Revolution Heather by Condor Carpets

The original Revolution Twist by Condor Carpets has been extremely popular since its launch about three years ago. A 26oz 4 and 5 metre wide twist was always excellent value and heavily stocked by most wholesalers in the country.

Just when the colour bank was beginning to look a little off the pace, Condor have launched Revolution Heather to fill the void and target the increasing market that seems to demand the heathered look at a budget price.

Not that this range is right at the bottom, far from it as there are quite a few twists at a lighter weight and aimed at the real bottom rung of the ladder. This twist manages to deliver just enoughin terms of reasonable wear and appearance and it’s always excellent value.

Realistically you should be faced with a price of £8-£12 per square metre for it and when lined up against other carpets at the same price point, it is a really good buy.

Of the new colours, Damson 215 is a winner (a really big trend towards this kind of stuff right now), but as ever the browns are going to be the real big sellers, with Espresso 292 looking to be the pick of the bunch.

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Kreta III Shadow ITC Carpets

Kreta, the budget shadow pile from ITC carpets, has been running for around 3 years now and its new incarnation has just been released – imaginatively called ‘Kreta III.’

As far as I can tell the only major change is the colour choice, with a definite shift towards softer and more natural shades. I’ve scanned in a sample of colour 91 Slate here:

Budget Shadow Pile - Kreta from ITC

It’s not bad for the asking price (expect to pay £9-£13 square metre), comes 4 metres wide and is now available on fel back only.

Shadows are nowhere near as popular as they once were and not everyone wants to head up towards £20 for Associated Weavers’ California Dreams and New Territories, as good as they are.

I expect this will sell to older customers and probably go down in quite a few sheltered accomodation jobs!

It features a 5 year Wear Warranty from ITC and features ‘bounce back fibre’ apparently. It is rated haevy domestic (surprise surprise!), but I would recommend it for bedroom usage and perhaps for an older couple or single person where wear is not a major consideration.

I’m glad it is around though as it gives us a budget end shadow that isn’t as flimsy as say ‘Carma’ or ‘Quebec.’

Krerta III

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Dublin Twist

Dublin Twist has long been the main budget twist pile carpet sold across the UK, or at the very least in the North of England. In spite of the name, it is not made in Ireland, but in Belgium by Beaulieu International Group/Ideal Carpets.

If you are in the trade then you know all about it. For many it is the standard option to show people when they want something as cheap as possible. There are actually carpets that we can buy cut lengths of for less now, yet still a lot of retailers insist on advertising and showing this carpet to customers. The larger carpet retailers also run it.

It’s now available 4m or 5m wide and comes in around 20 shades and a choice of Action or Felt backing. The pile weight is a mega-low 13oz and yet still most sample books label this as heavy domestic. It is astonishing that this carpet can be labelled ‘heavy domestic’ and surely this makes a mockery of this entire system of carpet classification. If you are a propspective carpet buyer then pay no attention to what the label says in terms of ‘heavy domestic’ – almost every carpet claims this and it means virtually nothing.

The problem with Dublin is that it almost always looks terrible and lasts no time at all. Often it looks lined and shaded as soon as it is laid (some colours seem more prone to this than others) and if you go ahead with it then I can’t imagine you will be happy with the finished job. At best you will be satisfied. I don’t even think that it does a job at a price.

I’d definitely go with a cheap natural if you are looking to tidy a property up to sell rather than Dublin. At least they don’t look shaded immediately, but they won’t stand up very well over time either. Landlords often choose one or the other. If you can afford it, then try and step up a couple of pounds a metre to something like Revolution Twist, Wembley Twist or even Fiesta Twist. While you will pay more, they are easier to look after, look pretty good when fitted and will last at least twice as long, possibly three times as long as Dublin. In a tenanted property you will only get one tenant’s worth out of Dublin (if that), whereas the others may well be able to be used again. Buying Dublin Twist in my opinion is a false economy.

To sum this up then:

If you want a cheap carpet on a really tight budget – There is a new twist called Bali (AKA Kildare), which is better and also you could look at a cheap natural like Madrid, Buxton or Palma.

If you are a landlord – Try Revolution, Wembley or Fiesta as Dublin will cost you way more in the long run.

If you are doing it up to sell – Go for a cheap natural like Madrid, Buxton or Palma.

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