Chances are you’ve stepped on one of Emma Gardner’s rugs. The chief designer and principal of her Petaluma, Calif.-based eponymous design firm has created many rugs and carpets for high-end hotels, lobbies, retailers and even consumer homes since 2002, after making the switch from a career as an editor and illustrator.

“I took a somewhat circuitous route to arrive at making a career of what had come most naturally,” Gardner says. “It was a combination of that small flame that was always there, and … a pressing awareness when I became pregnant with my daughter that I had to make doing what I love my job.”

Gardner’s rugs swirl with original floral, geometric and organic, natural designs and are hand-knotted in Nepal using hand-carded, hand-spun, pot-dyed Tibetan wool and Chinese silk. While others are experimenting with recycled plastics and value-driven and sustainable materials like hemp and bamboo, she notes the materials she uses can’t be improved upon in terms of longevity and care: “There’s the wisdom of centuries in them.” Her company also creates rugs for manufacturer Surya that use tufted wool and cotton, which she explains are “less expensive but still retain a crispness of color and are materials that people can feel good about.”

Gardner’s work has won several awards, including Interior Design magazine’s Best of the Year in 2007 (and Merit awards in ’08 and ’10), the IIDEX/NeoCon Innovation award and placed in NeoCon’s Gold Awards. She’s also seen her underfoot creations in the pages of Elle Décor, House Beautiful, Dwell and Traditional Home. Next year, she’s launching a line of wallpaper with Dallas wallcoverings manufacturer Luxe Surfaces.

As for that moment when she sees someone tread on her masterpieces? “It’s interesting to see whether people notice what they’re walking on,” she says. “It’s like having a little secret, and it’s nice to see [the rugs] out there in the world, part of someone’s experience of a place.”

VMSD features three profiles on product designers from suppliers, manufacturers or distributors in the annual January Look Book issue. For more information on how to nominate a product designer to be featured in the 2017 Look Book, please contact the editorial staff via vmsd@stmediagroup.com.