Hello and welcome to The Living Rug Company
Hello! Welcome to The Living Rug Company.
Here you’ll find a little insight into who we are, what we do, and how this small but very special venture began.
The idea for The Living Rug Company first came to me in 2014. I had recently finished renovating our farmhouse, the children were heading off to university, and with my husband working away at that time, I suddenly found myself spending long, quiet days on the farm. I knew I wanted to create something rooted in the farm, something connected to my love of interiors and—of course—my love of sheep. Whatever I started had to be something I could learn myself, manage alone, and feel genuinely passionate about. I also knew I wanted it to be cruelty-free.
And so the name, and the idea, was born: The Living Rug Company—a completely new concept at the time.
From the very beginning, it was important to me that customers knew exactly what a “Living Rug” meant: a rug that comes only from sheep who have a permanent home for life, raised here on our farm. This business was always intended as a non-meat venture. Our sustainability comes from allowing the animals to live naturally, peacefully and fully—never at the cost of their lives or their offspring. A Living Rug isn’t a by-product of meat production; it is a celebration of the animal it comes from.
The journey to making them wasn’t simple. It took months of research, conversations with experts (including a few trips abroad), and plenty of trial and error. Everything is still done here on the farm, by hand, exactly as I always intended.
Quality has always been at the heart of what I do. I only produce rugs I would happily keep in my own home. That means no tolerance for imperfections and a cleaning process that often takes longer than the rug-making itself. Each rug is made with care, patience, and a genuine respect for the sheep it comes from.
Thankfully, people seem to appreciate that and rugs have travelled to homes all over the world, from New Zealand to Canada, across Europe and throughout the USA.
Over the years, my flock has naturally aged. Some of my original sheep are now elderly, and as I have no intention of increasing the flock, the number of fleeces I work with has slowly decreased. I call it my “decreasing flock”—a group of much-loved characters who have been with me for many years and who I’m committed to caring for as they reach old age. With fewer sheep and a gentler pace on the farm, I now make fewer rugs than I once did, but each one is still crafted with the same dedication and affection..
In 2020, I trademarked the name “Living Rug™” to protect the ethos and values behind it.
A true Living Rug can only come from here—from our flock, our farm, our story. Each piece carries with it provenance, quality, and a uniqueness that can only exist when the animal it came from is cherished throughout its entire life.
Our strapline still says it best:
No skin, just wool and love…
