If sheltering in place left you with the thought of that empty, dull spot of the house where a beautiful rug would become a statement piece, or if you are looking for some artistic inspiration in the house to make it more cozy, colorful or special, here are 6 eco-friendly rugs that take inspiration from art and can turn the room into a special space.
Rugs are like accessories in fashion; they can be used to revive an old room and can be changed around and rearranged easily to redesign the space or create corners with style and personality. They can also be layered on a broadloom carpet or another rug.
Today, the trend of rugs is not new, but still alive and well. Rugs are used in creative ways, withinnovative shapes, peculiar textures and pile heights that challenge our senses and create interesting structures that you will want to touch, lie on and hang on walls. Many rug producers take inspiration from art or produce the rugs themselves reproducing a piece of art. What is almost always true is that a rug has a great story behind it that you can tell your guests when they visit your home.
At Aquafil, rugs are something we have also been betting on since 2018, when we presented our ECONYL® regenerated yarn as an ingredient to make soft, beautiful rugs that have a smaller environmental footprint. Today there are many customers using our ECONYL® regenerated nylon – coming 100% from waste – to make beautiful rugs. Here, we selected the most artistic ones, either for the inspiration behind it, or because they can be such a statement piece in the room, becoming real works of art you will cherish and love forever.
The Minus collection by Punto e Filo
The Minus rugs collection is designed by designer Alessandra Delgado and produced by the Brazilian company Punto e Filo Tapetes (Punto e Filo Rugs). The name of the collection originates from Latin and means ‘less’: the perfect concept of minimalist elegance that modernist master Mies Van Der Rohe eternalized with the iconic phrase “less is more” – present in the essence of this rug´s creation. For these pieces, Alessandra was inspired more specifically in great names of Brazilian modernist architecture, such as Oscar Niemeyer, Lina Bo Bardi, Burle Marx and Paulo Mendes da Rocha. “I studied multiple works from these masters and translated the most remarkable traces of some of their architectural creations into graphical material, thinking about each composition, each rug as a painting!” says Alessandra about her creative process.
The result is a collection of nine pieces that bring the possibility of multiple combinations of colors and sizes, manufactured exclusively by Punto e Filo – which allows the customization of pieces, handmade one by one, like real paintings. “Not only our products are manufactured by a manual process with a strict quality control, but also use a sustainable and high-quality nylon fiber called ECONYL®”.
With lightness, each piece of the collection tells a little bit of Brazilian modernist history and their main names. The rug named Pompéia is inspired by the organic cracks of concrete in the frontage of the cultural center Sesc Pompéia (at São Paulo- Brazil) a great work of the architect Lina Bo Bardi. Both inspired by Niemeyer, the rug Alvorada reinterprets the architecture of Brasília city, and the rug Oscar brings out the eternal curves of the famous architect Oscar Niemeyer. The traces of the rug Marx suggest the gardens of the artist Burle Marx; straight lines inspire the piece named Lina, and the rug Paulicéia brings a touch of urbanism to the atmosphere.
Explore all the collections.
This collection was presented for the prestigious Best of Year Design Awards from Interior Design magazine. Finalist will be revealed November 6th.
Ferreira de Sá Rugs
Founded in 1946, in Portugal, Ferreira De Sá stands as one of the biggest and oldest existing companies producing luxurious rugs.
The company has developed hand-tufted area rugs and carpets for high-end residential and prestigious hospitality projects around the world. The hand-tufted technique offers endless possibilities in design. All kinds of textures, such as high pile and low pile, cut, loop. A 3-dimensional effect can even be achieved, and the carving is done entirely by hand.
Ferreira de Sá rugs are bespoke and every piece is tailored and designed according to each client’s request and desire. Creating a Ferreira de Sá rug is a unique experience. No details are left at random and the whole process is in-house, with a talented team of designers and artisans working alongside the clients.
Since environmental and social awareness are the essential principles of Ferreira de Sá, there has always been a commitment to reducing the company’s ecological footprint. This concern is reflected in the use of ecological and sustainable raw materials, non-polluting chemical products and a fast recycling process that covers all Ferreira de Sá facilities. Now, with the partnership with ECONYL® regenerated nylon, the aim is to continue to establish a pioneering position in environmental sustainability, ensuring good conditions for future generations.
“In my opinion ECONYL® is without a doubt the best new material that can be used in rugs; I would go so far as to say that, in my professional opinion and experience, ECONYL® is the best material up to now in the 21st century. I believe it perfectly embodies the concept, mentality and awareness to a huge problem that our world faces nowadays. Ferreira de Sá can by working with ECONYL® deliver a high-quality and premium product that shows that Ferreira de Sá not only cares about the environment but takes a step further towards the solution.”– Fernanda Barbosa, Ferreira de Sá CEO.
‘Nylon Engulfed’ by Sarawagi Rugs
This unique couple of rugs were made by Sarawagi rugs in Nepal. They are hand-made, following the Nepalese tradition but using a different material: the ECONYL® regenerated nylon. The carpet design was created by UK designer Isobel Morris who took inspiration for the two designs from the origin story of the yarn used. The design is in fact inspired by the fishing nets used to produce ECONYL®, a nylon that comes 100% from waste instead of oil. The rugs were presented last year at Domotex exhibition in Hannover.
The behind the scene of this product development was told by journalist Michael Christie (The Ruggist) in a series of articles that analyzed the techniques, the material, the design, the making and the results.
A short video can give you a gist of the partnership to make these impressive rugs.
‘OBJECT CARPET x Ippolito Fleitz Group’
This collection, named ‘OBJECT CARPET x Ippolito Fleitz Group’ is inspiring for many features. All eight new carpet types – with a total of 111 colors – can be combined with each other, offering architects and designers great freedom to create exciting dialogues between colors and structures.
All variants of the collection are also available as wall-to-wall and fitted carpets (RUGX), and many of them also as self-laying acoustic tiles.
Furthermore, OBJECT CARPET minimizes the environmental impact in production by using regenerated ECONYL® nylon, a special fiber that is produced 100% from recycled nylon waste.
This collection was presented for the prestigious Best of Year Design Awards from Interior Design magazine. Finalist will be revealed November 6th.
Like the yarns used in their rugs, sustainability is woven into FLOR as a company and the products they create. With responsibly sourced ECONYL® yarns from Aquafil, and a carbon-free manufacturing process, their eco-friendly rugs look beautiful in your home while being safe for the earth. This season FLOR saw bold shapes, rich colors, and lavish details make a comeback with styles inspired by decadent design.
Don’t forget, FLOR tiles are recyclable. Once you’re ready for a style refresh, just send them your old tiles so they can turn them into something new.
Find plenty of inspiration here and order online.
Luxury rugs by B.I.C
B.I.C carpets are rugs handmade in Belgium and Portugal with sustainable and natural materials. All their carpets are fabricated with solar energy on site, which makes the production process ecologically responsible.
Because the right ‘look and feel’ is so important, B.I.C uses regenerated nylon yarns that shine like a natural fiber and have great softness. The natural luster of this product, its silky look and touch, the softness and smoothness make their eco-friendly collections the perfect solution for luxury projects.
As well as being a solution on waste, ECONYL® regenerated nylon is also better when it comes to climate change. It reduces the global warming impact of nylon by up to 90% compared with the material from oil.