A carpet is a necessary element of a modern interior, which links all the details into a single composition and creates an atmosphere of warmth and comfort in the house. At the same time, it doesn’t matter what style the room is designed in: it can gravitate towards oriental splendor or be prone to minimalism, anyway there is a place for a good quality carpet in it.
There are a lot of types of carpets and carpets. Which to choose? What to look for when buying?
Initially, you need to decide on the material. Carpets have been woven from wool and silk since ancient times, then with the advent of synthetic fibers, acrylic and polyamide products appeared. Which one is better?
Wool
The raw material for production is most often sheep wool. Goat or camel products are rarely found. Woolen carpet is an expensive, refined, status item.
Material advantages:
- Good texture, elasticity of the pile, rich color.
- The carpet will not lose its appearance even after 10 years of operation, and the service life of such a product is estimated for decades.
- Not prone to rapid fire.
- It tolerates moisture differences.
Minuses:
- The material absorbs all odors and impurities.
- Moth or fungal mold can eat it.
- Products do not differ in bright colors and rich colors, since wool is harder to dye than synthetic threads.
- High price.
Silk
Silk carpet is a luxury item. It is characterized by softness, delicate natural shine, and a wide variety of patterns and colors. Such a product serves several generations, 200-300 years old. This is a very expensive and often exclusive thing, since most of these products are made by hand, according to old technology.
Pros:
- durability;
- beautiful appearance;
- high strength;
- lightness of material.
The disadvantages include the fact that silk is difficult to clean, and the product itself is expensive.
Viscose
Viscose is an artificial material, but it is based on natural wood (cellulose). A viscose rug is a worthy alternative to silk coating, since the prices of such products are quite affordable.
Viscose Benefits:
- The threads are well dyed, so on sale you can find a huge number of a wide variety of viscose coatings in any color and pattern.
- The canvas from this material is very similar to silk, and not everyone can notice the characteristic differences. Moreover, the cost is several times less.
- The carpets are soft and give a pleasant tactile feel.
- The material is hypoallergenic, non-electrifying, lightweight.
The disadvantages of this type of carpet are:
- Fear of water (or any other fluid). Such products cannot be used in rooms with a high level of pollution and humidity (entrance hall, bathroom and toilet). Do not put viscose carpet on a freshly washed floor.
- Low fire safety. It is not recommended to use near fireplaces or other potentially dangerous sources of ignition (stoves, tiles, candles, etc.).
- Over time, the product may turn yellow (due to moisture and fungus).
- A viscose fabric, especially a small one, slides on the floor and needs to be fixed.
- It is not recommended for use in homes where there are small children and pets.
- It wears away quickly, so the carpet needs to be rotated regularly to achieve even wear.
Acrylic
The last type of carpet is acrylic. This is 100% synthetic, and many are alarmed. But this material has many positive characteristics.
Advantages of acrylic carpets:
- Low price, which allows people with modest income to purchase products.
- A large selection of colors, patterns, saturated bright colors do not fade even under the influence of sunlight.
- They look like wool carpets and retain heat well.
- Spools do not appear on the canvas for a long time.
- Resistant to contamination, while they can be washed (with brushes and using chemicals).
- It is not of interest to moths and bugs (no nutrient medium).
- They weigh a little and fold well, which is convenient when cleaning and transporting.
Minuses
- The canvas is electrified (modern products are impregnated with an antistatic agent).
- Low fire safety (acrylic is flammable quickly).
- Short life (lose their appearance after 5-7 years).
Also, carpets are made from other materials, for example, from cotton (tapestries and openwork rugs), natural fibers (mats), and other synthetic threads - polyamide, polyester, polypropylene, nylon.
And if you don’t go into details, then all carpets by type of material are divided into natural (expensive and high-quality) and synthetic (cheaper, but in many respects inferior to products from wool and silk).
According to the method of production
According to the method of manufacturing, machine (manufactory) and manual products are distinguished. Handmade rug is woven only from natural materials, as cheap synthetics depreciate all work. Each knot on the base is tied manually, after the pile is trimmed to the desired length. Interestingly, over time, the nodules only tighten more, and the product becomes more durable. That is why the service life of such a canvas can reach 200-300 years.
In ancient times, masters, in order to prove the quality of their products, threw a carpet under the feet of customers. Then they shook it and showed that it looks like new. Modern handmade carpets are also made according to old technology, so that all products are exclusive, even if made according to one pattern template.
