Kathy knows so much about the interior of the home, how things set up, comfort and quality!
Her dad started this store back in 1957. His family always had retail businesses so it was natural for him to understand business and he loved working with people. Back then, there were many furniture manufacturers in the Grand Rapids area, so he would close the store, we would jump in the car and head to the showing of new pieces that night….and then drive back home and he would be at work the next day!
67 years is a long time in the furniture business for one family! Over the years, we have attended many furniture markets and conferences. Through those, we see that this business is ever changing…and just when you think you have it figured out, something happens in the world, like 9-11, or a pandemic, HGTV Personalities and the trends change!
Let’s talk about our rooms today and what the trend is for flooring.
Because we are a more northern state, we tend to have more cold than hot! We love to have hard surface on our floors, but because of the cold, we also love rugs!
When you say rugs, you are referring to area rugs, correct?
Yes, if we are using a hard surface flooring like wood, LVT, or tile, we want a rug on top for warmth but also, I think for some softness! Rugs also help to make our room cozier, and quieter! If we only use hard surfaces, it can be very noisy!
Many homes have a lot of hard surfaces, almost everywhere in the main gathering areas.
How do you know where and how big rugs should be?
Typically, there are some walls to help separate spaces into smaller gathering areas. Usually, a rug will be under furniture pieces completely or at least partially….and that keeps that space all connected! Rugs come in many different sizes from small door sizes, to entry way carpets that might be 4’x6’ to small room rugs that are 5x7…..to huge room sizes that are 12 x 15….. there are a lot of sizes in-between for rugs!
Why would you choose a smaller rug as compared to a huge rug which would cover almost the whole floor?
Many people like to use smaller rugs as accents that can be changed easily, and they are usually lower cost so you can have some fun with different patterns and colors and change with the seasons. These smaller rugs usually set in the middle of the furniture pieces, with just a couple of legs on them! When walking from space to space, you would be walking on the hard surface.
With large rugs, which we refer to as room size rugs, they cover most of the floor and the furniture sits more on the rug! When walking from this area, you mostly walk on the rug and not on the hard surface. It is a matter of what you like!
So, there isn’t any specific rules on how large a rug should be?
Not really, it is very flexible according to what you like and how much space you have. I do tell people to be cautious….one of the main reasons people fall in a home is because they trip on a rug. The edges get bunched up and sometime wrinkle, and if we don’t pick our feet up, it is easy to fall….so be careful. A larger rug that goes under the legs of a sofa might safer than just a floating piece!