Meet the Artist: Paige Carter, Bog Dog Designs

Another amazing booth at the Duxbury Art Association Craft Show this weekend was that of Paige Carter, of Bog Dog Design. Paige creates hand painted floor cloths. Durable and highly decorative, floor cloths, originally made from left over sail cloth, were popular during Colonial times. In many cases, they were the poor mans tapestry and woven carpets; their design hindered only by the talent of the painter and available pigment paints. They mostly went out with the advent of linoleum and wall to wall carpet, however, they have recently made a comeback.

Paige Carter has been painting floor cloths for twelve years and loves not only the painting process, but also the functionality of the product. Paige does many special commissions for private clients. Her process involves a meeting with the client, taking into account their interior decor such as wallpaper, fabrics and color palette and together they come up with a design. The canvas is prepared with gesso, the decorative painting in acrylic paints and the piece is hemmed and finished with five coats of varnish and sometimes a wax for extra durability.

This AMAZING piece “Heron’s Runner” is what really caught my eye in Paige’s booth. Based on an Arts and Crafts wallpaper, this floor cloth would be spectacular on the floor or the wall. I was there right in the nick of time to take pics, as this beautiful work of art was snatched up by a local art lover for her very lucky daughter. She said her daughters’ home is a vintage Victorian and this piece will be absolutely perfect for the entry hall. As I said, lucky daughter!

Detail of “Heron’s Runner”

Paige’s style runs a wide gamut from historical styles such as the Arts and Crafts work above, to botanicals to the whimsical, as shown by the duckies above. I first saw her work in a decorator show house children’s room. I was so happy to run into her again!