By Pauline King (Business Development Advisor for California Market)

Januarys are usually a bitterly cold time in New England filled with days of reflection on the past year as well as resolutions for the year to come.   So I jumped on the advice of an industry friend who told me to pack my bags in January to get inspired in Paris!  There was no better way to start 2013 than spending time abroad with designer clients and the fabulous ladies of Merida, Catherine Connolly (C.E.O.) and Roxanne Hanna (Director of Business Development) on a trip to Maison & Objet.

As a newcomer to Europe’s largest design exhibition, I was quick to learn why the city of love is the choice venue.  To start, the monuments, architecture and parks were serene blanketed in January snow. High fashion boutiques lured us in with gorgeous window displays and unbelievable January sales.  Brasseries on the streets of St. Germaine offered the best in French cuisine and a cozy place to sit and people watch.

It was educational and inspiring to step out of my day-to-day world of textile manufacturing and take in upcoming trends in everything home décor.  Spending our nights mingling with our favorite designer clients at Deco Off’s fabulous array of parties was just icing on the cake!

The exhibition was of a size and scale beyond what I had ever seen to date, so we strategically planned our day in the exhibit halls to make time for our “must sees.”  I witnessed so much creativity, beauty and innovation during my days there that my mind was racing with ideas to bring to our Merida design team.  When I returned, I knew I had to share the eye-catching trends that we noticed from the show!

Missoni was a stand out with their unique chevrons and a bold mix of floral and color. Love!

We had a great time with wonderful designer Tim Campbell in Paris, and got a few of his thoughts on inspirational Maison trends:

“The most memorable trend I noticed at Maison this year, in contrast to years past, was the use of color and specifically color blocking. This trend repeats itself in the fashion world but less often in interiors. This year we saw color blocking in furniture, accessories and textiles. I have to say, I loved it.

Color is an interesting barometer of the social climate. If that is true, I’d guess we are all feeling more chipper this year than in years past. I’m not sure where this leads but it is good to see a fresh take on color in interiors. You can bet you’ll see some color blocking in one or two of our upcoming projects.”

More bold florals. I can envision this trend in a custom wool rug (I always have rugs on the brain!)

Designers were fearless with the mixing of color, pattern, and accessories.

During our trip we also met up with the lovely Jean Larette and Ellis Hepburn. I caught up with Jean and asked about her key Maison & Objet trends:

“I thought the Maison show was definitely inspirational. I agree the trend is towards hand-crafted and imperfect. I found the use of raw wood planks with metal was particularly appealing. Loved the updated mid century feel with hand stitched leather details. My favorite vendors were the PH Collection out of Belgium, Monpas of Spain, and Elitis is doing amazing wallpaper. Croc with a hand stitched detail…gorgeous. And the amazing SDA out of France with the wall of teak injected with resin. Stunning.”

With the show focused on the influence of nature on design, the SDA Booth was refreshing with beautiful teak injected with resin.

More teak & resin.

We at Merida have always prided ourselves in the story of our products - so we were enthralled to see manufacturers using visuals of looms to do the same!

Let’s hope Maison & Objet in Paris becomes a yearly tradition!

What trends inspire you this year?

As the temperature here in Boston is approaching single digits we are looking for ways to stay warm. One obvious way is layering wool rugs on floors. But wool doesn’t just keep you warm…

Humans have used wool for over 10,000 years for its thermo regulating properties, comfort, durability, and moisture control. Wool’s density and fiber structure are essential in reducing heating and cooling energy requirements. On a cold day, wool rugs will prevent heat from rising and will keep the room warm and cozy, whereas on a hot day it will trap the cold air indoors, keeping the room cool and comfortable. Wool can also absorb over 40% of its weight in moisture before it starts feeling wet. This can be very useful in areas of high air moisture content.

Chain Link from Made in Massachusetts Collection

Wool is naturally flame resistant as it smolders instead of burning, which makes it very popular for floor insulation in residential and commercial spaces. This fiber is also very durable and resistant to staining, so you can be sure that if properly cared for, your wool rug will last a long time.

Craze - Ice Storm from Celerie Kemble by Merida Collection

All these features are just added benefits to wool’s most popular quality – look and feel. Wool is a very soft and highly versatile fiber and can be dyed in any shade of color. However, some people are attracted to wool’s natural un-dyed state, and are opting for an organic look as seen in our products Basket Weave, Ribbed Stripe, and Tight Loop.

