If you have been following along on Instagram, it’s no secret that I am rug obsessed! You know that I often switch it up and love showing you the latest finds. Well, after realizing that I get a lot of similar questions in my DM’s, like “what size should I choose?”, “how do I create cohesion with the rugs I choose?”, “why are rugs so expensive?!”… I thought I would compile my answers here for all to view! And of course, share my favorite rug finds with you!
Creating Cohesion With Rugs
- Like with all room designs, choose a color palette for your home and stick to those color tones. If you don’t yet have a color palette across your furniture and decor, stick to both neutral colors and solid patterns in your rugs.
- What feeling do you want each room to evoke? Knowing if you desire a sense of calm or a sense of excitement and interest will help you decide the right rug for you!
- Know your home design style. Are you a Minimalist and lover of all things neutral? Choose patternless rugs, white rugs and jute fiber rugs. Play more with texture here than pattern. This will not only lend to your style, but also create a feeling of calm and peace. Perhaps your style is California Casual, so choose earthy color tones, vintage finds, and layer your rugs together. These types of rugs will give your space character and charm, while blending in.
- After your color tones and style of rug is decided, choose your rug thickness. We use cozy, thick rugs (like a knit rug) for the bedroom or family room, durable low pile rugs for your dining room and kitchen runners, and high-end handwoven rugs for the living room.
- Choose your patterns sparingly. Oftentimes I see geometric rugs paired with floral pattern rugs, paired with shag rugs, handwoven rugs and printed rugs. Cohesion is achieved through complementary color tones and patterns.
Sample of a Minimalist home rug design:
Choosing the Right Rug Size + Furniture Placement
If you have hardwood floors, you probably have a lot of rugs in your home. It gets even trickier if you have an open-concept floor plan. But there is good news! Rugs not only help ground the space, pulling all your furniture elements together, they also define a space through their texture, size and placement. Rather than reinvent the wheel, visit this site to get a full overview of the right rug size for your furniture.
Can I Layer My Rug Over Carpet?
Yes, definitely. We do this often in bedrooms and it serves to create both visual interest and added warmth to the room. We use flat weave, low pile rugs, and we especially love patterned Oushak rugs! They are thin, so they are the perfect layering rug.
Check out how Studio McGee layers rugs over carpet, below!
Worth The Cost?
The bigger the rug the larger the investment. It can be shocking to see certain rug prices, and sometimes they may be the most expensive item in a room. The more labor and time that goes into the rug, the more costly it will be.
- Handwoven rugs, beautiful woven tapestries, will be the most expensive due to their unique, time-intensive patterns. If you appreciate rugs as art, then it is definitely worth the investment!
- Printed rugs are all the rage right now due to their ability to look like the real thing for a fraction of the cost. Think Loloi, Ruggable, etc…Will you get the same look and feel? No. But they can absolutely make a statement and create the effect you’re looking for!
- Lastly, if you are looking for a bargain on vintage rugs and trying to achieve the Studio Mcgee look, then look no further than Etsy. Many sellers on Etsy sell the most stunning one-of-a-kind Oushak rugs.
T’s Tips
- Don’t skimp on the rug pads or these rug stickies …they are genius and will save you from tripping over your new rug.
- I love to layer soft rugs over jute rugs in the living room! Typically, I use a lower cost 9×12 Jute Woven Rug and add a 8×10 patterned or colored rug over it. Why? It makes the space appear larger, creates more warmth through added textiles, and creates dimension through fabric and elevation change. Also, one-of-a-kind Oushak rugs typically do not come in standard sizes and they are very thin, so layering it over 9×12 helps! See below!
Rug Roundup
