Narrative Threads Blog
Scroll through our Narrative Threads blog to enjoy behind-the-scenes insight on special projects for leading interior designers and architects.
- 2013
- 2014
- 2015
- 2016
- #(Unititled) Winter Sunset
- #AnaCunningham
- #BraidedRug
- #Chord - Chartreuse
- #Clémence Hardelay
- #Hotel
- #Marine Division
- #Muir
- #Origin
- #Royal Caribbean
- #Settle
- #StudioMunge
- #T-Mobile
- #Wonder of the Seas
- Abigail Williams
- abrash
- administration
- Administration
- Adwoa Agyemfra
- Aerial
- Aerial Collection
- Afghanistan
- Aga Khan Museum
- Alan Tanksley
- Ali McMurter
- Ambient Gradient
- Amie Suttie
- Aminster
- Ana Cunningham
- ana diosdado
- Ana Diosdado
- Andaz
- Ange Yake
- Anna Panosyan
- APEX Social Club
- April
- Arashi
- Arboreal
- Arcadian
- Arcadis IBI Group
- Architexture
- Arctic Collection
- Area Rugs
- Arney Fender Katsalids
- art
- art day
- Art Day
- Art Installation
- Artisans
- Ashley Solymar
- axminster
- Axminster
- Azura Condos
- B+H Architects
- Balthazar
- Beckford House
- Bergdorf Goodman
- Bermuda
- binding
- Blends
- blog
- Blog
- Blue Hat Studios
- Bosa Denny Group
- BOTI Interiors
- Bread for all
- Briggs&Little
- Burdifilek
- Cabernet Carpets
- Camden Cocktail Lounge
- Campaign for Wool
- Campaign for Wool Canada
- Canada House
- Canadian Embassy Paris
- Canadian Wool
- Canadian Wool Council
- Carol Sebert
- carpet
- Carpet Design Awards
- Carpet Diem
- Carpet Tiles
- carpet weaving
- carpets
- Cascade
- Celebrity Edge
- chairs
- Chapi Chapo Design
- Cheryl Krismer
- child labour
- Chord Gradient
- Christi Belcourt
- Circular Rug
- Clémence Hardelay
- collection
- Collection rug
- Collections
- colour
- colour lab
- Commercial
- concept
- Conference Room
- Corporate Project
- corridor carpet
- Corus Entertainment
- COVER Connect
- Cover Magazine
- Covid-19
- Crayon Design
- creative
- Creative Matters
- CREATIVE MATTERS AND OUR WORK WITH FAIR TRADE AND LABEL STEP
- Creative Matters Collection
- Creativity
- Cruise Collection
- Cruise Ships
- Crumple
- Crystallize
- Custom Design
- Custom Project
- Custom Rugs
- Customize
- Deloitte
- design
- Design Birds
- designers
- dhurrie
- DIALOG
- Diamond Schmitt Architects
- Domotex
- Donna Hastings
- Doug Gellenbeck
- Dream
- Drift
- Dye-injected quality
- Dyeing
- Eco-bundle-dyeing
- eco-friendly
- EcoAx
- Elaine thorsell
- Elizabeth D'Agostino
- embassy
- Emerge
- Emma O'Neill
- Entourage Yacht
- Eric McClelland
- Estelle
- estelle muzyczka
- Ethical Production
- Eva
- Faces of Freedom
- Facet
- Faena Hotel
- fair
- Fair trade
- fashion
- Fernando Santangelo
- first
- Flatweave
- Flatwoven
- Fleur de Lis Interior Design
- Floor-to-ceiling
- Floored to be 20
- floorforum
- floral
- flowers
- Four Seasons
- Fragment
- France
- frost
- Frozen Bloom
- fun
- furniture
- Gabellini Sheppard
- Gachot Studios
- Gaudalupe
- Gensler
- Geometric
- geometry
- George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg
- Germany
- Glacier
- glass
- glass blowing
- Glenn Pushelberg
- Global Affairs Canada
- Glow
- Gluckstein Design
- Goodweave
- Government Conference Centre
- Great Hill Partners
- Greater Toronto Airport Authority
- Gucci
- Hacin + Associates
- Halcyon Collection
- Halycon Collection
- Hampton
- Hand Axminster
- Handcraft
- handknotted
- Handknotted
- handknotting
- Handknotting
- Handmade Rugs
- handtufted
- Handtufted
- handtufting
- Handwoven
- hank
- Hathairat Suk-Iem
- Heenan Blaikie
- Highland
- Hillary Paulen
- Holt Renfrew
- Hong Kong
- Hospitality
- Hospitality Project
- hotel
- Hotel
- Hy's Steakhouse
- Hydrangea
- IBI Group
- Imprint
- India
- Initiatives
- innovation
- inspiration
