PURE Wool Rug Product Review

A couple of months ago Merida wool rugs contacted me, wanting to know if I wanted to check out their new line of eco friendly wool carpets.

So I went to their website to check things out. And I was intruiged with how eco friendly these rugs are. Plus, Merida is committed to lowering their own carbon footprint and reducing waste.

Before I get into all that, let’s take a look at the rug itself, and why it’s a green choice as far as rugs go.

The PURE Collection

Many people don’t realize how harmful traditional rugs and carpeting can be for their health, and the quality of their indoor air.

For instance, many traditional carpets and rugs are made using formaldehyde. The EPA has classified formaldehyde as a probable human carcinogen. The formaldehyde is used to help the fiber stick to the backing. But formaldehyde is also used heavily in pressed wood furniture (think Ikea), cabinetry, and even some insulations.

Traditional rugs and carpets also have bromated fire retardants, which are also linked with cancer and a wide variety of other health issues. And most are made using petroleum-based products.

Merida’s PURE line, which is made using natural wools, skips all this. Their rugs have extremely low VOC emissions, which means they’re using zero formaldehyde. And because wool is naturally fire retardant there’s no need for additional chemicals, so they skip that too.

The wool in their wool carpeting is also undyed. They only offer colors that come in natural sheep colors, which I love!

The rug’s backing is natural jute, and because they use a natural latex adhesive the rug is 100% biodegradable and compostable. But this thing is going to last a long, long time before you have to pitch it. The weave is incredibly tight, and you can tell it’s well made.

So How’d the Rug Hold Up With 3 Dogs?

It may not look like it, but that rug is actually sitting in a high traffic area. The dogs LOVE hanging out in this room, and like as not you can usually find at least one of them curled up on the rug, under the table.

With three dogs, and an off-white rug, you think there might be some staining. The lower right hand corner has taken a beating especially, since their water bowl is right there (out of the frame of the picture). And with a Mastiff, I’ll leave it to you to imagine the drool and water that has been spilled on that corner.

But do you see any stainingnin the picture above? Nope. Thanks to the fleckles in the rug’s fiber, so far it’s hiding stains pretty well. Merida makes other natural rugs, but their PURE line is by far their most green.

The picture below is another corner, where the dogs love to nap.

The slight shadow you see is just my own shadow as I took the pictures. So yeah, it’s holding up well.

What Merida is Doing to Be More Sustainable

I’m pretty impressed with what Merida is doing to become more sustainable.

First, the company has a director of sustainability that travels all over the world. According to Merida, his job is to visit their manufacturing facilities to make sure the workers have healthy working conditions, are fairly paid, and good living conditions.

The company is also currently sending their scrap wool to the Gulf to mop up oil. But before the Gulf Crisis, this scrap wool was donated to a knitting group in Fall River, MA that knits clothing for the homeless. I have never heard of any carpeting company doing this, and I love this idea!

Merida also uses their scrap wool to make rugs and carpets that are then donated to non-profits like Habitat for Humanity and Heading Home.

Yeah, there’s more…

The company has partnered with SaveThatStuff to reduce their footprint and recycle as much paper and other materials as they can. And they’re partnered up with 1% for the Planet, donating 1% of their profits to environmental causes.

So, color me impressed.

Last Word…

It’s safe to say I love this rug. It’s soft, it’s durable, and it’s not off gassing a lot of nasty fumes into my house.

I also admire what Merida is doing to offset their footprint and reduce their waste. And I LOVE that they’re donating their waste wool to be turned into new clothing or new rugs for people who really need them. That’s admirable. So, they get my thumbs up!