If you have kids, you know that they can be tough on your house, especially floors.  For a kid’s playroom or bedroom, there are plenty of flooring options that will please your style and stand up to the daily rigors of life with kids.  If your kids don’t have a designated playroom, having the right flooring in your living room and family room is even more key.  Once the toys and games are put away, you’ll want to feel like you are sitting in your room and not a play zone.

If you are putting in new flooring, talk with us about the best options for kids.  You can also take our “How I Live Quiz” to learn more about the best flooring options suitable for your lifestyle and home. There are many stain resistant and stain repellent carpets on the market. This means you can put carpet in a kids’ area and not fear every time something spills it will stain forever. Another option for carpeted rooms is to put a large area rug over the carpet to protect it.  Feel free to browse our area rug catalog to learn more.  As the kids get older, you can remove the area rug or swap it out for a new pattern or color. With this same idea in mind, carpet squares can be used and replaced if they get stained.

Hard surfaces like tile and stone are durable but might be too tough on little knees and elbows. Hardwood is good as is cork, which has a soft feeling under foot. Again, area rugs are your friends when it comes to protecting floors.

Kids and pets are probably the hardest on your floors.  Work with your flooring person to choose the best option that will be durable and stylish for years to come.

Did you host a Labor Day party or barbeque?  Were you prepared for stains, spills, or any other mishaps that came from having a few dozen people walking through your home with food and drinks?  We’ve got a few great tips for your next hosting experience!

Today we will focus on how to get BBQ sauce out of carpet because that is a likely accident waiting to happen.

First, use a butter knife to scrape as much of the sauce off the carpet as you can. The sooner you catch the stain the better.

Dab some lukewarm water on the stain if it has already dried. Hopefully if someone spills they will tell you right away, but sometimes that doesn’t happen.

Add ¼ teaspoon mild detergent or carpet shampoo to 1 liter of cold water. Stir the solution in a bowl to mix thoroughly.

Before you apply any cleaner to your carpet, test the cleaner in a small patch where no one will see it. Wait a few minutes. If the cleaner discolors or otherwise adversely affects the carpet, remove it immediately with cold water and a sponge. If it ends up causing permanent damage, at least it won’t be right in the middle of the room.

If the cleaner does not affect the carpet, moisten a clean cloth liberally with the cleaning solution, and simply lay the cloth over the stain.

Use the bottom of a spoon to gently press down on the cloth. Gradually work your way all over the cloth, starting on the outside and working your way toward the center in a spiral to prevent spreading the stain. This process works the solution into the carpet without rubbing the stain in or damaging the carpet fibers.

Lift the cloth off the stain and gently spray with warm water.

Blot the stain with a clean cloth.

If the stain is gone, use a hair dryer on a low setting to dry the carpet.

If the stain is not gone, keep the carpet damp and call a professional dry cleaner as soon as possible.

At the end of the day a stain on your carpet is not the end of the world, however, they can be fixed if you follow the steps above. No need to let a little accident ruin your fun of hosting another party.

  Have you been thinking about changing the flooring in your home?  Carpets N’ More and Mohawk are  having a special finance offer going on now until August 6, 2012!

Here are there details:

• No interest if paid in full within 18 months
• Available on all Mohawk products in the store
• No minimum purchase

Fine Print: This offer applies only to single-receipt qualifying purchases

VIsit our website to get started!

Saxony carpets are plush, luxurious and extra soft, made by the cut loop pile method. These carpets are specially designed for extra softness. Available in different patterns and numerous textures, these carpets are made of 100% wool, or by combining silk or linen with wool. This carpet is woven very fine, which makes it quite dense. This accounts for its extra softness and smoothness.

Saxony carpets are generally used in formal areas which require a sober, and solemn appearance, such as office, or a study room. This is also because they are moderately durable and are not suitable for handling very high foot traffic. Saxony carpets have a tendency to show foot prints on them; although it has been rectified in some of the latest Saxony carpets to come out, which makes it easy to maintain and clean.

While buying a Saxony carpet, take care to notice that there are various types of weaves available, so choose which best suits your needs. The extra softness they offer is useful for home which has toddlers; but before buying, you should check whether the product is non-allergenic or not. The lush, beautiful finish of Saxony carpets makes them one of the most desirable carpets out there. Although slightly expensive, they more than make up for it by providing you with an unprecedented comfort. A Saxony carpet can set the tone of your room. If comfort and extra softness are your priorities, then go get a Saxony carpet for your home and enjoy its sumptuousness for years to come.

As parents age, eventually you may have to help them re-design their lives. Health issues can make it hard for a parent to continue to live independently, but personality, emotional and financial factors may eliminate the possibility of assisted living or other institutional options.

If you’re considering bringing one or both parents into your home, making a few plans first can help this transition work well for everyone involved.

To start, make sure your family member or members have a realistic understanding of the situation. If possible show them the space they would have, and get measurements to keep their furniture expectations realistic. Let them redecorate the space to make it their own.

Be sure to do a safety check on your home before your parent or parents move in. Look for tripping hazards such as rugs without non-slip pads. If possible, carpet their space. Carpeting is the safest flooring for the elderly because it cushions falls. You may also want to add safety bars to showers or bathtubs.

