http://app.sympozeum.com/ 2006-08-18T11:32:10-06:00 Sympozeum_app.sympozeum.com Mike Dennis, publicist for Natural Area Rugs, posts about the inner workings of Natural Area Rugs, a national leader in natural area flooring. Topics include business strategies, new products, and information on natural rug materials including sisal, seagrass, jute, bamboo, and wool. http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Enter_to_Win_a_Free_Rug.php 2006-08-08T11:15:00-06:00 Because we love showing our customers how much we value them, Natural Area Rugs is giving away a free rug each week.  No purchase is necessary and all you have to do us simply enter name and email address to win.  We will randomly select a lucky winner to receive a beautiful sisal, seagrass, jute, bamboo or wool rug from the nation's leading provider of natural fiber flooring materials.  Winners will be notified via email and asked to provide their mailing address.  It's that easy!    Enter today and remember to check your inbox. Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Rug_Remnants.php 2006-07-26T19:11:00-06:00 It’s a wonderful thing to purchase a brand new sisal or seagrass rug or carpet and finally get displayed in your living area for the first time. The smell and look of the natural fibers fills your home with a rustic yet contemporary atmosphere, and the feeling of the rug is luxurious. In fact, it even looks tempting to your pets. They will soon want to take over your new product, so why not get them their own rug? NaturalAreaRugs.com offers scrap sisal and seagrass remnants to be used for pet scratching posts and other pet furniture. If you ordered one of our sisal or seagrass rugs, you may even request the same weave of the rug you ordered—as long as we have it in stock. You can order a 10 or 20 pound box and even specify the width of the remnants that you would like. To order your sisal or seagrass remnants, please visit http://www.naturalarearugs.com/sisal-remnants.php. Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Selecting_Area_Rugs_for_Your_Home_or_Office.php 2006-07-21T12:05:00-06:00 By: Roger King -1st Home Decor Imagine the desired total look of the room. Do you want a room that's organized or a room rich with colors or texture? If you start with a totally empty room, choose an area rug, then paint or wallpaper the walls in colors to match it. Keep in mind the area rug has to fit the room. Think how the room is used, how much traffic the area gets and who will view it under what light. For high traffic areas such as hallways and foyers, you may want a tough, decorative rug. If you start with furniture, choose an area rug to pick up the colors used in your furnishing pattern. The fundamentals of a rug design can be more included into the overall design. Size up the dimension of the room and the area you want to cover up. The most common area rug sizes are 4x6 and 6x9feet. They work well under small tables. An 8x11 foot area rug or bigger can cover an entire room. Smaller area like in front of a kitchen sink adds color and warmth. A rug with a courageous, overall design can be the focal point of a room with furniture's in solid or passive patterns. Light colored area rugs make a room look more open. Choose a rug that will execute well, with the right grouping of thickness and fiber. The denser the mound, the better your area rug will be.   Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Home_Decorating_Ideas_to_Quickly_Update_Any_Room.php 2006-06-30T10:27:00-06:00 Source: Home Decorating Made Easy Not all home decorating ideas require a heavy investment of time and money. If you're looking for a few affordable home interior decorating ideas to freshen up a room over a weekend, try these ten: 1. Rearrange The Furniture - Pull your furniture away from the walls. Try positioning it at intriguing angles. For example, a sofa arranged diagonally across a narrow living room will make the room look wider. 2. Paint A Wall - Paint one wall your favorite color and make it the focal point. Hang interesting art on that wall and move a nice piece of furniture there. (Note: Make sure that the color is one that is shared with several other objects and fabrics in the room.) 3. Bring In Plants - Greenery always adds a breath of fresh air to a room. If you don't have a green thumb, try silk plants and trees. The quality has gotten so good that its hard to distinguish them from the real thing. 4. Lay An Area Rug - An area rug is a wonderful way of defining a conversation area. Try one that complements the room. Lay it at an angle beneath your coffee table. 5. Hang Pictures or Mirror - Hang pictures that reflect your personality. Try frames that are more ornate. When hanging a mirror, try and position it so that it reflects and nice view or an interesting architectural element. 6. Group Figurines - Pull out your favorite collectibles. Show off your personality. Find a display area and group related objects together, in sets of three or five. Try and vary the shapes. 7. Add Decorative Pillows - The good news about decorative pillows is that they are an easy way to add textures and patterns to a room. Still better, they can be changed to jazz up a sofa or chair before your room is ready for a major makeover. 8.Replace Lamps - Lamps are probably the one thing in your home that will give others a clue that your room is outdated. Seek out new and fresh lamps that make a statement. 9. Add A Throw Or Afghan - Similar to decorative pillows, throws and afghans add texture to your furniture. They come in all kinds of natural and man made fabrics. Find a pattern and style that you like. 10. Eliminate Clutter - Clutter has a way of eliminating the desired mood and effect of any room. Find storage spaces for papers, toys, and other items that take from the personality of a room.   Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Creating_a_Welcoming_Home.php 2006-06-23T14:45:00-06:00 Source: National Candle Association What makes a house a "home?" Color and texture are key elements in making a home warm and inviting, however, it's also the decorative details that give a home your personal touch.   "Discovering and defining style is easier than many realize," says Kimberly Kennedy, author of The Art and Craft of Entertaining and lifestyle consultant to the National Candle Association (NCA). "First you need to ask yourself, 'What makes you comfortable, happy and contented?' Then, what types of fabrics, colors or fragrance are you comfortable with? Do you like to accessorize with candles or fresh flowers or both?"  