Waffle Weave from Made in Massachusetts Collection

Explore Merida Wool Rugs

Made in Massachusetts Collection – customization options available
Celerie Kemble by Merida
Tufted Collection – customization options available
Sweater Collection
Viewpoint Collection – customization options available

TO ORDER MERIDA WOOL RUGS CALL (800) 345-2200 OR
LOGIN TO MERIDA CUSTOMER CENTER

Periodically on Open Studio we like to take time to appreciate the Merida craftsmen’s work. Connection and consultation between our workshop and designers takes place every day. We are lucky enough to see the creative and beautiful techniques that the Merida Workshop is developing on a regular basis. Last summer we wrote about the rug team’s initiative in taking on challenges and coming up with creative solutions to design problems. Sometimes doing the seemingly simple task exceptionally well is just as impressive. Take a look at a few of our latest refinements in seaming techniques:

Catalyst from The Celerie Kemble by Merida Collection

Plough from the Celerie Kemble by Merida Collection

Tonga, Sisal

Ribbed Stripe, Woven Wool

Heron Stripe, Sisal

Check back for more behind-the-scenes and product development from Merida!

Want more information? Drop us a line: info@meridameridian.com or (800) 345-2200

Any time we can talk shop with the multi-talented New York based interior designer, Celerie Kemble, we jump at the chance. Recently we were able to catch up with Celerie in between her holiday preparations with her family and exciting work she is doing on projects that will be unveiled next year. Celerie had natural plant fiber rugs on her mind and gave us some insight into her attraction to them.

Celerie Kemble

Merida: What attracts you to plant fiber rugs such as sisal and jute?
CK: Aside from the sustainability properties, I love plant fibers for their aesthetic. Sisal and jute products are very luminous as their fibers reflect the light off the floor. Plant fibers create a very attractive continuous contrast with wood. They make the room feel cozy, quiet and soft under foot. I also enjoy irregular patterns of natural fibers. In one piece you can get beautiful variations of color, and very minimal but noticeable inconsistencies in fiber tightness and weaves. I have a theory that the eye sometimes gets tired from trying to understand geometric patterns. I feel like if something is gridded, while there is an order to it, it also creates a slight sense of unease or a trapped feeling. So when we look at something that is hand-woven and “imperfect” it’s like looking at the grass or the waves in the ocean or the leaf patterns in bushes. While they all appear uniform, there is not a single one that is the same. There is something very restful and soothing about the millions of inconsistencies and variations that you get from plant fiber products.

Merida: How do you decide if you’ll choose plant fiber rugs over wool, linen, or silk?
CK: Projects that I work on have multiple rooms so I use plant fiber products to add variety. Each room that I work in has a different mood to it and I look for a sisal or a jute rug to set a soothing, quiet mood. I also find plant fiber rugs to be very durable. Sisal rugs take years to show traffic marks and wear-and-tear so I like to use them in heavily utilized spaces like family rooms, living rooms and hallways. I also find the price point to be very reasonable for the quality and durability that you get out of them.

Climb in Nutmeg

Merida: Do you mix rugs by layering?
CK: I will often do a very large sisal rug, almost wall to wall, and then add a decorative wool rug or an antique peace in the central sitting area.

Merida: You are currently involved in a Palm Beach project where you’ll be using some jute and sisal rugs. Tell us more about it.
CK: I chose Cocoon Bell jute, Climb Nutmeg sisal and Nasturtium Weave in Macadamia rugs for this project that is currently in the construction stage. I choose Cocoon Bell for the family room as I really enjoy the soft feel of this product – it’s very silky and smooth.

Merida’s Climb Nutmeg will be in the front room. It’s fun to have a natural color rug with a big bold pattern running through the length of the room.

For the living room I went with seamed Nasturtium weave with a cutout for the fireplace.

Seamed Nasturtium Weave in Macadamia - work in progress shot

Cocoon Jute in Bell

Nasturtium Weave in Macadamia

Merida: Although you’ve been working with Merida for awhile and launched a licensing program with us last summer, how did you initially get to know our products? Why do you keep coming back?
CK: If you’re looking to collaborate and design something creative you want to surround yourself with people who can help you reach that goal. As an interior designer, it’s my job to worry about things that I specialize in. I want to have full confidence in the integrity of the people that I’m working with on things that I’m not that familiar about. I’ve been in the business for a long time but I still don’t know the products as well as the company that’s making them. So to have the team that can share their knowledge, provide quality products, and meet lead-times, helps me make better decisions in the purchasing process. I like that Merida is engaged with designers and understands our right to be picky. It’s nice to work with a company that knows that the devil is in the details and the feeling that we’re going to work on something until it’s perfect.

We will be following Celerie’s Palm Beach project closely and will be sharing more information and photography when it becomes available.

To order Sisal and Jute rugs from Calerie Kemble by Merida Collection, call Customer Solutions at 800-345-2200 or login to Customer Center.