Braided Rugs Make A House A Home
When it is time to tweak your country themed family room or breakfast nook then you will want to research braided rugs as alternative to conventional supplementary floor coverings. This form of carpeting dates back centuries and was once only made by hand in homes where budgets where tight and the only décor that could be afforded was created by the homeowner. Using rags, evacuated feed sacks, cloth flour and rice bags, and burlap-packaging material usually the wife and daughters would create the strips and braids to form the rug while sitting in their living room after the days work had been finished.
Although the original area rugs such as these may have been skewed with not so complementary color schemes, their utilitarian use, and decorative value was much higher in value since their impoverished lifestyle afforded them little if no money for such interior improvements of any kind. As homemakers became more adept at creating these handcrafted area rugs, they would make dyes from household products, and plants that would allow them luxury of creating a much more stylized floor covering that had a degree of character and charm. As the industrial revolution the United States came into full swing, textile mills started mass producing them with a more clean and fitted look.
The old world charm of what the farmer’s wives and children created was almost lost entirely, but a grassroots campaign started online has created a community of craft hobbyists that is bringing the tradition of hand prepared braided rugs back to life. There are e-books, DVD sets, and CD’s available to help the rug making neophyte get up to speed quickly and producing their own versions of this homespun piece of Americana. If you are over the age of forty or so, you may remember seeing these carpets in your grandparents home, as they were very popular during the 1940s and on into the early 1960s.
Although this category of area carpeting is a staple in many departments stores like JC Penny’s and Sears that are affordable for the average homeowner, there are high end or top shelf versions that can run into the several thousand dollar range. There are online vendors who have made a cottage industry out of creating made to order braided area rugs for their clients. They will cost more than one created in a factory, but well worth the benefit of having one made to your specifications of color, design, and materials used so the final product will blend in with the décor you already have in your home. In addition, by controlling the materials that are used in the construction process you can specify the use of fabric with natural dyes for persons with allergic reactions to certain commercial pigments.