Tweet

Custom Rugs and Carpets - 8 Tips Before You Buy

Written by: Russell Webb

Article Overview: Buying a custom ordered product always has a small amount of risk involved. After all, most custom products require the buyer to take a leap of faith because they are going to buy something sight unseen. This does apply to custom rug making as well. You can minimize the risks by educating yourself and prepare yourself with proper planning. Here are 8 important tips:

Custom Rugs and Carpets - 8 Tips Before You Buy

Buying a custom ordered product always has a small amount of risk involved. After all, most custom products require the buyer to take a leap of faith because they are going to buy something sight unseen. This does apply to custom rug making as well. You can minimize the risks by educating yourself and prepare yourself with proper planning. Here are 8 important tips:

Tip #1: Research the available custom rug fabricators in your local area or go online. Look for quality and professionalism. Do they have experience? Do they have designs to choose from? Do they have a portfolio that you can look at?

Tip #2: Identify a budget for your rug project. If your budget is tight, then maybe ordering a custom rug isn't realistic at this time. If you can afford to spend extra for something unique and custom then you may be looking at $500-1000 for smaller size rugs, $1000-5,000 for larger sizes - depending on size and complexity, costs can escalate even further as rugs get larger. If you're ordering multiple rugs then politely demand a package price discount!

Tip#3: Get design ideas online by visiting area rug sites. If you find a design that you like, then try and capture the largest image that you can. You can 'right click' the image with your mouse and 'save image as' into a folder on your desktop. Start a collection of inspiring ideas.

Tip#4: Consider how the rug will integrate into your interior. Do you have a fabric or theme that you can play from? Do you have a style that appeals to you; some current styles might be Old World, Modern, Tropical, Southwestern, Abstract, or even Whimsical.

Tip #5: Several rugs can tie-in together from room to room. They don’t have to be all the same design. Consider reversing some of the colors or changing the design elements slightly. This is a great method for integrating multiple custom rugs within the home.

Tip #6: Stay clear of overly complex designs. If you want to match that busy Persian rug design in your living room, then you’re better off looking for a Persian rug supplier, not a custom rug fabricator.

Tip #7: Share your favorite designs with your rug fabricator. Discuss options for integrating your ideas into your own custom rug. Ask for an estimate in writing on your proposed design. Expect to pay extra for any additional artwork that may be required.

Tip #8: Choose your colors direct from carpet swatches. It’s fine to see the final artwork on your screen monitor, however, screen monitors and printouts vary. Your final decision should be based on exact materials that will be used in your rug. Have swatches shipped to you for final approval if you are ordering from a merchant online.

General rug production times should be around 4-6 weeks, depending on complexity and quantities ordered. This is an average turn around time for custom rug fabricators.

As you can see, custom rug fabrication has some interesting benefits to consider. It’s not for everybody, yet the creative possibilities are endless and the interest in customizing our home interiors is more popular than ever.

Here is a quick summary of the tips: Determine a budget for your rug purchase. Integrate the designs with your existing interior. Find designs and themes that attract you. Stay clear of overly complex designs. Get an estimate of the proposed design. Choose colors from physical swatch samples.

You can be creative and you can have fun with the whole process. The key is to have a clear picture of the proposed design before buying, which is not that hard to do. The end result should be a beautiful addition to your home interior in the exact size and colors that you need.

Related Articles
  Decorative Rugs for Home Interiors
  Work at Home as a Custom Rug-Maker
  Exquisite Logo Rugs - 5 Unique Marketing Applications
  Five Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Tips and Tricks
  Home-based Business Idea: Carpet Cleaning

Article Tags: area rug, budget, colors, complex designs, complexity, custom rug, custom rugs, design elements, design ideas, fabric, home tip, inspiring ideas, larger sizes, leap of faith, living room, local area, persian rug design, professionalism, risk, size rugs



Related Forum Posts
Business Tips - How about: Tips for managers to handle employees more effectively? Tips on how to deal with difficult customers? Tips on how to deal more effectively with suppliers? The only three I have in mind right now, but will try to come up with something else. Chris
How to dress for success? - [quote="Sprezzatura Custom":i6wwaxb1]Actually you are seeing more and more people wear a suit, tie and shirt today then you did at the beginning of the decade. Being in the fashion industry there is a huge trend towards men who don't have to wear suits for work doing so because they like the upgrade in appearance it gives them. A previous poster had mentioned that a suit and tie made him look older, I would say that a man in a well tailored suit, shirt, and tie looks many times more sharp than one in traditional business casual wares.[/quote:i6wwaxb1] Hi Sprezzatura Custom, Since you're in the fashion industry, are there any specific brands/designers you'd recommend for suits, ties, dress shoes and shirts? Thanks
Re: Google Custom Search: Let Visitors Search YOUR Site Only - Thanks for the tip on Google Custom Search GT. You always have useful tips and ideas. MichelleJ
How do you determine market size? - I'm in need of some advice here... I'm trying to determine the size of my local market. In this case it's the market for 'area rug' sales. Can someone tell me if I am on target with this? I get a little confused when there are so many zeros... Floor covering industry is at 25 b per year Area Rugs are at about 15% of this figure This equals about 3.75 b (I think) US population is at approx 301 m My region has a pop of 888,000 Is it as simple as dividing 888k into 301m ?? If so the projected sales will be approx $2.95 m Does this sound accurate enough for a business plan? Or can I calculate this another way?
Re: Business attire - [quote="Sprezzatura Custom":3angxu5q]Having sold the majority of these brands during my career in retail that is my list. I list fit as the #1 criterion, with quality of construction/materials #2, and brand recognition/cachet of owning it #3. Because at the end of the day when it comes to mens tailored clothing if it does not fit right; accentuating your strengths and hiding your weaknesses to give a smart and sharp look than all the quality and brand recognition in the world cannot help you.[/quote:3angxu5q] I fully agree with Sprezzatura Custom, but the problem for me is that the majority of dress shirts have a "classic fit", i.e. too much room in the chest/body and I'm tall/skinny. So shirts that are small/have small neck sizes will have short sleeves/body lengths... while larger ones will be too baggy and unflattering. At the moment, I'll shop at places like Banana Republic, Mexx and Club Monaco for "slim fit" casual shirts in size small or extra small (but their dress shirts are still too short in body length for me, i.e. to tuck into my pants). Any ideas for this?


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Stress: What Causes It and How To Deal With It

Building a Business From 30,000 Feet

Intro to Search Engine Optimization

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.