Is Your Product Knowledge Up to Date?

As a member of the Canadian Decorators Association I often attend product knowledge seminars organized by the Association in order to stay current about new products, and to build relationships with reputable suppliers.

This past week, I attended a seminar held by Burritt Bros. Carpets and B.C. Hardwood both of whom have been in business since the early 1900’s.  When you can stay in business that long you must be doing something right!

Although separate companies, these two operate under one roof.  This is really convenient because often you are looking for more than one type of flooring and it’s so great to have all this expertise in one place.

Burritt Bros. Carpets Showroom — 3594 Main Street, Vancouver

During the seminar, we learned about the myriad of in-stock and custom made area rug options available in both modern and traditional styles through the 2nd Century Rug Company which is part of Burritt Bros.

This delicious array of colour samples was presented to us in a beautiful Nepalese box!

We also saw the large selection of wall to wall carpeting including a new eco-friendly product called “Smart Strand” which is stain and crush resistant and has a 25 year fade-resistance warranty!  We also learned about hard surface flooring including Luxury Vinyl Tile (LVT).  Now I know the mere mention of the words “vinyl tile” make many people cringe but trust me there are a lot of options available which are practical, durable and great looking, including a wood look plank flooring which can be installed in a space where the floor is not completely level.  It’s also commercial grade which means it can withstand the rigours of kids, dogs, and everyday life.

Next we moved across the showroom to B.C. Hardwood.  We saw some really beautiful examples of the choices in hardwood flooring, including a very fashion forward brand from Italy called “Stile”.  We heard a lot of different terminology including solid wood, prefinished and unfinished, long strip engineered, laminate, glued down, floating, rift and quartered, plain sawn, etc.!  We also learned about when and when not to use certain species of woods.  Phew!!  By the time we finished, my head was spinning not only with all the information but with ideas of how the various flooring could be used.

BC Hardwood Showroom

We are lucky to have so many choices in home decor products today, but with all this choice comes the need to know a lot about the products, and that’s why it’s so important to deal with reputable suppliers.  It also helps to work with a qualified Interior Decorator because we are always updating our product knowledge by attending seminars like the one I have just attended, and we know who the really great suppliers are.  More importantly, we can guide you through all these choices and help you to avoid making costly mistakes.

If you are thinking of making changes to your home and would like the help of a qualified Interior Decorator, give Embellished Interiors a call.