Categories » ‘Carpets and rugs’

Red Spruce announces Participation in Special Hooked Rug Exhibit.

Categories: Carpets and rugs

For Immediate Release
February 1, 2010

Halifax, NS and Houston, TX – Exhibits aren’t just for Museums. In the world of upmarket carpets and rugs, showrooms are increasing incorporating exhibits as a means of educating their customers, and exposing them to new rarefied products. Red Spruce is pleased to announce it has been invited to participate in an ongoing exhibit of Contemporary Hooked Rugs taking place this month at Carol Piper Rugs in Houston, Texas. The Exhibit runs through February 26, 2010.

A special selection of Red Spruce Studies (small samples) featuring designs from artists Keith Bentley, Andrew Quon, Anna Stowe, Michael A.C. Christie and John Kurtz, will be on display along with the aptly named “bluecollar”; a full sized rug in a patchwork design made from repurposed woollen shirts and skirts of North American origin.

Other carpets and rugs in the exhibit include pieces from Weavers Guild and The New England Collection. The later is inspired from extant antique hooked rugs originating from the American North East and Canadian Maritimes.

“I was thrilled when Ryan [Reitmeyer] called and asked us to participate” says Michael Christie, Creative Director of Red Spruce. Red Spruce is one of a few makers of hand-made rugs and carpets who produce in North America, and source the majority of their raw materials from North American as well.

“The texture [of the Red Spruce Handwork quality] is totally amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it.” says Ryan Reitmeyer of Carol Piper Rugs. “This is such an authentic product that when I was first introduced to Red Spruce I immediately thought of including it in our exhibit.”

Carol Piper Rugs is a Houston, Texas showroom renown for their selection of Antique and Contemporary Carpets, and their ability to source and/or design the perfect rug. Paired with the best makers of the day, their staff’s strong textile, weaving, art and carpet industry background has been the foundation of their success for over thirty years. www.carolpiperrugs.com

Red Spruce. Makers of Handwork Rugs and Carpets from Nova Scotia. Designed by Local, Canadian, and American artists and designers, handmade in Canada of the finest materials. Available ready-made or made-to-order. Commissions of original work and exemplary pieces are also accepted. www.redspruce.ca

For further INFORMATION, IMAGES, or to arrange an INTERVIEW, contact:
Michael Christie at 01 902 482 0460 or homeoffice@redspruce.ca
Ryan Reitmeyer at 01 713 524 2442 or info@carolpiperrugs.com

When is custom not?

Categories: Carpets and rugs
When is a custom carpet not custom? On the surface this question appears to be contradictory, yet it hints at a deeper truth. I believe that most of us, myself included, have been party to fostering the idea that any carpet made specifically for a customer is custom. I would again now – as I have attempted to do for the last several years – correct this stance and suggest the following. 
When referring to carpets it is important to use the correct terminology so that everyone involved completely understands the process and we, as the speaker, command the utmost authority on the subject at hand. That is of course for most of us: Carpets. How do I mean? Hmm. Let’s examine several terms I have heard used to describe the process: Custom, Made-to Order, Tailored, and Bespoke. Each one conveys, in the grand sense, the same thing, yet with differences I feel are increasingly important.
Custom: To read the advertisements and listen to everyone speak, it would seem that everyone is making custom carpets, although in truth I don’t think this is the case. I am not saying they don’t have the capabilities to produce custom, rather they simply are not. The reason is that I view custom very narrowly, as: collaboratively designing and producing a new unique carpet for a customer, to their specifications, from scratch. This is Custom.
Example: Ima Designer brings Mister Sales a set of criteria (floor sample, picture of view, fabric samples, and the like) and he in turn, works with the designer(s) and /or artist(s) at Artisanal Carpet Makers , to create a new coordinating design specific to that situation.
Made-to-order: This is a term I favor to describe the majority of work done in the industry today. Similar to custom (and thus the “misuse”), a carpet is produced specifically for a customer, yet the design is pre-existing, and although colours, size, shape, and even minor design changes are made, the end result is not a 100% new creation, and thus is considered Made-to-Order.
Example: Dolly Decorator brings her client to see Miss Sales, at which point Miss Sales shows her wares, and they settle on an existing design. The client however dislikes “blue” and so, Miss Sales directs the staff at Amalgamated Carpet Import, to replace the blue in the carpet with another colour favorable to the situation (perhaps matching fabric samples, and the like), and that existing carpet design is altered to the clients specifications.
Tailored: I must admit I don’t know how many people have used this term as it is not one I have heard used widely, yet it is one I have used myself. When? I used it the exact same way I would use Made-to-Order, yet I now think that use was incorrect. It could be argued that in the strictest sense, tailoring a carpet would be to take a physically existing carpet, and have it physically modified to the specifications of a client. 
Example: Ima Designer and Dolly Decorator approach Mister Sales with a dilemma. Their client has a “wonderful carpet that was given to her by her mother”, the only problem is the colours are a bit dated, not bad, just dated. Mister Sales then calls his friends at Universal Carpet Servicing, who specialize in over-dying. At this point, he sends the entire carpet to be over-dyed with a wash (think mid to late 90′s) to subdue the colours. Thus, the existing carpet has been Tailored.
Bespoke: Oh! This has to be my favorite if only because I am a bit of an Anglophile. Used exactly the same way as Custom, yet in British English. Its use in American English may sound a bit affected, but I’ll freely admit to that and still love its use.
Now of course, thinking of Patrick Aaron’s comments on my last post, should there be a list of manufacturers, and what kind of work they do? In this case I don’t think it is necessary, as every company can make Custom and Made-to-Order, and can Tailor a Carpet, or (if they are inclined as I would be) make Bespoke Carpets. Do they choose to do each type of work? That’s up to them. Should the industry use the “correct” words to describe the work? Absolutely!

Are These Really Art?

Categories: Carpets and rugs










My wife and I went to Los Angeles Art Show yesterday. It was held in the Los Angeles Convention Center. It was Sunday and the last day of the show. Many artists from around the world had participated in this show. We saw all kinds of paintings and sculptures. Some of them looked strange, but can you tell the artists that these are not art?! I don’t think so. Paintings were from a couple of hundred dollars to around $ 300,000. I am sure there were more expensive pieces, but these were the prices for the items we liked and did not buy!

In front of an art booth, there was a nude statute of a young lady. I did not dare to touch it to see if it was real or not. While I was passing the booth and taking a picture, I heard from the artist that she (the statue) would take a 15-minute break momentarily! Her picture is the second one from the top on this post.

I am posting few pictures of these so called art works. Art is a very subjective word to define and open to different criteria and interpretations. Does it consider the aesthetics, appeals, skills of the artists, materials used in the piece, or what? Do you have to have it by birth or you can study and acquire it?

Anyway, we enjoyed the show and visited the Los Angeles Gift Show after that. This show was also a good one and was worth visiting.

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.RugIdea.com
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
310-770-9085

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