Choosing the right area rug can be a challenging process. But don’t worry, we’ve got all you need to know to get it just right! We’re here to help you find the perfect rug to highlight your decor.
We love hand-tufted rugs for 2021 — no matter what your style! Our favorites are the Momeni Ophelia Aqua Rectangular Rug and the Momeni Concord Ivory Rectangular Area Rug from TopModern!
Choosing a rug for each room in one's home can be daunting. This is because rugs are available in many designs, patterns, materials, textures, colors, sizes and densities. From neutral tones to bold colors, from low pile to shag textures and from runners to area rugs, indoor rugs certainly run the gamut. This TopModern Buying Guide will instruct how to choose the right rug for your space. It will inform consumers of which rugs keep floors the warmest, which are easiest to clean and which are suitable for underfloor heating. We will discuss how to style rugs in the home and how to choose the proper size and shape for each spot. Follow below for answers to these — and more — frequently asked questions about choosing the right rug for each floor of the home.
Wool rugs often keep floors — and toes — the warmest. We love the Momeni Woodland Blue Rectangular Area Rug and the Momeni Delmar Ivory Rectangular Area Rug.
Heating one’s home can be expensive — and sometimes impossible — during the colder months of the year. It can be especially frustrating when other users in one’s area are placing pressure on the power grid. However, carefully choosing a rug — or a smattering of smaller rugs — can warm up a space without turning on the heat. In his article “How to Keep a Room Warm With an Area Rug” for SF Gate, Carlyle Jones explains how effective rugs can be. Jones notes that four key specs affect whether a rug will warm the floor. These include insulation, stitch count, materials and size. In his article, Jones writes that thicker area rugs “better insulate the room and your feet from the cold.” One can further insulate their rug by placing a thermal insulating rug pad beneath. Opting for a plusher area rug rather than a low pile area rug will make sure your room stays warm.
Stitch count affects how warm a rug will make the surrounding space as “a higher stitch count means that the rug is denser." A denser rug "can offer better insulation.” Thick, high stitch count rugs “effectively block out the cold.” For materials, Jones recommends choosing a wool, cotton, acrylic or nylon rug, with wool being the most effectively warming material. Size-wise, buyers should opt for area rugs that “cover almost the entire floor” if they are seeking maximum warmth. To keep one’s toes from freezing when they touch cold floors, one might choose to place the rug close to high traffic areas. In his article “How to Warm up the Floors in Your Home” for The Spruce, Joseph Lewitin offers a few tips. He recommends “employing [rugs] near beds, doorways, and in bathrooms where people tend to be barefoot, coating the area in a blanket of comfort.”
Natural fiber rugs are best suited to rooms with underfloor heating. This is because they will not melt when exposed to heat like some synthetic fibers will. We love the Ligne Pure Oat Rectangular Area Rug — made from bamboo and silk — and the Gus Modern Harvest Link Rectangular Area Rug from TopModern.
For those unfamiliar with the term, “underfloor — or radiant — heating” provides heat from cables, tubing or piping underneath the floorboards atop which people walk. In his article “Radiant Floor Heating: Why It’s Worth It” for This Old House, Joseph D'Agnese explains that “as the invisible waves of thermal radiation rise from below, they warm up any objects they strike, which radiate that captured heat in turn.” With underfloor heating, “though the air temperature remains constant, you stay comfortable because the surrounding surfaces aren't stealing warmth from your body.” Sarah Warwick writes in her article “Underfloor heating: the complete guide to in-floor heating” for Real Homes that radiant heating is worth it for many homeowners though it can pose unwanted side effects. Warwick writes that “underfloor heating (UFH) has plenty of benefits: it keeps your feet warm, and it can save you money on bills.” Radiant heating “works well with renewable heating sources, so will be the perfect choice for anyone trying to make their home more sustainable.”
The big question, however, is whether rugs are suitable for underfloor heating. Another question is which will — and will not — dampen the warming effects of underfloor heating. According to a discussion on the Houzz forum, homeowners are free to layer area rugs over floorboards with underfloor heating. They can do so without concerns over health or safety. However, writes one commentator, users might find themselves “turning up the heat” in a room with an area rug “and it taking longer for that space to warm up.” Other unwanted side effects include potential warping of floorboards due to too much heat locked around them. Layering rugs over heated floors may cause damage to the underside of synthetic rugs. There are ways to avoid this last issue, though. Cherly King explains in her article “5 Ways Area Rugs Interact With Underfloor Radiant Heating” for Mighty Probes. Although natural materials are more difficult to clean, organic fibers are best suited to rooms with underfloor heating. King writes that choosing a rug "made from natural fibers" is the best way to avoid melting. Adding a felt rug pad under the rug can help prevent degradation of the rug itself.
