Deciding which rug to use in a room can be overwhelming. Once you start looking you’ll find that there are several sizes, styles and colors to choose from. Whether you are buying the rug first and using it as inspiration for the room or buying the rug last and using it to tie all the elements of the room together – getting the size right is important. Remember, your rug is the foundation and anchor to the space – so it needs to be in proportion to the space to properly balance the room.
Livingrooms
A common mistake people make are purchasing rugs that are too small because 5×7’s and 6x9’s tend to be less expensive than 8x10’s or 9x12’s. However, bigger is often better. Here are some tips that may help your search for the right rug:
- Measure the size of your SEATING AREA before shopping and get the closest size up from that. If your budget is tight and your room is small you can have a smaller rug that floats in front of all the furniture – this is especially ok if your sofa is backed up against the wall – you don’t need to waste the rug real estate under the sofa if you can’t even see that its there. But if your furniture is floating or if your room is big, get a larger rug or else it will make the room look smaller, chopped up and totally out of proportion.
- Make sure that your rug has at least 6-10″ on either side of the sofa. This is crucial. If the width of the rug is the same as the width of the sofa then it will look too small and create a bowling alley effect.
- Square rugs are for square rooms. Round rugs are for foyers and entries or kids room and family rooms that are more playful (or round shaped rooms).
- Legs on or legs off? BE CONSISTENT. If you don’t have a massive rug that fits all your furniture then make sure that you are at least consistent with how you handle the legs.
- If your sofa legs are off, have the chair legs off the rug as well
- If your sofa is all on the rug, then you can’t have the chairs all off or it will really chop up the conversation area.
- If you’re only putting the front legs on make sure the rug is big enough to go half way to the back legs. The rug can appear to be too small if the legs sit just on the edge of the rug.
- When in doubt – tape it off. Using painter’s tape outline where you would like the rug to be. This will also allow you to visualize the proportions of the space with the area rug. Once you have the tape in place measure the size, you might be surprised by how large an area rug you need – but don’t downgrade the size of the rug to fit your budget. Remember to keep the proportions or your room may feel smaller.
Dining Rooms
When choosing an area rug for the dining room, first measure your table then add 36 to 48 inches to both the length and width. This may sound like a lot but remember that when you pull a chair out from the table you don’t want its legs catching on the edge of the rug.
Bedrooms
The bedroom offers many options for rug placement. The preferred and most popularly accepted way is laying the rug perpendicular to the bed and pulling it half way under – stopping before your side tables. This maximizes the amount of useable rug – giving your soft, plush goodness to get out of bed on. You have a nice anchoring frame to your bed while still accenting your floors.
For a queen size bed – 8x10 allows you to have 2’6” on each side of the bed and 3’6” at the end of the bed. For a king size bed - a 9x12 allows you to have 2’10” on each side of the bed and 4’ at the end of your bed. Of course, the amount of rug at the end of the bed depends on how close you bring the rug up to the side tables. Ideally, you just want to make sure that your feet land on it when you get out of bed.
Selecting Your Style – Picking the Pretty
If you are having difficulty finding the right size of area rug, consider customizing an area rug – it can be the exact size you want down to inches. Any carpet that we offer in our showroom is a possibility. Add a punch of color to your space or use a textured pattern to create drama.
Some manufacturer’s make the area rug in their facilities to the exact specifications you need and ship it direct to our door and others are sent out locally to be made.
It’s All In The Details
- Binding – this edging option is cost effective and standard on most area rugs. Nylon fabric tape is folded over the edge of the carpet and sown in place.
- Serging - this edging option will give your rug a more custom look. Thick thread is wound around the edge of the rug.
- Leather or Fabric Border – this edging is made of faux leather or cotton twill tape up to 3” wide giving a framed look to the area rug.
- Backing - Whatever you choose for an area rug always remember to protect the flooring underneath it. You can do this by choosing a rug with a soft felt backing or by using an underlay product designed to protect your flooring. We do not recommend the use of the waffle non slip mats as these can damage the hard surface underneath your rug.
Standard Binding Serging Leather or Fabric Border
