We Just Learned How to Make the Floor of Your Home Breathe

Stare long enough, and the floor starts to move. A field of poppies flickers, their petals opening and closing like tiny lungs. Mushrooms twist through geometric undergrowth. A border of cannabis leaves coils at the edge, an emerald garland in slow motion. Commune’s Psychedelic Collection — its latest collaboration with British rug maker Christopher Farr — looks less woven than conjured.

“It was initially inspired by traditional Oriental rug patterns and the work of artists like William Morris,” says Commune cofounder Roman Alonso from the design firm’s Los Angeles studio. “We always felt they seemed ‘created under the influence’ because of their wild intricacy, and how they celebrate not only the beauty of nature but ‘the unseen’ in it.”

Morris, a 19th-century British designer and leader of the Arts and Crafts movement, believed everyday objects should carry the same artistry as fine art — patterned, handcrafted, rooted in natural design and elements. His richly detailed textiles and wallpapers turned vines, flowers, and foliage into near-psychedelic repeats long before the word existed. Commune’s rugs trace that same lineage: craftsmanship as a portal, decoration as devotion.

That unseen runs through the collaboration, which reimagines poppies, cannabis, and psilocybin mushrooms as symbols of beauty and intelligence rather than as taboos. “We wanted to take beautiful elements in nature… which might be overlooked or culturally maligned because of their hidden properties, and elevate them through the highest possible levels of craft,” Alonso says.

Amplifying what’s hidden isn’t only an aesthetic; it also speaks to experimentation. Alonso’s connection to psychedelics reaches back decades and remains central to how he views life and his work. “I have great appreciation for the mind-altering properties of plants and have been using psychedelics for decades,” Alonso says. “They continue to play a big part in how I see the world and are inherent to my creative process.” He calls them “spiritual and visual enhancers — tools used to tune out distractions and see the world through clear eyes or look within myself without judgment.”

The discipline of design and the openness of altered states coexist easily for him. “At one point in my life, living in NY and working in PR, the intuitive and spiritual was hard to access, and I was very discontent,” Alonso says. “Moving to California and bringing creativity into my life changed everything. Creativity is the bridge between the two.”

That bridge is exemplified in the rugs themselves. They carry a distinctly West Coast sensibility — nature-rooted, handmade, quietly radiant — and are already appearing in Commune’s interiors. “They’ll become part of our visual language,” Alonso says. “This collection is for the free thinkers, the artists, the poets, and the lovers. Thank you, Mother Nature.”

From that personal lens, Alonso describes the word psychedelic as a way of perceiving. “In a way, all those things as they connect to experiencing nature in a heightened state, whether it’s through the spiritual, or through science, or the mind-altering.” Commune’s work has always carried that awareness — an attention sharpened by California light. “Living in California, we have a close and daily connection to nature, and the light feels so unique, especially at sunset,” he says. “The way we see colors and texture — the rugs were created to celebrate that.”

Christopher Farr has been part of Commune’s circle for years. “Not only do we appreciate the high quality of their product,” Alonso says of the storied rugmaker, “but Christopher has assembled an amazing group of artists and designers… We are proud to be part of their roster.” The collaboration is built on a shared respect for craft and the individuals who practice it.

“These rugs take years of collaboration,” Alonso explains. “This collection took three years.” Swatches traveled between Europe, the United Kingdom, and Los Angeles as weavers tested colors, textures, and density. “It’s such an interesting and fun process, very rewarding, but it requires patience.” The Poppy rug glimmers with random threads of silk; Weed is hand-shaved so its leafy border rises in soft relief; Mushroom doubles its knot density to 150 per inch. “When I look at a particularly large version of this rug, I can’t help but think of the artisans painstakingly working on it inch by inch,” Alonso says. “It’s mind-blowing to me.”

Color became its own kind of psychedelia. “The color tests are always surprising… We love unexpected color combinations and using what we call ‘old lady’ colors,” Alonso says. “A dusty rose with a citrine and a dash of peach, then throw a deep orange or purple on that, and what you get is definitely psychedelic.”

The collection draws from multiple histories at once: the Arts and Crafts movement, the intricate geometry of traditional Oriental carpets, and the hand-drawn graphic art of 1960s California counterculture. “We were looking at the Arts and Crafts movement… and our fascination with traditional Oriental carpets,” Alonso explains. “We are also big fans of the graphic arts from 1960s California counterculture… That period was essentially a revival of those elements ‘enhanced’ by psychedelics.”

The finished rugs were photographed inside J.B. Blunk’s hand-built home in Marin County, where everything — furniture, doorways, even the tools — was shaped by hand. The setting echoes the collection’s spirit: material, textured, alive. “If you enjoy color and texture, the rugs are a great start for achieving a layered interior,” Alonso says. “Comfort and joy… what else is there?”

Psychedelics have drifted from the counterculture into everyday conversation, but the feeling they evoke remains continually new: time-bending, edges softening, the ordinary suddenly glowing. Commune’s Psychedelic Collection captures a little of that movement. Look long enough, and the surface seems to shift, like falling through a pattern, or down a rabbit hole, until seeing itself becomes the trip.

💌 If you loved this email, forward it to a psychonaut in your life.

Editorial Process

DoubleBlind is a trusted resource for news, evidence-based education, and reporting on psychedelics. We work with leading medical professionals, scientific researchers, journalists, mycologists, indigenous stewards, and cultural pioneers. Read about our editorial policy and fact-checking process here.