To help make your home comfortable and inviting, Kennedy recommends the following: -- A Splash of Color:  A welcoming home is created when guests recognize a reflection of who you are as soon as they enter your front door. Color is a great way to personalize your home. From colorful accessories, such as throw pillows, artwork, and even candles, a little color can go a long way in making your home unique and welcoming for guests. -- Fabrics Galore:  Fabrics add texture, depth and color to a home. Whether you choose several colors or a monochromatic color scheme, add interest and dimension to your home by mixing textured fabrics, such as velvets, chenilles and silks. Not only are they pleasing to the eye, but they're comfortable to the touch.  -- Decorative Accents:  Artwork, area rugs, window treatments, sconces and candelabras are another way to create an inviting home. Area rugs can anchor a room by visually breaking up areas of wood flooring and reducing sound echoing, while adding design and cushioning the step. Window treatments soften the edges of a room and reflect your personal style. Carefully placed accessories add a finishing touch. Continue reading: Creating a Welcoming Home Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Tips_on_Caring_for_your_Natural_Area_Rug.php 2006-05-11T12:17:00-06:00 It’s bound to happen—someone spills a drink on your natural fiber rug or dirt is accumulating causing a dark stain.  Here are a few tips that will help you keep your natural area rug in great condition for years to come. Use a Doormat- Using a doormat at your front door will help protect your rugs/carpet from outside dirt.  Vacuum Regularly- You should vacuum your rugs or carpet often with an upright vacuum to get rid of dust and dirt. You should especially pay attention to those high traffic areas.  Vacuuming daily or at least once a week is highly recommended. Clean Spots and Spills Immediately- With a liquid spill, blot as much as you can with a clean white absorbent cloth.  Use a small amount so you don’t saturate the fiber.  Do not rub because you can embed the spill deeper into the fiber. With solids, get up as much as possible with a spoon and then use a small amount of detergent or household solvent to clean.  Be sure to work from the outside of the spot towards the center. More tips on caring for and cleaning your natural area rugs. Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Ask_the_Natural_Area_Rugs_Experts.php 2006-04-26T15:53:00-06:00 Are you decorating a room in your home and aren’t sure which natural floor covering best complements your décor?  Are you torn between jute, seagrass, sisal, bamboo and wool? If so, let the Natural Area Rugs experts help you find the perfect natural floor material that will add ambience and warmth to your room.  It’s simple.  Just let our experts know what type of décor you have or will have and we’ll help you find the perfect natural rug or carpet.  Check back soon and you'll be decorating in no time! Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Interior_Designer_Right_Area_Rug_Pulls_a_Room_Together.php 2006-04-10T09:44:00-06:00 By Interior Designer Toni Berry Alameda Times-Star   THE CHALLENGE: You've just finished redecorating your family room. You've purchased beautiful new furniture; it blends well with the older pieces you've chosen to keep in the room for sentimental reasons. The new wall color is warm and inviting and adds so much to the space. Your new draperies are simply wonderful, in the fabric you've always wanted to have. You finally got it together to accessorize the room correctly: lamps, trays, vases, family pictures and great art on the walls. But something is missing in this otherwise well decorated and well appointed room. What is it? It's the final little design element that's needed in a room like the one I've described above. The solution The area rug is the design solution that pulls the entire room together in terms of color and weight. It does the trick every time. Using common sense as our guide, here are some tips for choosing this final design element. -  When picking an area rug for a room with a lot of patterns and textures in it, choose a solid rug in a color that contrasts with the wood furniture. -  Leave about 18 to 30 inches of floor around the area rug. -  To define a conversation or dining area, use an area rug to draw the eye in to the space and anchor it. -  If you are putting new wall-to-wall carpeting in your home, have the same carpet cut and bound to make area rugs in the rooms with hard flooring. You can also have borders placed in contrasting colors of the same carpet around the rugs. This gives your home a very customized look with little expense. -  It is perfectly OK to place an area rug over your wall-to-wall carpet. They make pads for just this purpose. -  Custom area rugs are available to fit the color and the shape of any rooms. I had a lime green area rug made for a client with a living room in the same color. The floor under the area rug was hardwood in a dark ebony color. The room just came alive when the area rug was placed down. It actually made the wood floor look more attractive than it was. -  Area rugs with a lot of pattern and color work well in rooms with simpler decor. In these settings the area rug is like art underfoot. -  Always use a runner-type area rug in the entryway and hallway. These add to the ambiance of the space. In the entryway it can serve as the welcoming committee into the home. In a country French style home I put a red-bordered, flowered area rug with a sunny yellow latticework center. It was 10-feet long and 5-feet wide. This one addition, in welcoming warm colors, just makes you smile when the door opens. Mike Dennis http://www.NaturalAreaRugs.com/blogs/post/Area_Rugs_Complement_Wood_Flooring.php 2006-03-30T14:25:00-06:00 If you’re looking to increase the elegance of your wood flooring—look no more.  By adding a beautiful area rug to your space, you can create a more exciting and inviting environment.  There are many benefits to adding an area rug to a wood surface.  Area rugs have the amazing ability to accent the room’s décor, personalize the environment and soften the surface.  Let’s not forget that area rugs also provide warmth to an otherwise cold floor.  Here at Natural Area Rugs, there are many different kinds of area rugs to personalize any room in your home.  Whether you’re wanting to add comfort or ambience—there’s an affordable and durable area rug waiting just for you. Mike Dennis