- inspired 2
- Inspired 3
- inspired. look book
- Interior Design
- interior designers
- IWTO
- Jab Anstoetz
- Jacki Mallick
- James Hotel
- Jane Addie
- Janson Goldstein
- Jewel
- Jouin Manku
- Julie Baldwin
- July
- June
- Jute
- Karen Lim
- Karim Rashid
- Kat Pezzano
- Katie Ridder
- Kayla Bortolotto
- Kelly Hoppen
- Kimpton Saint George
- Krause Sawyer
- La Samaritaine
- La Tour Deloitte
- Label STEP
- Las Vegas
- Lauren Mead
- Leah Phillips
- LEMROSE
- Les Rendez-Vous de la Matière + Fair(e)
- LGA Architectural Partners
- Linda Fargo
- Linseed
- LOMA
- London
- look book
- Louis Vuitton
- low tight loop pile
- Luba Huzan
- lucky 13
- Lucy Upward
- Lumina
- Luxe Nylon
- luxury
- Luxury Rugs
- Macrame
- Macrame Collection
- MacrameCollection
- made in exile
- Made in India
- Made in Nepal
- Madeleine Baigent
- March
- Mario Testino
- Marlowe
- Marshall Cummings
- Mason Studio
- Matthew Rowe
- May
- Mengting Shen
- Metropolis
- Mexico City
- Michelle Bouchard
- Milan
- Milan Furniture Fair
- Mill
- Modern Carpets and Textiles Magazine
- Modern Weave
- Moriyama & Teshima
- Museum
- natural
- Natural Carbon Cycle
- natural dye
- Natural Dye Collection
- nature
- Needle Felting
- Nepal
- Neutrals
- New York
- New York International Carpet Show
- Ningikulu Teevee
- Nova
- NYICS
- Nylon
- Orchestra
- Origin
- painting
- Palms Casino Resort
- Paris
- Paris Design Week
- Park Hyatt
- Park Lane NYC
- Pendry Manhattan West
- people
- Percolate
- Perennial
- Perennial Collection
- Persian knot
- PET
- pink
- Pom Card
- poms
- Printemps
- Prism Nylon
- process
- quotes
- Raffia
- raffle
- Rainbow Room
- Raleigh Hotel Miami
- Raven Rug
- red
- red carpet
- Red Carpet
- Redoux Passager
- Renée Isaac-Saper
- Residential Project
- Restaurant
- Retail
- Retail Project
- Reto Aschwanden
- Retreat
- Ritz-Carlton
- Robyn Clarke
- Rory Platinum
- Rosa Wharton
- Rose
- Royal Caribbean
- Rubato
- Ruche
- Rug
- Rug Collection
- Rug Design
- Rug Designers
- RugMark
- rugs
- Rugs
- Salone 2013
- Sandra Ciganic-Mckinney
- Sandra Ciganic-McKinney
- Sarah Richardson
- Sarah Stevenson
- Scatter
- Scratch
- Senate of Canada
- Serena Yu Khine
- Shale
- Shaped rugs
- Shaped Rugs
- Shard
- Shattered
- Shelley Kirsch Interior Design
- Shibori-dyeing
- Shinola
- Shiver
- silk
- Silk
- silk rug
- Silverplate
- Soho Grand
- Sonance Collection
- sophie williams
- Sophie Williams
- Sound Absorbtion
- special
- Spiral staircase
- Spring
- St. Regis Mexico City
- staff
- Staircase runner
- stairs
- Stantec
- Story Telling Collection
- Strata
- Streets of New York
- Striped Rug
- studio
- Studio Munge
- Studio Sofield
- style
- Suhindhar Raveendiran Santhi
- summer
- Sunlife Financial
- Suspension
- Sustainability
- Symphony of the Seas
- T-Mobile
- TD Conference Centre
- Teri Ly
- Terra Collection
- Textiles
- TGF Law Firm
- Thailand
- The Pearle Hotel & Spa
- The Telegraph
- The Westside
- The World Bank
- Theodore
- tibetan weavers
- Tibetan Weavers
- TIFF
- Tiffany
- Timing
- Toronto
- Toronto International Film Festival
- Trade Show
- traditional
- tradtional
- Travel
- Trip
- tulips
- Turquoise Mountain
- Unionville Gardens
- Vanguard
- vegetable dyeing
- Versante Hotel
- Video
- Vista
- Viva
- Wallcovering
- wallcoverings
- Wallpaper
- Water Stewardship
- watercolour
- Weaver
- Weavers
- Weavers Art
- William Sofield
- Winter Garden
- wool
- Wool
- Woven Axminster
- XXV Collection
- Yabu Pushelberg
- zero pile
ELEGANT CARPETS WITH KATIE RIDDER
In April we were delighted to celebrate what was both the successful installation of another spiral staircase runner and our first collaboration with renowned New York designer Katie Ridder.