If you can, provide a bedroom, a bathroom and a sitting room to ensure enough privacy. It’s generally a good idea to include a television in their personal space so that there will be no program debates among the generations.

Plan to provide additional storage space for valued possessions. Remember that something that may not seem valuable to you may hold special memories for a parent. If you need to, rent storage space to hold their things until they’re ready to let them go.

Above all, work to keep the lines of communication open. There will be challenges, but with effort you will all find the time together to be rewarding.

What makes this room work? It’s the study in contrasts that make a traditional design like this stay new and interesting.

The classic elements such as the design of all the furniture, the moldings and most of the accessories contrast with the contemporary approach to color and design.

Painting the walls this dark green grey provides the first leap from the standard. The fabric choice for the loveseats and drapes also depart from a traditional approach.

The carpet, while traditional in color, departs with its willingness to include pattern. Both the base pattern of the carpet and the overlay of a matching rug with a contrasting border take this room up a design notch. Both the colors and the carpet choices make this room stand out as a fresh take on an old look.

This room shows the power of contrast in design. Taking a chance on a dark wall tone, combining different patterns, and encouraging both very light and very dark elements to interact makes for an exciting room.

Does your home show your more daring side? How about challenging yourself to take some chances with your décor? Even if your taste is traditional, let your creative side experiment. You never know what may happen!

When decorating a room, it’s important to connect the design choices to the architecture of the space. When you don’t, you have a room like this one, where the style choices eliminate the charm and power of the space rather than support it.

What doesn’t work, and what needs to happen to make this room live up to its potential? Start with the easiest and most appalling decision – the valance. The bit of fabric cuts at a point that emphasizes the unfortunate delineation between the lower and upper windows, damaging the drama of the line and adding absolutely nothing to the potential charm of the room.

The black sofa has the power to live up to the space, but sitting alone in the middle of the room, it seems as if the movers set it down and no one has touched it since. It’s too far away from the other chairs to create a conversation center or support the fireplace as a focal point. It also needs some companion upholstered pieces to save it from looking bulky and overbearing compared to the other furniture in the room.

The other pieces of furniture seem to have been set to make it easy to vacuum. The plants feel like space fillers rather than an integral part of the design. The light walls and carpet increase the weakness of the look.

Let’s make some changes. Place a rich gold carpet in a slightly darker tone than the ceiling. Move the sofa within shouting distance of the fireplace, and add a couple of upholstered chairs to make a conversation space around the fire. Take the rockers and move them to the front of the room where their light weight will keep your eyes moving to the back of the space where the action is.

Finally, tear down that valance and consider replacing the ceiling fan with a darker and more significant light fixture. The addition of a rug or two would also anchor the space effectively. Suddenly you have a space that invites you in and makes you feel comfortable.

When decorating a room, it’s important to connect the design choices to the architecture of the space. When you don’t, you have a room like this one, where the style choices eliminate the charm and power of the space rather than support it.

What doesn’t work, and what needs to happen to make this room live up to its potential? Start with the easiest and most appalling decision – the valance. The bit of fabric cuts at a point that emphasizes the unfortunate delineation between the lower and upper windows, damaging the drama of the line and adding absolutely nothing to the potential charm of the room.

The black sofa has the power to live up to the space, but sitting alone in the middle of the room, it seems as if the movers set it down and no one has touched it since. It’s too far away from the other chairs to create a conversation center or support the fireplace as a focal point. It also needs some companion upholstered pieces to save it from looking bulky and overbearing compared to the other furniture in the room.

The other pieces of furniture seem to have been set to make it easy to vacuum. The plants feel like space fillers rather than an integral part of the design. The light walls and carpet increase the weakness of the look.

Let’s make some changes. Place a rich gold carpet in a slightly darker tone than the ceiling. Move the sofa within shouting distance of the fireplace, and add a couple of upholstered chairs to make a conversation space around the fire. Take the rockers and move them to the front of the room where their light weight will keep your eyes moving to the back of the space where the action is.

Finally, tear down that valance and consider replacing the ceiling fan with a darker and more significant light fixture. The addition of a rug or two would also anchor the space effectively. Suddenly you have a space that invites you in and makes you feel comfortable.

Are you feeling a little blue now that the holidays are over? With the cold weather and limited sunshine, sometimes it’s hard to cheer up. Why don’t you do something for yourself to brighten the season? How about redecorating a room in your home?

A new coat of paint and maybe new carpet or a rug can make a big difference in a space. Although most people think of redecorating as a spring or summer activity because of opening the windows to let the strong smells dissipate, that problem is gone.

Many of today’s home products are completely or almost smell-free. Those strong odors came from volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, that were part of the products. However, as consumers developed an interest in buying products without VOCs, manufacturers responded by developing more and more options that don’t force you to leave windows open. Today, making a low or no-VOC choice won’t limit the colors or styles you want for your home.

To discover more about how you can redecorate a room and keep your windows closed, talk to one of our salespeople. We’ll help you fix up a room that will chase the winter blues away!