MHOI
fCarastan Stresses Elegance In Fall Lines
“Yorktown Hall” is the name given to this block rose
bouquet design in Karastan’s “Constitution Classics,” a
new collection of traditional patterns. Woven on a new
“gripper Axminster” loom of skein-dyed pure wool face
yarns, it presents the roses on an ebony black ground
framed by lines of a Sienna Brown laurel leaf.
For its new “Excellency Collection” of high-perform
ance commercial/residential carpets, Karastan has used
its revolutionary Bondi System for an exceptionally dense
cut-pile fabric of 100% Antron nylon face yarns.
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For its Fall ’74 carpet and rug fashions, Kara
stan takes a proud look at America’s heritage
with an emphasis on the gracious lifestyle of
the early days of the Republic.
According to Robert V. Dale, vice president
of styling and design for Karastan, “The nation’s
upcoming Bicentennial Celebration in 1976 has
played an important role in our retrospective
move to the beautiful designs and styles of the
late 18th and early 19th centuries.
“But, equally important in guiding us has been
the renewed interest by American homemakers
in traditional. Colonial and classically formal
furnishings along with a pronounced desire for
elegance in their surroundings.”
In response to this mood, Karastan is intro
ducing for the Fall: a collection of traditional
floral patterned carpets and rugs called “Con
stitution Classics,” an ultra-luxurious plush
broadloom featuring a formal damask pattern
named “Empereau”, and a fringed and bor
dered multi-dimensional textured area rug in
spired by an antique brocade which is named
“Repartee.” All of these introductions high
light skein-dyed wool surface yarns.
The stress of elegance is seen in several of
the other new fashions. A sumptuous textured
plush called “Paramour” with an unusual
ly “soft hand” made from a special nylon yarn,
and an opulent wool textured plush named
“Grandeau” also contribute to this gracious
feeling in Karastan’s introductions, according
to Mr. Dale.
Somewhat less formal, but equally stylish,
are an exciting new area rug called “Maroc”
which features a native geometric design com
bined with striking mixtures of Berber natural
yam colors, and a new broadloom with the
name “Bolereau” which Mr. Dale describes
as a “modern twist carpet with a personality”
that is highlighted by fresh colorations.
Also debuting for the fall is a series of car
pets designed for heavy-duty service in com
mercial spaces and the home.
“Totally different,” according to Mr. Dale,
is a new group of brilliant multi-color patterns
called the “Excellency Collection”. The
“fantastically” dense carpets are made on Kara
stan’s revolutionary “Bondi System,” a complete
ly unique method for making patterned carpets
recently introduced by the company. An eye
catching “escutcheon” and an abstract “patina”
floral design, both with “smashing colorways,”
are the initial patterns in the collection.
Another of the versatile high-performance
contract/residential qualities named “Dureau”
offers a handcrafted look as the result of a
dense textured pile of bulky loops and the use
of the Berber natural yarn colors.
Karastan has re-engineered and re-styled its
series of “Essentiale” broadlooms, and is
introducing three markedly different versions
all woven on Karastan’s unique Kara-loc loom.
Here are details of Karastan’s carpet and rug
fashions for Fall ’74:
Constitution Classics
As the name suggests, Constitution Classics
is a collection of traditional patterns that hark
back to the years of the newly-formed United
States. The collection is being introduced with
two patterns, both woven on a new “Gripper
Axminster” loom recently imported from Great
Britain. One design called “Yorktown Hall”
presents a formal rose bouquet in a block pat
tern on an ebony black ground. Each bouquet is
framed by lines of a Sienna Brown laurel leaf.
This motif, Mr. Dale noted, can actually be
traced to French Savonnerie designs, typical of
those found in the stately American manors of
the late 18th century.
The other rug design is called “Lancas
ter Grove”. This is also a floral formed in
repeated blocks. But here the “stencil” pattern
favored in Pennsylvania Dutch art and Early
American samplers exerts a strong influence.
The colorations are red, green and yellow on an
ivory ground.
Both designs, woven of skein-dyed face yarns
of pure wool, will be available in 12-foot width
broadlook and in five rug sizes, cut with natural
color fringe on both ends. Mr. Dale pointed out
that these patterns make ideal rugs because of
the repeated block motif.
‘“rhe new patterns will go beautifully with all
traditional furniture,” Mr. Dale said. “This in
cludes English, French and Colonial — Queen
Anne, Chippendale, Directorie, Empire, Federal
and even Victorian,” he added.
Excellency Collection
These are the first of a group of commercial/
residential multi-color carpets made on the
revolutionary Bondi System, a Karastan exclusive.
It takes advantage of the system’s ability to
produce an exceptionally dense fabric engineered
for heavy traffic use in such public interiors as
hotel corridors as well as on stairs and hallways
in the home.
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“Lancaster Grove” is what Karastan calls this tradi
tional pattern in its new “Constitution Classics collec
tion. Woven on a new “gripper Axminster’ loom
dyed pure wool face yarns, it features a block floral de
sign with the strong influence of the “stencil pattern
found in Pennsylvania Dutch and Early American samplers.
MONDAY, JULY 15, 1974
Karastan borrowed from an old French brocade pattern
in designing “Repartee.” This elegant area rug uses a
multi-dimensional texture combining cut and looped pile
yarns of pure wool. It is Kara-loc woven and comes in
nine skein-dyed colorations with matching fringe on the
ends.