FLOORCOVERINGS GALORE FOR THE FOUR SEASONS RESORT WHISTLER
From the bathroom to the ballroom, it was our pleasure to work with DIALOG on the remodelling of the Four Seasons Resort Whistler. Using four different production methods at mills in three different countries, Creative Matters Vice President Ali McMurter managed a vast array of floorcoverings.
OUR FIRST VIRTUAL TRADE SHOW
January is usually a busy month for trade shows for those of us who create handknotted rugs with the Domotex show in Germany and Maison+Objet in France. This year however, we participated in our first virtual trade show - an innovative event organized by COVER, the world’s leading magazine for handmade carpets and textiles for interiors.
DYNAMIC GEOMETRIC DESIGN FOR A STEAKHOUSE
“Immerse yourself in the elegance of art deco and the warmth of mahogany wood. The opulent surroundings are designed to heighten your senses …,” proclaims the website of Vancouver’s Gotham Steakhouse & Bar. We were delighted to play our role in creating this special ambiance.
THE ART OF HANDKNOTTING A RUG
Art Day - when our whole team takes time away from regular work to indulge in pure creation on a particular theme - is at the heart of the design culture of Creative Matters. Imagine everyone’s delight this month when Senior Designer Sandra Ciganic-McKinney announced that she had booked four Tibetan rug weavers complete with mini-looms to join us for our next Art Day.
HIGHLIGHTS OF 2019 BY CAROL SEBERT
As President of Creative Matters I am often asked to choose some highlights from the closing year. This time however, I find myself most excited by the major initiatives we took in 2019 to move our business into the new decade.
ELEGANT, COZY AND MASCULINE - 5 CARPETS FOR A STEAKHOUSE
Last month Hy’s Steakhouse returned to Toronto’s financial district with a spectacular new flagship.The impressive 18,000-square-foot space was designed by our long-time client Elaine Thorsell of BOTI Interiors. Creative Matters President Carol Sebert was tasked with developing the carpet designs for all three storeys.
REVEALING OUR 2019 LOOK BOOK
Following on the success of our two previous look books, we’re excited to announce that Inspired 3 is now available in hard copy (request one here) or for online viewing. Unlike the brochures for our collection rugs, each of our look books contains almost 200 images of original designs that can be used as a jumping off point for custom rug or wallcovering creations.
CARPETS FOR THE SENATE OF CANADA
As a Canadian company we were particularly delighted to be selected to create the carpets for the Senate of Canada’s temporary new home in Ottawa.
CARPETS FOR CRUISE SHIPS
In the last few years, designing carpets for cruise ships has been a bigger part of our business. Clémence Hardelay is the Project Manager at Creative Matters who works most closely with this sector, so to start out we asked for her favourite piece. She chose the irregularly-shaped inset carpet for the jewellery store on board Celebrity Edge.
STRIKING SHAPED RUGS ELEVATE CONDO SPACES
We were delighted when Arcadis IBI Group asked us to collaborate with them again, this time on three shaped rugs for the new Azura condo building in Toronto. Their Associate Director Heidi Rose provided us with the specific shapes that they had designed to enhance the interior architecture.
THE SHAPED RUG - AN UNDENIABLE STATEMENT PIECE
Shaped rugs steal the spotlight, they’re a conversation piece on the floor and they make spaces exciting. Over 35 years we’ve designed a lot of rugs in abstract shapes so we’d thought we’d have a little retrospective. We chose five rugs designed in recent times and five rugs from our 90s archive. From the elegant to the eclectic to the practical, scroll down and enjoy them.
INSIDE A DYNAMIC PROJECT WITH PARK LANE NEW YORK AND YABU PUSHELBERG
In 2019, international design firm Yabu Pushelberg (YP) was commissioned with the complete renovation of one of New York’s landmarks, the Park Lane New York hotel. YP is a long time client of Creative Matters and that same year they asked us to work with them on the carpets which were installed in early 2022. Partner Ali McMurter managed the collaboration at our end. “They chose us for the project because …
PEARLE HOTEL SHINES WITH OUR HAND AXMINSTER RUGS
During the summer, impeccably designed and crafted Creative Matters rugs were installed throughout the new Pearle Hotel & Spa in Burlington (just outside Toronto). It was a special project because it was the first time we used the hand Axminster method of production for all the rugs in a hotel.
