Page 26 - Real Estate Now - November/December 2021

impact on your mood, with reds giving the sense of uplifting vibrance and blues can be calming—though too much
can leave you feeling a little “blue”—while neutral colours are used to increase depth and balance.

“Aim to complement and balance, rather than matching everything too
much,” says Ainley. “If items in your space are colourful, then a neutral carpet
will help to highlight those pieces.”

You can also use colour and pattern to calm down or subdue a room if there are a
lot of energetic pieces used already. Ainley also points out, much like in nature, it’s
important to maintain a sense of orientation in your space—keep the floor darker
than the walls and ceiling, and your ceiling the brightest.

Speaking of pile
The term “pile” refers to the height of a carpet. Three categories—low,
medium, and high—are used when referring to carpet pile and are
associated with the durability, plushness (or density), and the level of
traffic expected on it.
Low pile tends to be more dense with a tighter weave, making this
category ideal for high-traffic areas of your home, requiring less
maintenance. In contrast, high pile carpets have longer, looser weaves
for a softer, plush texture—though they’re prone to capturing more
dirt within the fibers and require deeper cleans regularly.

Let’s talk fiber
Fiber is the material used to weave the carpet, and can
include wool, polyester, olefin, and nylon. Nylon and
polyester offer the best stain resistance, with nylon
working best in high-traffic rooms, while wool provides
natural beauty and soil resistance—not stain resistance
though, so keep that in mind if you have little ones and/
or pets.
A little cut and twist

Carpet texture and density are determined by the type of
cut as well as the amount of twist in its fibers. The three
types of cuts are:
• Cut pile: This type incorporates yarns that have been cut at the ends, and its durability comes from the amount
of twist in the fiber. This is the broadest of the carpet textures, and covers a wide range of carpet styles like frieze,
shag, cable, saxony, plush, and textured plush.
• Loop: A loop carpet means that when the carpet is woven, the yarn loops are left intact. There are two styles for
this type of texture; level loop and multi-level loop. A popular style of level loop is berber carpet, and multi-level
loop piles are notable for the pattern effects and texture created by the different loop lengths.
• Cut-loop: This texture incorporates both looped and cut yarns, and comes in a large variety of patterns and
geometric designs, often giving multi-colour effects that help to conceal dirt.

Twist refers to the number of twists in each carpet fiber. The higher the number of twists, the more dense and durable
the carpet will be.

From a feng shui perspective, natural fibres are more welcoming, plus due to lower VOCs (volatile organic compounds),
they can also enhance the overall quality and health of your space.

26 | REAL ESTATE NOW | denise@BCislandhomes.ca