It took me almost 20 years and 12 houses before I believed in the power of a large rug.
Before that I thought rugs were just decor or just something soft. If I thought my floors were pretty then I didn’t use a rug. Or, if my floors were already soft–with carpet I also saw no need for a rug. It literally felt like a waste to me. IF I did decide to add a rug, out of respect for our budget, I always bought the smallest rug I could. I didn’t realize what a disservice I was doing to our home.
UNTIL.
Until one day, I decided to look at my Pinterest board full of rooms I loved, and then compare that to my own family room that I did not love. I realized that 100% of the rooms I had pinned had huge rugs on the floor.
WHAT?!
My subconscious was telling me that I actually DID like rugs, I just hadn’t realized it yet.
Now, rugs are one of the main purchase I save for in a room. For 80% of the rooms in our home–especially bedrooms, the living room, family room, dining room, big bathrooms–I know those rooms will never feel done to me until they have a rug. A big one.
Rugs are added in step 3 of the Order of Decor, (click here to download the order of decor printable) after furniture–because your seating, surfaces & storage will literally TELL YOU where to put your rug and how big is should be– and before pretty much everything else.
Here are the rugs I’m currently using in our home along with my unfiltered reviews:
- Hawthorn Striped Wool Rug by Lauren Liess: Primary Bedroom. I LOVE how this rug looks, I’m always worried rugs will be too dark, and this one is light enough to make the room brighter, but not so light it will get filthy. I’m using this rug over carpet and it adds such a fun graphic feel to our bedroom.
- Amber Lewis x Loloi Honora Grey/Beige: Family Room. This rug surprised me. The price is amazing, it’s plush, doesn’t wrinkle (we have the largest size) it’s gloriously neutral while still adding interest and cleans like a breeze with my little green carpet machine.
- Senna Hand-Knotted Wool Rug: Downstairs bath. Design-wise, this is my FAVORITE rug. I love the masculine lines and it’s surprisingly soft and probably the most well made out of all the rugs I have. We have a tiny size in our bathroom. I wish I could afford to have it in a big huge room, but it’s $$$$$.
- Zebra Print Cowhide: Snug & Family Room (I have 2). Great layering piece if you are like me and major in contrast and graphic interest but are obsessed with neutrals. Yes please.
5. Robyn Wool Rug by Emily Henderson: Laundry room. Welp, I’m still waiting for this one to be delivered. It’s a brand new line and I preordered it, mostly because I only need a small size and I’m willing to be wrong. I’m believing that I will love it and it will be fun over my diamond pattered floor. No reviews yet since it’s new, I’ll keep you posted.
6. Keyara Spill Proof Washable Rug: Primary Bath. Don’t hate me, but I’ve absolutely hated the look and idea of washable rugs since their release. But I decided to give one a try. I completely get the appeal. Does it look fakely printed? 10000%, will it be convenient? Yep.
7. Davina Damask Sage – Livabliss x Becki Owens: Gavin’s Room. This rug is fine. I was in a hurry and needed a big rug that could be delivered fast and although it’s pretty, I think it wasn’t the right choice for my personal style.
8. White Cowhide: Primary Bedroom. Our bedroom is massive and in order to extend out the part where the sitting area is, I needed to layer a rug on top of the first rug up there–enter the white cowhide. Basically it’s like an invisible ghost that allows furniture to be brought together.
9. Loloi Teagan Collection in Ivory/Sand: My office. This rug is a bit more muted with cooler undertones in person. I really like the colors, it did arrive with wrinkles and most have fallen out but it took work and some are still there. Also I got a huge size–10x 14? Which means for an inexpensively made rug like this it’s more common to wrinkle. I still am really happy with the design.
If you’d like to see my rugs in my home, I just added a walk through video of my house in the Cozy Community. I share every rug, how it’s placed in my room and what it looks like in real life. If you are a member, you’ll be able to find that video in the Order of Decor Class in Phase 3 in the Academy of Home AND in the facebook group under featured posts. More about the class & community here.
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Rug Pads: I use them everywhere unless I’m layering a rug over carpet. These are my favorite.
The carpet in my house: read more here.
I purchased three custom cut rugs from the previous owners of our house, here’s a reel about them. It was well worth it!
Carpet cleaning machine: (I use it on upholstery too!) works great.
And, because I don’t have a house cleaner, I splurged and bought two vacuums: this super portable one, and this gorgeous big girl. I love them both.
Lastly, someone in the Cozy Community shared this tip and I’ve been using it ever since: if you are ordering a rug online and can’t look at it first, order the 2×3 or whatever the smallest size they have (often I’ll order 3-4 options) then you can see them in your room and easily ship them back and purchase a large rug in the design and color you like best. BRILLIANT.
Have you ever bought a great rug or other decor – and it didn’t have the impact you hoped?
You’re probably making great decorating decisions,
just in the wrong order.
There are 5 phases of decorating and once you know them, every decision becomes easier.
