Is It Appropriate for Your Carpet to be Darker Than Your Walls? Strategies to Achieve This Bold Design Successfully
Modern Carpeting Trends: Embracing the Dark Side
Welcome back to our design world, where the old is new again! Yeah, you heard it right — carpeted flooring is making a comeback, and not in the way you'd expect. Gone are the days of hiding carpeting with lighter shades. Now, bolder colors are taking center stage, setting the tone for an eye-catching design statement. So buckle up — dark is the new cool!
Designer Samantha Gallacher from Art Loom shares, "A darker carpet can be grounding and contrast beautifully against lighter walls, creating a more balanced look." And the best part? It can help hide dirt, wear, and stains in high-traffic areas! So, dare to darken things up and watch your interior transform!
Dark Carpets vs. Light Walls: Making the Right Move
You might be wondering if your carpet should be darker than your walls. The answer's yes! Home decor's current trend leans towards bold colored carpets, making a dark-carpet-light-wall pairing a winner when it comes to style. Before you roll out the 'dark floor' welcome mat, here are a few designer-approved tips to ponder.
Samantha Gallacher is the designer brain who graduated from The New York School of Interior Design and holds a Marketing degree from Lehigh University. Her career kick-started with stints at New York's top design firms like Glenn Gissler, Bob Kaner, and Kureck and Jones. She’s now the founder and CEO of Art + Loom, creating bespoke rugs.
Similar to a ceiling, consider your floor as your home's fifth wall. And, just like with painting a dark ceiling and light walls, a dark carpet has its time and place where it works wonders! "Using a darker carpet grounds the space, anchoring it while pulling the eye upward," says San Diego-based interior designer Christina Kelley, founder of Christina Kelley Interiors. Christina suggests, "I prefer darker carpets for cozy spaces like family rooms, bedrooms, and playrooms."
To pick the perfect shade of carpet, weigh your room’s lighting, its usage, and surrounding finishes. Samantha emphasizes, "A dark wall-to-wall carpet can make a room feel cozier, but it can also make small spaces feel cramped or darker." Strike the right balance between the walls and the floor with your carpet color, ensuring it suits your unique setting.
Dark Carpet: A Perfect Combo for Your Interior
In large rooms with good natural light, a carpet that's darker than your walls is an easy winner. If your walls are lighter, a darker carpet makes for a delightful visual contrast, maintaining a cozy softness. In these spacious settings, pick a solid color carpet and layer with rugs to add depth and dimension.
Darker carpets are also ideal for high-traffic areas like living rooms, hallways, or offices. Have a young family or pets? Don't shy away from darker carpets. They're easier to maintain and hide stains better than lighter options.
Embrace a touch of drama with a darker carpet that creates a bold statement against lighter-colored walls. You can also create a warm and cozy setting with darker carpets, making bedrooms or lounges more intimate.
Designing a Monochromatic Look with Dark Carpets
Darker carpets also work beautifully in monochromatic color schemes, where rugs in a slightly darker tone match the color of the walls. This offers a harmonious, cohesive look. Color drenching is a confident design choice, and a darker carpet slightly contrasting the wall color will subtly balance the room without affecting the encompassing vibe.
Samantha earned her BFA in Interior Design from Savannah College of Art and Design, and she's the design principal and founder of her own studio, Christina Kelley Interiors, based in San Diego, CA. With a keen eye for detail, she creates fresh, modern spaces that exude both classic and collected charm.
Bringing back colorful carpets? You bet! A darker carpet can make your room feel grounded, refined, and even edgy. So, say goodbye to those dull, light-colored carpets and welcome the darker side!
- "Designer Samantha Gallacher, from Art Loom, embraces the trend of darker carpets, suggesting they can create a more balanced look when contrasted against lighter walls."
- "In large rooms with good natural light, a darker carpet can make for a delightful visual contrast, maintaining a cozy softness when paired with lighter-colored walls."
- "A dark carpet can help hide dirt, wear, and stains in high-traffic areas, making it an ideal choice for living rooms, hallways, or offices with young families or pets."
- "Embracing a touch of drama, darker carpets can create a bold statement against lighter-colored walls, contributing to a warm and cozy setting, particularly in bedrooms or lounges."
- "Darker carpets can work beautifully in monochromatic color schemes, where rugs in a slightly darker tone match the color of the walls, offering a harmonious, cohesive look."