Layering rugs over carpet has never been easier with the many styles and patterns available today. We love the Gus Modern Element Tofino Rectangular Area Rug and the Linie Design Blocchi Powder Rectangular Area Rug from TopModern.
One might think that layering rugs over carpet could be a home decor faux pas. However, layering rugs on top of carpeting offers additional visual interest, dimension and depth to a space. Megan Cahn explains “How To Layer Your Rugs Like a Pro” in a recent article for MarthaStewart.com. Cahn writes that layering rugs makes a space feel cozy and comforting. However, this styling trick might not work well in every room of the house. She notes that “layering rugs works best in a room where you have space and not that much furniture." As such, layering rugs is best suited to "a bedroom, living room, or den.” When choosing the color and pattern of a rug, Cahn recommends picking a design that goes with other patterns and colors rather than simply matching, as this can fall a bit flat. Buyers should “make sure [their] rug colors are either complementary or tonal, meaning different shades of the same color.”
Rugs made from durable fibers like wool and polyester are easiest to clean. This is because some — like wool — repel moisture while others — like cotton — can be tossed in the wash. We love the woolen Momeni Delhi Multi Red Rectangular Area Rug for high-traffic areas.
Homes with pets or children — or those with residents who enjoy entertaining frequently in their living room or kitchen— are rarely best served by intricate, impossible to clean rugs and carpeting. Rugs in high-traffic areas often experience significant wear and tear over time due to frequent use. Many of us — children and pets aside — prefer area rugs that can easily be spot-cleaned, hosed off or even thrown in the washer-dryer whenever a spill occurs or dirt is tracked in from the outdoors. Though easy-as-pie cleaning is certainly high on many lists, few homeowners wish to decorate their indoor spaces with slick, one-dimensional outdoor rugs. Outdoor rugs were once the only option for low-maintenance rugs. Now, however, dozens of indoor rugs on the market can be cleaned without much effort and on short-notice. For more about this, we turn to Ileana Morales Valentine. She explains in her article “5 Beautiful Rugs That Are Easy To Clean — Some Are Even Machine Washable” for Bustle.
In general, Valentine recommends rugs woven from polypropylene, polyester, cotton, viscose or wool. Wool is great for chilly, high-traffic areas like entryways and alcoves as it keeps spaces warm. The material is “popular for its durability and softness, and because it repels stains and water well.” However, she recommends against rugs made from “natural fiber rugs such as jute, sea grass, or silk” because they must be professionally cleaned. We love the Momeni Bungalow Multi Rectangular Area Rug — which is made from cotton and polyester — and the Momeni Delhi Multi Red Rectangular Area Rug — made from wool.
Big or small, picking the right rug can be difficult, especially when placing around furniture. Choosing a small rug for your entryway can be just as difficult as choosing a large one for the living room. For smaller spaces, we love the Momeni Isabella Ivory Rectangular Area Rug and for larger rooms, we love the Momeni Delmar Multi Rectangular Area Rug from TopModern.
Though colors, patterns and designs are a matter of taste, choosing the right rug size for one's space comes down to geometry and scale. When choosing the size of an area rug, one should consider how the rug's size compares to other furniture in the room like the sofa or coffee table in the living room, bed in the bedroom, entertainment console in the family room or the dining table in the dining room. One might want something large when the space cannot accommodate a large area rug or one might want something small when the space requires a large area rug in order to feel balanced. The best size area rug for one's living room, dining room, family room, home office, bedroom or entryway will depend not only on furniture but also on the height and width of the walls and the size of art and decor objects. For more information, we turn to Cheryl Simmons of The Spruce and her recent article "How to Select the Right Size Area Rug."
Simmons writes that contrary to what one might think they know, "the most common mistake people make when buying an area rug is choosing a size that is too small for their space." When determining how to choose the right rug for your space, arrangement is highly important. She writes that while the size of the room does factor in, "it's often recommended one decides on the appropriate size of rug based on your furniture configuration, not based on the specific room size." Cheryl Simmons notes that "the main guideline to determine the best rug size is to always consider the furniture placement over the room size." In rooms with little to no furniture — like entryways, foyers and other rooms without a lot of stuff — buyers should skew a bit smaller, leaving a border of flooring around the rug.
