Welcome to our Training Academy! These custom carpets are unique & rewarding to create! Think about it, what could be better than seeing the rug that you designed & crafted, turn somebody's lounge room from being boring to fantastic! It is a wonderful feeling & you don't need to be a design extraordinaire.

I personally enjoy the whole creative process, from discussing with the client what they want, to coming up with designs, & then of course the finished product - the amazing rug!

There is so much inspiration to be found, especially on the internet. I use 'Google Image' often, entering in key words to get me started, like 'Contemporary designs'. From there it is easy to see what direction to take. Have a note pad beside you & start drawing away. Your illustrations should be brief at this point. Use some colored pencils or brush pens to work out where colors should go. This point is about visualizing potential rugs. Come up with several ideas, & then take your best 3. Work on getting only 3 strong designs down, then you can offer different colorways. You don't want to overwhem you client with too many choices.

When coming up with your own designs, look to nature(nature is a great designer!), architecture, art, and fashion - for shapes & lines, color combinations etc. What kind of themes could be studied & incorporated? Get some drama or fun into your design.

I love Interior Design, I always take digital photos of the room I'm designing a rug for, & an extra few of the surrounding rooms - to get a good sense of our clients style & taste - everbody is so different. And we all have different budgets. (This is an important point that I'll discuss later).

To get you started, I have created for you my Designer's Collection - complete with 50 designs! You can easily add & change color to these to present to your clients, either on photocopies, print outs or you can edit them on the computer.

From this collection you can easily create templates & away you go - making beautiful custom area rugs! The 50 designs range in levels of complexity, so you can start off with simple border designs, & advance up to the more complex and intricate designs that you see on our website.

I look forward to meeting you & talking about design!

Catherine Webb
Creative Director