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Make Your Flooring A Focal Point With A Wool Carpet

Wool fibers have a very distinct feel to them, with excellent qualities that make wool-based fabric top-notch ones. When it comes to choosing a wool carpet, there are a few things that one should know before spending money on such as product, and we’re going to try and keep you covered with the information that’s truly important before the actual purchase, so here it goes.

Wool Carpet

Benefits & Drawbacks of Wool Carpets

Before you spend money on a new product, it’s important to analyze the objective benefits that it offers and determine whether or not these are something that could improve your life. When it comes to wool carpets, some of the advantages that come along with buying one include:

  • When it comes to lifespan, wool is a fiber that can outlive almost every other natural fiber out there. It comes with highly elastic features and a natural crimp, both of each create a durable fiber that’s worth investing in if durability is something you’re after. This makes wool carpet capable of maintaining a fresh appearance even after many year of use, since it’s less prone to shading or tracking marks.
  • The level of comfort and warmth that a wool carpet can provide is almost unmatched. The soft feel of the wool fibers makes a carpet made from it feel like a luxurious choice. Not only does a wool carpet make your feet feel warm during the winter, but the fibers have really good insulation properties, so it can trap heat pretty well. Since it’s soft and made from pretty thick fibers, a wool carpet can also minimize injuries in case of a fall. More often than not, there wool carpets come with a quality backing that makes the carpet even thicker and provides more cushioning.
  • Wool carpets are pretty resistant when it comes to dirt and soil because of the natural oils that are found in these fibers. Even if they do attract dirt, the opaque fiber makes it more difficult for you or others to see the stains, making it feel like the carpet is cleaner than it actually is (it’s true that, depending on your perspective, this can either be a good or a bad thing).
  • Wool is also a pretty sustainable fiber, so if you’re worried about your contribution in helping preserve the environment, then know that wool comes from natural sheep coats, so it’s basically a renewable supply. Wool is also sheared without hurting the animals, so it’s a cruelty-free fiber that you can rely on with peace of mind.
  • Aside from being a sustainable material when you look back at its production process, it’s also a biodegradable one. When wool is absorbed by the soil, it produces carbon dioxide, sulphur, and nitrogen, and all of these are nutrients that growing plants could benefit from.

We can’t really expect to form knowledgeable buyers without talking about the downside of wool carpet and, while some of these might be subjective, they are still worth knowing and questioning so that you can make an informed shopping decision:

  • First of all, wool isn’t an option that’s as cheap as other natural or synthetic fibers, which makes wool carpets a tad more expensive than, let’s say, a polyester one. Furthermore, wool is also more expensive to clean, especially since it’s not the kind of product that you can easily clean by yourself at home and might sometimes have to turn to professional (and paid) cleaning services to have it fresh again.
  • Wool fibers are naturally moisture wicking. This is a good thing if you have high humidity levels in your home and can use whatever means you have at your disposal to deal with that problem, but it’s not that great if it’s regularly exposed to water or if you spill liquids on it that are not oil-based (like coffee or wine). When they absorb large volumes of water, wool fibers can get saturated over time, which creates a favorable environment for mildew to appear.

Related: DIY Natural Carpet Cleaner – Homemade Recipe

Types of Wool Carpets

For the most part, you will find wool carpets that are either made entirely out of wool or constructed from wool blend. Here is what you should know about each of these two categories:

  • 100 percent wool carpets are woven entirely out of wool. In general, these utilize string wool which is commonly found on New Zealand and British sheep, and there are carpets made from both of these types of wool at the same time. New Zealand wool typically feels softer to the touch and it’s commonly used for lighter shade fabrics, while British wool is bulkier and comes with a unique texture. The highest quality wool is believed to be New Zealand Merino, but that doesn’t make other types of wool any less worthy of purchase. Also, it is quite common for carpets to be made from wool coming from other animals, such as alpacas, llamas, or even goats.
  • 80/20 wool carpets are made from a wool mix. As a general note, wool doesn’t need to be combined with other fibers and fabric in order to make good carpets, but some manufacturers choose to do so because they want to benefit from the properties of the synthetic materials added to the mix to create a certain type of product. For instance, when you add some other fibers to a carpet’s construction, you can make it more durable or increase the flexibility of the fibers. This makes 80/20 carpets a purchase worth consider because of the amazing properties of wool that are further enhanced thanks to the addition of other fibers to the mix.

FAQ

Is wool the best carpet?

There are plenty of reasons why wool carpets are good choice for your home, and durability is certainly one of them. Although wool is a fiber considerably more expensive compared to man-made fibers, it is also a durable choice that adds value to your home. In the end, it depends on whose opinion you seek, but wool carpets are definitely amongst the top choices.

What are the benefits of wool carpets?