PARIS DESIGN WEEK WELCOMES OUR WINTER GARDEN
“So poetic.” “C’est superbe.” “Like a reset button.” These are just a small sample of the expressions of awe and wonder we received every day during Paris Design Week for our installation titled “Winter Garden”. Inspired by a Rumi quote, we developed the exhibit in collaboration with Parisian Design studio LOMA and presented it to the public in a small gallery in the Le Marais district of Paris.
WHY DID CREATIVE MATTERS’ CAROL SEBERT MEET PRINCE CHARLES?
The short answer to the question why Prince Charles met Carol Sebert is because we make floor and wallcoverings with Canadian wool. But of course there is a longer answer …
OUR VERSATILITY EXCELS AT MUIR HOTEL
In 2019, renowned interior design firm Studio Munge invited us to join them on a quest to create “a distinct sense of place” for a new hotel in Halifax in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on Canada’s east coast.
16 CARPET DESIGNS FOR WORLD’S LARGEST CRUISE SHIP
In March 2022 Wonder of the Seas set out on her first cruise with 16 stunning carpet designs by Creative Matters. Clémence Hardelay - our Director of Design and Marine Division - managed this complex project. Because she is currently based in Marseille (where the ship received its final touches) establishing Creative Matters’ new satellite studio for European clients, Clémence was able to go on board in January to appreciate all the designs in situ and take these super photos.
OUR LATEST CARPET ADVENTURES IN MEXICO CITY
Our most recent project reveal comes from Mexico City where we collaborated with Chapi Chapo Design on some amazing floorcoverings for the presidential suites, guestrooms, corridors and ballroom for the new Ritz-Carlton hotel.
STEP INSIDE OUR CARPETS FOR PENDRY MANHATTAN WEST
The Pendry opened its doors in September all aglow with elevated interiors by our friends at Gachot Studios and equally elevated floorcoverings by Creative Matters. This was our third luxury hotel with Gachot - the three of them united by their use of a variety of the production methods we offer.
277 RUGS FOR THE NEW SHINOLA HOTEL IN DETROIT
Imagine our delight in 2017 when New York’s Gachot Studios invited us to create all the floorcoverings for Detroit’s new 129-room Shinola Hotel, one of the many projects that are creating massive renewal in the city.
CREATIVE MATTERS TAKES NEW YORK
In November we celebrated 30 years since our President Carol Sebert founded Creative Matters. To honour the occasion the whole team flew from Toronto to New York for three days staying at a big house in the country and taking the train into the city each morning.
DESIGN MATTERS: OUR 30 YEARS OF CREATING RUGS
As Creative Matters will celebrate its 30th anniversary in November, our management team took the opportunity to look back at our designs - and the process of designing - through the years.
WINNING CARPETS FOR LAS VEGAS RESORT
In May 2018, the Palms Casino Resort completed a $620 million renovation which was heralded as the grandest in Las Vegas history. It included the creation of two new nightlife venues, both designed by Studio Munge and both featuring carpets by Creative Matters.
OUR RUGS SHINE IN MARRIOTT REDESIGN
HANDLOOMED FLATWEAVES FOR THE NEW KIMPTON SAINT GEORGE
When Kimpton opened its first boutique hotel in Toronto last month, its many interior treasures included 21 delightfully artisanal rugs by Creative Matters.
THE DELIGHTS AND CHALLENGES OF THE SPIRAL STAIRCASE
Last month we installed a carpet for a spiral staircase and decided sharing it in a blog post would be the perfect opportunity to explore the dynamics involved in carpeting a set of stairs that isn't straight.
HONOURING INUIT ART THROUGH LARGE-SCALE WALL HANGINGS AT THE NEW IQALUIT AIRPORT
A behind-the-scenes insight into our project recreating small Inuit artworks into handmade wallhangings for the Iqaluit airport in Nunavut.
REFRESHING A CARPET DESIGN FOR THE SOHO GRAND HOTEL
We don't often talk about refreshing an existing design, yet it is a service we provide regularly. Wear and tear is the most common reason to revamp but other reasons include wanting to upgrade the look of the space; managing a new floor configuration or furniture layout; aiding in noise reduction; or reducing the dirt and moisture that gets tracked into a building.
OUR NEW LOOK BOOK!
Following the incredible success of our first look book, we are delighted to announce the arrival of our second, inspired 2. Unlike our collection books that feature floorcoverings that have been fully-designed and produced as handknotted rugs, our look books present a large collection of carpet and wallcovering designs at a much earlier stage in their development.