked up a few tricks and I’ve seen enough furniture to know what I like and what works for my lifestyle (three boys, lots of moving balls and large cereal bowls full of milk). We moved into our home over fifteen years ago, and have slowly been renovating and decorating rooms. I’ve mostly made good design decisions with the exceptions of a few missteps like the apricot colored walls in my living room, (ouch) and a series of reds on accent walls, (dark times, and lots of primer) but no permanent damage was done. I’m often asked if I use the design services at the store, and I can say that I’ve enjoyed punishing myself and muddling through on my own. It wasn’t until my “rug crisis” that I realized the importance of using a design professional.

Seven years ago we took on a large renovation, adding a badly needed entrance and a sitting room that serves as a lovely relaxing and reading area for the whole family. Furnishing the room was relatively easy, walls and fabrics mostly in neutral tones. It wasn’t until I began looking for a rug that my problems started. I felt confident that I knew what I was doing, I watched HGTV and I knew my stuff. I gravitated towards monochromatic rugs in an attempt to keep the room quiet, but what I learned, after spending years, and I mean YEARS, hauling rugs on approval and spending money on an array of bad accent pillows, was that I needed the help of a real designer to help me pull it all together. I turned to my friends and coworkers, the design staff at Paul Rich. With their expert guidance I quickly learned that the room was screaming for a rug with some personality, color and an interesting design. My fear of going bold was so wrong, and on their advice, I gathered all of my fabrics, natural muslin, chocolate mohair, brown leather and sea green chenille plus the drapery fabric, a red toned paisley and headed back to the store.

The rest of my house had Oushak rugs, which have an older feel, well suited to an old farmhouse. I went directly to that pile, and in my habitual way started looking at the patterns that had underwhelmed me in the past. I took a leap of faith and had them pull a rug of their choice one that I might add would have never been a contender. It seemed too loud and conspicuous, but I was desperate, and had been wrong so many times, that I decided to go with it. I placed the sea of neutrals on the rug, and it all made sense. Who knew? Excited about the prospect of finally having a rug in my room I took it home, “on approval,” and it was fantastic. The moral of the story is that a beautiful rug can make the room, and sometimes it takes the help of a talented designer to help you find it!

Stop by the Oriental Rug Sale March 24-27th to find your perfect rug (bring your fabrics and an open mind).

Pam Rich is the Marketing and Advertising Director at Paul Rich & Sons. She is the wife of owner, Tom Rich and mother to 3 beautful boys. She lives in a 1890's farmhouse in Pittsfield.