Are you renovating your home and looking for carpet inspiration? When choosing a new carpet, there may be a number of questions that you have about the color and structure of your new carpet. Choosing a carpet with confidence depends on your preferences and whether they match the design of your interior or not.
With a wide range of choices for wall-to-wall carpet, this flooring can be the element that changes the mood of a house and makes it much easier to walk around. Color, padding, style, and material are often important factors to consider when investing in new colors for carpeting.
Keep reading for guidance on selecting the perfect color for carpets.
Factors to Consider Before Buying a Carpet
1. Material
Different natural and synthetic options exist for buying new carpets, with wool, silk, cotton, and linen being common natural choices, whereas synthetic materials include nylon, olefin, polyester, acrylic, and polypropylene. Although synthetic materials such as nylon are often cheaper, considering potential allergies or sensitivities to certain materials is an important factor. Some materials offer longer lives than others and are generally more durable, such as nylon, in contrast to wool, which is extremely soft but has a higher price tag and greater chances of staining due to natural absorption tendencies and will enhance the color of your carpet.
2. Padding and Density
Padding under the carpet is what ensures the soundness of the carpet itself based on the gap between the material and the floor. The padding affects how carpet under the feet, its insulation within the room, and the sound-absorbing ability of the carpet itself. Distances between the carpet fibers represent the density of the carpet, and those that are more dense have a longer life. Other factors to be considered are tuft twists which refer to how many times each tuft of fiber is twisted, and a greater number of twists often means greater durability. Lastly, face weight is a measure of the carpet weight per square yard, where some materials are heavier than others due to greater density.
3. Warranties
Carpets have warranties as well. The durability of carpets is usually for longer periods of time, with at least 15-20 years of guaranteed quality for a number of good carpets. Decide on the carpets offering longer warranties, whether you buy online or at a store selection. Seek carpets from flooring companies ready to cover warranties for texture retention and conditions beyond product defects.
4. Carpet Color
This category represents one of the larger choices in buying a new carpet and deciding on a color for carpets. For choosing the color, decide on the choices that are definitely not desired for your new carpet. Carpet sample boards may be a great way to start, often arranged by color from darker shades to lighter shades. Then, filter out those samples which are too light or dark in the desired color range. Lastly, decide on the undertones you will not consider. Comparing different samples allows you to see any undertones that exist in the carpet. Common undertones are green and pink, the latter being a greatly undesirable undertone.
Neutral Colors
Neutral colors are the most common colors for carpets and have become a regularity over time. They show durability and permanence throughout different eras and trends. They include grays, beiges, browns, and shades of blue as well. These colors will not bring substantial changes in mood and maintain a lightness around the house.
Dark Colors
The darker shades of colors can transform a room and create a personalized environment that also conceals dirt, debris, and stains in common areas. Common dark colors are blues, purples, maroons, and blacks, which may be suitable for social spaces or hallways due to their natural ability to give a clean appearance.
Light Colors
Since natural light is able to be dispersed throughout a space, light colors create a larger space in appearance and are able to brighten smaller areas such as bedrooms or nurseries. Light choices include shades of green, pink, white, beiges, or creams. However, lighter shades may not be suitable for common areas where children and pets play as stains become more visible.
Gray Colors
Gray carpet shades and tones can set a moodier design for a room, and lighter shades are often able to brighten the room up and can complement different styles as a color in between black and white, gray stands alone to create a unique atmosphere depending on the shade and brightness of the color and the general ambiance of the room. The carpet is easier to maintain since pet fur is not fully visible.
Tan and Beige Colors
This color group represents the most common colors used for home carpets. Tan, brown, and beige colors can create natural earth look for the flooring. These colors also hide pet hair or dirt, while patterns or textured carpets do not. The moderate color allows for a transitional match to furniture and other materials within a room. The color range is available in different shades and in fashion over different eras and trends.
Blue and Black Colors
Blue carpets offer saturated colors to the room and home with a classic look, especially when patterned designs or lighter shades are used. Black carpets are very suitable for modern and contemporary designs where children and pets reside due to the ease of hiding stains caused by food and paint spills.
How to Select a Carpet Sample
Once a decision is made for a carpet sample board, the final range often offers 4-6 choices. When this stage is reached, these choices can be peeled off and labeled at the back with a pen, noting the original locations. During this process, you can eliminate the choices that will not work due to color clashes or a general lack of aesthetic value to narrow down the choice to around 3 samples. After writing down these samples, you can glue them back onto the carpet sample board. At this final stage, you can now order larger samples of these choices by asking your flooring supplier, which takes a few days at most.
Using these large samples, check out any undertones that you may have missed and how the overall texture fits in with your house and when you walk on it. Try viewing the samples under different lighting to see how they may fit the room, as the store lighting will have been different. Check out how the color of the carpets fits in with interior designs and furnishings.
Additional Conditions to Consider While Keeping It Clean
1. Pets
If you have pets, considering how they interact with different materials and move around the house is an important step. Fur may end up in between carpet fibers and cause allergies for those living at home. There is a possibility that you may need to vacuum your carpet more often for some materials than others due to the shedding and possible mud stains that pets may drag in.
2. Heating and Climatic Conditions
For regions with warmer climates, carpets may be better in certain seasons than others. Heating carpets are also an option, as they provide extra warmth through incorporated coils for the feet during the winter. The characteristics of low power consumption and high efficiency make it a pocket-friendly option for the winter at home.
Common Carpet Materials
1. Nylon
As one of the most common materials for carpets, nylon provides durability for at least a decade and is ideal for homes with children and pets. Certain carpet labels usually have higher-quality nylon fibers, whereas lower-quality nylon is also available. The strongest and most expensive nylon type is 6.6 nylon.
2. Polyester
As another common option, this material is cheaper at around $13 per square yard. Polyester is stain-resistant and luxurious underfoot with large color selections. The material is more suited for low-foot traffic areas, such as bedrooms, and for homes without pets or children.
3. Olefin
Known as polypropylene, olefin is inexpensive and strong, providing resistance to fading over time. It conceals dust and stains with resistance to mildew and static. This material is ideal for busy areas of the house with kids and is available for an average of $17 per square yard.
Common Signs of Carpet Quality
There are certain general characteristics that can ensure a good quality carpet from the start:
- Tuft Twists: Each carpet fiber should ideally have a greater number of twists within a one-inch length to ensure durability.
- Density: The rating of density is based on the carpet packing, and thicker, heavier carpets last longer since they are less prone to being crushed.
- Construction: Carpets may be labeled as Bulked Continuous Filament (BCF) or “staple.” Staple carpets tend to shed more often in the first year of installation, requiring you to vacuum more frequently till shedding stops, especially for allergy sufferers.
- 10-Year Warranty: Carpets tend to come with 10-25 year warranties but are mainly for product defects from the manufacturing end. Look for texture retention warranties that come for longer periods.
Conclusion
All in all, new carpets are an important choice that will change the home setting and mood altogether. The colors of a carpet alter the atmosphere of a living area or room, and for that, ensuring that you make the best choice for you is important.
Choose a color for your carpet that is right for everyone at home, as it may influence both lifestyles and work over the long term. Therefore, it is important to do your research before choosing a new carpet to ensure you make the best choice in color, style, texture, and material for your rooms.
Try to consider materials suitable for everyone at home, including the elderly and pets. Durability and construction are key aspects of finding a long-lasting carpet for your home with confidence.
