Meet Your Hosts

My name is Gordon Bellows. I have a passion for area rugs and I have gained a fair amount of knowledge about them over the years. And now, I'd like to share that passion and that information with you.

Not many people knew this about me until I put up this website, but I get as much pleasure from looking at rug catalogs and online rug sources as I do from looking at tools and gadgets for my workshop.

My earliest memory about rugs was getting out of bed at my grandfather’s farm on a frosty morning before a fire was built in the coal stove (before they installed central heat). The floor was cold on my bare feet and a rag rug provided instant relief.

In grade school, a classmate brought a hand-made rug from Persia/Iran for show and tell. His family lived there when his father was a diplomatic officer.

It was a beautiful rug and it made a lasting impression on many of us. That’s when my fondness for area rugs took hold and started to grow.

Before that, I was only aware of the rag rugs at the farm, and a few common everyday throw rugs or scatter rugs in our city apartment.

I spent many years as the purchasing supervisor for a large vocational school. Then I switched careers and became an economic trends analyst. I wrote reports on economic trends and prepared short-term economic projections for various US metropolitan areas. By the way, studying economic trends is not the dull, boring work that most people envision! In 2002, I left the 8-to-5 world to focus on a few special projects, one of which is creating websites like this one.

Area rugs are great, but there is more to life than rugs. So, we have added a page that has nothing to do with rugs. The page includes a list of great sayings and words of wisdom. They’re some of our favorites and we feel that they’re worth sharing with you. There are also a few stories that are sure to tug at your heartstrings. Enjoy – there’s something for everybody.

Hello, my name is AnnaRae Mills. The name AnnaRae combines the middle names from each of my grandmothers. When Gordon asked if I would like to help him share tips and information about rugs by way of this website, it was like a dream come true. I like finding out more about my favorite things and then being able to share it with others.

In my early teens, an aunt gave me a latch hook rug kit as a present. At first I thought about how much work I had to do to get a finished product. I guess I was spoiled and wanted it done for me. Anyway, as I started to work on it, I realized how much I enjoyed it. I ended up with a decorative rug (I placed it where it wouldn't get walked on) and I learned a valuable lesson in the process. It didn't take long before making latch hook rugs from a kit became my favorite hobby.

I was about 17 when I participated in rug-making at a festival celebrating the American pioneers. It was a reenactment of pioneer life and how they did things as part of their daily life.

We made braided rugs from rags and I felt right at home. During my college years, I earned extra money in the summer by dressing up in pioneer garb and showing others how to make braided rugs at that same festival.

It should be no surprise that I went on to learn more about all types of rugs, their history, and how they're made. I might be a little biased, but I feel that rugs are one of the most important elements of home decorating. Rugs help you create whatever look you want for any room.
  
  
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