Narrative Threads Blog
Scroll through our Narrative Threads blog to enjoy behind-the-scenes insight on special projects for leading interior designers and architects.
CARING FOR WOOL CARPETS WITH CONFIDENCE
Creative Matters has used wool in our floor coverings for over 35 years, highlighting our dedication to this natural material. Over the years, we have worked closely with The International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTO), the leading global authority on wool standards. In 2022, Creative Matters' founder, Carol Sebert, was appointed chairperson of the Wool Interiors Working Group. This group includes members from 41 countries and collaborates with the IWTO Sustainability Group.
Recently, Carol spearheaded the creation of the IWTO Wool Carpet Care Guide with a group of the world’s leading industry experts and WoolSafe, an organization dedicated to advanced research into the care of wool products.
LOOKING BACK ON 2023, OUR 35TH YEAR OF EXCEPTIONAL RUG DESIGN
As 2023 draws to a close, our team is reflecting on a momentous year. Filled with groundbreaking achievements, innovative designs, and a transformative shift in leadership, the past 12 months have been enriched with great success and creativity.
THE END OF AN ERA AS FOUNDER CAROL SEBERT CLOSES HER CHAPTER AT CREATIVE MATTERS
After an incredible 35 years at the helm of Creative Matters and on the world stage of floor covering design, it is with mixed emotions we announce that Carol Sebert is moving on to other creative endeavours. While Carol creates more beautiful art in her studio at an old Ontario country house, Managing Partners Ana Cunningham and Ali McMurter are well-prepared to lead the firm into an exciting future. We asked Carol to look back on some key moments that made Creative Matters what it is today.
WHY WE THINK WOOL IS BEST
Since Creative Matters opened its doors 35 years ago, the vast majority of our floor coverings have been made from wool. This includes our custom projects for hotels, offices, retail spaces and homes, and our 14 rug collections. We sat down with Carol Sebert, Managing Partner and Founder of the firm, to discuss the reasons for this decision both historically and moving forward.
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.
OUR FAVOURITE DESIGNS OF 2021
Although 2021 was particularly challenging, it was remarkable how our clients and suppliers around the world - along with our team in Toronto - came together to create some of the best floor and wall coverings ever. We asked the three Creative Matters Managing Partners to choose 9 favourites.
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.
WELCOME CANADIAN WOOL COLLECTION
When our President Carol Sebert met Matthew Rowe from Campaign for Wool - Canada at the opening of our new showroom in September 2019, little did we know that a year later we would be launching a capsule collection of rugs made from 100% Canadian wool.
OUR RAVEN RUG TAKES FLIGHT
We were delighted to debut our Raven rug at the Maison&Objet design show in Paris last month. Raven is the first in a series of rugs we are currently calling The Storytelling Collection. Each of the rugs will be based on the artwork of a Canadian indigenous artist and recreated in a handtufted or handknotted technique.
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.