The benefits of wool carpets will always outweigh the cons (with the biggest downside being the high price of the fiber). However, wool carpets are moisture-wicking, they provide amazing insulation and keep your feet warm during the colder seasons, it’s a hypo-allergenic fiber (although not always the case as there are people who have wool allergies), has a long lifespan, and it’s pretty resistant to all sorts of stains. It is also less prone to wear and tear, and taking good care of a wool carpet can make it last for decades.

Is wool carpet expensive?

Yes, wool is one of the most expensive natural fibers that are currently available in the market. Even when compared to high-end synthetic fibers, wool tests to cost more. The lowest price that you could get for a wool carpet is around $3 per square foot, but quality wool carpets can cost as much as $15 per square foot.

The Best Wool Carpet

Luciana Hand-Knotted Wool Gray Area Rug

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

This beautiful hand-knotted wool carpet is available in a variety of different colors and sized for you to choose from. There are rectangular-shaped rugs that range from 2′ x 3′ to 12′ x 18′, but you also have the options of choosing round carpets, runners, or oval ones. This rug is made entirely out of wool and comes with a cotton backing that further enhances the quality of the product and makes it even more comfortable and moisture-wicking.

Chevron Handmade Tufted Wool

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

Area rugs are perfect for covering parts of the room with high traffic and, when they are made from wool, they providing an insulating base for your children to lay down their toys and play on the floor, while also keeping your own feet warm. This handmade wool rug is available in two color combinations and a variety of different sizes to cover different carpet needs you might have. Made entirely out of wool, the carpet comes with a cotton backing and a beautiful straight and zigzag line pattern.

Paget Geometric Hand Hooked Wool Red

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

If you want to stay true to the holiday spirit and choose a Christmas-themed rug that looks festive and is available in high-quality construction, you need to take a look at the Paget carpet. With cotton and latex backing and a surface made entirely out of wool, this area carpet measures 0.25 inches in thickness and comes in a wide range of sizes for you to choose from. The carpets feature winter-themed decorations such a Christmas trees, snowmen, gingerbread houses, and even stockings filled with goodies.

Braelyn Southwestern Handmade Tufted Wool Area Rug

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

With a Southwestern style and a design that makes this carpet perfect for traditional homes, the Braelyn carpet is the kind of product that brings a drop of color to your house. There are multiple color combinations to choose from, as well as 10 different sizes to cover multiple floor surfaces inside your home. It’s a handmade wool carpet with a canvas backing and a 0.5-inch pile height that makes it ideal for low-traffic areas.

Philson Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

Next up, we have a bolder carpet suggestion in a product that deliver an oriental-inspired pattern that would easily find its way in a rustic or boho-style home décor. The red hues and beige accents work together playfully on a surface made entirely out of wool. The backing for this carpet was made by combining canvas, latex, and cotton fibers, which add up to the total of 0.4 inches in pile height. There are 15 different sizes to choose from, covering almost every floor configuration so that you can have more warmth and insulation as you walk barefoot inside your home.

Claro Floral Handmade Tufted

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

There are so many reasons why wool carpets are a wonderful idea for a child’s room or a nursery, and it’s more than just the beautiful colors and playful patterns that accompany the Claro model. From the moisture-wicking and the insulation properties of this rug to the different size availability, this is a product that we just have to recommend. This is an 80/20 wool carpet that combines the power of this fiber with that of cotton, and it’s enhanced by a cotton backing. It has a pile height of 0.63 inches and it’s the perfect additional to a play room.

Effiom Hand-Hooked Pink

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

The beautiful choice of colors that were used to make the Effiom carpet have us mesmerized, since it seems like the king of chromatic that would be suited for fall and spring seasons alike. Handmade entirely out of wool on Egyptian soil, and combines with a backing made from cotton and canvas, this 0.5-inch pile height carpet seems to be perfect for both traditional and contemporary room decors.

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool

Zosia Oriental Handmade Tufted Wool Teal

With Eastern patterns and prints that blend right into a vintage décor, the Zosia carpet is another wool-based product that brings forth saturated hues of gold, red, blue, and green. Made on Indian land, this carpet is made entirely out of wool and comes with cotton and latex backing to give you the very best insulation in an indoor-only product. You have four size options to choose from, including a 2’3″ x 7’6″ runner, this 0.5-inch pile height carpet is an ideal choice for rustic-style homes.

Bottom Line

Choosing a wool carpet should be relatively easy because of the benefits that this type of fiber can provide. There is no doubt that it’s worth investing in such a product because of the advantages that wool brings to the table, but the initial cost of wool-based products can be a downside for many. So, before spending money on a wool carpet, it’s worth setting a budget and then finding products that are well within the budget you have at your disposal.