Thank You Uncle Sam

In the midst of all the depressing financial reports, JP and I received some great news from our accountant: we're getting a rather big tax refund.

Glory Hallelujah, we can finally replace the carpet in the bedrooms! That carpet has seen us through many Furber family events: it was here when we brought Katie home from the hospital, it has been with us through hundreds of Friday movie nights, it has been spilled on, barfed on, and walked on with muddy shoes. Thanks for the memories, but good riddance.

The research now starts on what to replace it with that will look great and be durable enough to handle three kids, a dog with the occasional bout of incontinence, and Jack's bare feet after he spends hours in the driveway shooting hoops with no shoes on.

I've ruled out broadloom carpet because that's what I have now and it's a mess, Berber because Jasper will no doubt pull the loops out with his teeth or toenails, and hardwood because we don't have radiant heat in the bedrooms so the floors get cold. I've narrowed it down to three choices that are all sustainable, durable, stain resistant and in keeping with the general wabi-sabiness of my house:

FLOR tiles



Seagrass Wall to Wall



Cork Flooring


All three will look great in my house and will stand up to all the abuse that my family will inflict upon the flooring once it's installed. And all three will be immensely better than the yucky mess that's in my bedrooms now. That's one family heirloom I'll be glad to be rid of.

I'm leaning heavily toward seagrass, as it will look the best with our decor. I'll be standing watch at the mailbox with cell phone in hand, ready to dial Diablo Flooring the minute our refund arrives.

My Favorite Accessory -- The Sheepskin Throw

My husband and I generally aren't big spenders, but we do have a weakness for real estate. Consequently, we've got a few residences to maintain (and a beautiful lot in Ketchum, Idaho that's on the market, if anyone's looking). So the challenge of decorating a home that works for a family and still looks great replays itself over and over in my life as I roam from San Francisco to Sun Valley to Olympia and back.

One item I've found that is universally useful, comfortable and kid-proof in all our locations is the classic sheepskin throw.


We use them on the floor as rugs, but also:
Thrown over chairs they made a super comfy and soft place to sit
We always have one draped over the foot of our bed in the winter to keep our feet extra warm.
Sometimes I'll throw one on the floor in front of the fireplace and make a little nest for Katie to snuggle into.
Jasper has now adopted one in the the bedroom has his resting place in the evenings.
And my favorite use: in a pinch, I'll throw one over the sofa in the family room if one of the kids has wiped their face on the slipcover and I don't have a minute to wash it.

Sheepskins are especially great for babies, as they absorb 30% of their own weight in moisture, so they create a nice, natural dry zone around the baby.

Our sheepskins take a beating, but they're machine washable, so just a spin through the wash and a few strokes with a wire dog brush and they're good as new. I think every family should have a stockpile of sheepskin throws in their home, so I've compiled the Furber Family Guide to Buying a Sheepskin Throw below:

When buying a sheepskin, there are a few things you should consider:
Sheepskin rugs from sheep-producing countries such as Australia, New Zealand or the United Kingdom are almost always higher in overall quality than rugs produced other places. It's not the sheep that are different, but sheep producing countries have centuries of sheep shearing traditions that newer industries often lack. In many cases, imported sheepskin rugs have been subjected to old fashioned washings in local waters and multiple dryings and combings.

The most important consideration when buying a sheepskin is comfort, so the overall texture of quality sheepskin rugs should be soft and pliable. The piling should be neatly combed, with very little to no shedding. Beware of any backing material that feels rubberized or artificial.

I've found that sheepskin throws range in price from the very inexpensive to the very expensive, but there's a middle ground of $50 to $100 per rug that looks great, wears well and lasts. Good resources for sheepskins in that price range are:
Pottery Barn
Ikea
SheepskinTown.com

All are very similar in quality and price, and are usually in stock so if you start right now you can be lounging with your sheepskins by next Friday night.

Get the Hose!

My husband and I have always said our ideal flooring would be cement with a drain in the middle.

However, so far that hasn't really fit with the casual, comfy home we're trying to build for our family. Maybe for the grandkids. So for now, we use rugs like everyone else, and they tend to move through stages just like our kids do:
When my children were tiny, I wanted my flooring to be super soft so they could roll around on it.
When they were a little older, I wanted rugs with pretty patterns so the kids could spill on them and the spills were invisible (for the most part.)
Now that they're even older, I like natural flooring because it's very durable, always looks great and is very easy to clean.

Lately, I've had a new selection criteria: I want my flooring to be free of chemicals and any other artificial stuff so the kids can lounge around on the floor and I don't have to worry. There are lots of good natural rugs on the market now, and they're very easy to find:

Starting with the youngest lifestage, babies crawling on the floor, I've always loved Sheepskin rugs. They're super soft, they're organic, they don't shed, you can wash them, and kids love them. When my daughter Andie was a new baby I always had a sheepskin in front of the big mirror in the bathroom so she could look at herself in the mirror while I showered.

I still have them all over my house -- right now my little Katie is asleep on a sheepskin rug on the floor next to me.


Natural flooring is great for families like mine, and can be easily found in all ranges of quality, from a natural resource like Gaiam to a big retailer like Pottery Barn. Look for the softer sustainable materials like jute and seagrass -- they feel better on your feet than sisal. If your natural fiber rug is backed with latex, this is one place where I'd recommend a synthetic material. Natural latex breaks down over time into a fine white powder, whereas synthetic lasts as long as your rug will, which is a long time.


Gaiam also has this super cool shag rug that's made from unused t-shirt remnants, a by-product of the garment industry.


A new option on the scene is Flor tiles. They have some nice natural fiber options, are made up partly of recycled materials, and don't smell like new carpet because they have the lowest VOC in the industry. FLOR tiles are the next best thing to my hoseable cement floor fantasy.


Another option to consider is a Vintage rug. Vintage rugs can be very expensive, but there are many reasons to love them: they're beautiful and can be handed down through your family, they have intricate patterns and deep colors so they hide all your family's sins, and they already show the signs of a lifetime of use. Very wabi-sabi. Another nice benefit to a vintage rug is the environmental protection aspect -- not producing something new is the best way to limit the impact of consumer goods manufacturing on Mother Nature. It's always good to love your Mother.


Until I get my drain, I'll be settling for natural flooring, sheepskins and will be shopping for a vintage kilim for my living room. But I'll be dreaming of that day when someone makes a mess and I can just shout to my husband "get the hose!"