Carpet Colour Advice?

I put a light brown carpet that has little flecks of maroon, navy, and forest green in it in my basement and love it. The brown is almost a camel color so it's nice and neutral, not too light/not too dark, and little flecks of color make it interesting and hide any little marks, pet hair, and the small threads and things that invariably end up on the floor in a bedroom between vacuumings. Even dirty dog footprints don't show when the dog gets let in without having his feet wiped (I really have to look for them to get them cleaned up) I have the same color carpet in a solid without the flecks upstairs, and it's still pretty and a nice neutral, but you can see little spots and things much more easily - I know exactly when someone broke the rules and ate crackers in the living room.

Our house came with cream carpet in the bedrooms and it's the worst!! I don't allow food or drinks other than water in the kids rooms and their carpets still look terrible even after having them cleaned.