Carpets are made by machine using both natural materials (wool, cotton) and synthetic fibers (polyamide, acrylic, polyester). They are not treated with the same thrill as handicrafts. Rather, they are good, functional and useful things for the home that help to keep warm, reduce noise and emphasize the design of the room.
Along the length of the pile
When choosing a buyer, first of all, he looks at the drawing and at the length of the pile. By the appearance of the pile, carpets are divided into several types.
1. Pile. In hand-made products, threads are knotted onto the woven base in a nodular manner, which eventually tightens and becomes stronger. Machine webs are not so durable and lose their threads over time. Pile can be short (up to 5 mm), medium (up to 15 mm) and long (more than 15 mm). Shaggy product called shaggy.
The types of carpets are also divided according to the appearance of the pile into smooth and looped ones. The latter are more durable and wear-resistant, and if you cut them to the desired length, you will get a product with a split pile.
2. Lint-free. Smooth woven carpets, which are used both for decorating walls and as flooring.
Lint-free types of carpets: names
- Mats - woven rugs made of natural plant fiber, or synthetics that mimic natural material.
- The Palace. They use one transverse thread and one warp thread, due to which the fabric turns out plain or striped.
- Kilim. It is woven according to the same pattern as the palace, but with multi-colored threads, due to which a pattern appears on the material. Kilim is a two-sided carpet, its front and wrong side practically do not differ.
- Sumakha. This type of carpet (in the photo) is different in that uncut threads are left on the wrong side, which serve as a warm substrate, and on the front side there is a smooth fabric with a pattern.
Tufted carpets are also worth highlighting. They are made by machine, when a needle with a fixed thread stitches the latex base with loops. The threads are fixed with glue, and the back is attached on the wrong side. The loops are trimmed and a pile of the desired length is obtained. Strictly speaking, such a product is not considered a carpet, since it does not have a woven base. For the same reasons, woolen carpets made using the manual felting technique are excluded from the classification.
So, we figured out different types of floor carpets. But there are also wall mounted ones.
Is it worth it to hang a carpet on the wall
In our country, carpets on Soviet-style walls are still found in some places, which is perplexing for most people. Meanwhile, this coating has again become relevant, and it can increasingly be found in a modern interior.
The carpet on the wall today does not serve to preserve heat, and not to hide wall defects (although this can also be attributed to the pluses). Rather, it is an unusual and stylish design element, a kind of "highlight", emphasizing the good taste of the owner.
And, of course, you should not completely cover the walls with carpets - so that the interior does not look too colorful and old-fashioned, just one, maximum two small paintings.
Types of carpet on the wall
What is the difference between a carpet on a wall and a floor? They are almost identical - they are made from the same materials, using the same technology. Their difference is that it is not customary to hang rugs with a long pile, too voluminous and fluffy, on the wall. And on the floor not so often you can see thin fabric tapestries.
In addition, high demands are made on different types of carpets for strength and wear-resistant characteristics. While the canvas on the wall may not have these qualities.
What to look for when buying
- Before choosing a type of carpet, think about your health. If someone close to you is allergic, refuse to buy a woolen product and buy synthetic or silk.
- Consider the location. For the nursery and living room it is better to buy a carpet with an average pile, for a bedroom - with a long one. But in the hallway it is better to lay inexpensive synthetic rugs on a rubber substrate.
- Any kind of carpet should not smell anything. Natural should not exude the aroma of wool - this indicates a low quality product, and synthetic - should not have a sharp "chemical" smell. If the canvas has a musty or moldy odor, then this may indicate the presence of mold.
- A high-quality carpet is always treated with special impregnations - anti-allergen, anti-static, anti-moth, dirt-repellent, etc.
- The quality of the product can be judged by its density. When bending from the front, the fabric base should not be visible. On the inside, you can see the density of the knots - the more there are, the stronger the carpet.
- Look at the general view. Uneven corners, protruding threads, poor lines - all this indicates low quality.
- Check Warranty. Almost all manufacturers give some kind of guarantee on their products. The higher it is, the better.
- Check with the consultant for the wear resistance class of the product. The lifetime directly depends on this characteristic.
- Inspect the underside of the surface - it should be flat, clean, without suspicious stains.