The “Ground Up” Rule: Why You Should Buy Your Rug First

Many people make the mistake of purchasing their sofas first. Here’s why this error can be very costly.

When people are furnishing their living rooms or any other area in their homes, the tradition has been to purchase the largest piece of furniture first (most often either a sofa or bed). However, following this tradition frequently leads to a space that has “disjointed” looks, feels, and/or lacks a cohesive design. So what is the secret to creating a “whole” and “high-end” looking space? The answer is to create an overall cohesive and high-quality look for your space, starting with the floor and working your way up.

The area rug acts as the foundation for the rest of the room, and it is also the largest concentrated area of color and texture in the space. By starting with the area rug as your foundation before looking for other furnishings, you can establish the proper measurements for your area rug based on what your furnishings will look like, and avoid the need to “scramble” or “react” to fitting an area rug to existing furniture.

Don’t just take our word for it; we’ve chosen three of our best-selling area rugs, so let’s compare them based on their intended purposes and styles.

The Foundation of Your Room: Our Texture Trio

When selecting a rug, consider the room's function, the required size, and the amount of foot traffic. Below is an overview of our three best selections, ranked from high comfort/low traffic to high durability/high traffic.

The Soft Touch: Engels Rug (Wool/Viscose Medium Weight)

Comfort Profile: High Comfort/Medium Strength-Perfect For Main Living Areas/Beds/Barefoot Spenders Who Want To Feel Like They Are Walking On Clouds

A Perfect Combination Of Style And Functionality, The Engels Rug Is A Beautiful Blended Area Rug Made With Wool And Viscose (A Semi-Synthetic Fiber), Offering An Extraordinary Shimmering Effect. It Has The Same Softness As Pure Silk But With The Durability Of Wool; It Is Hand-Tufted, Creating A Plush, Luxurious-Looking Carpet With A Beautiful Luster That Changes With The Light.

This Rug Is An Excellent Example Of All The Advantages Of Hand-Tufted Rugs Without The Delicate Nature Associated With Pure Silk. It Is A Great Option For Areas Where You Can Take It Easy And Relax In Your North Face!

Advantages of the Engels Rug:

- Soothing Softness: The textured nature gives it a rich, luxurious soft touch to the surface, allowing you to soak up that sensation when walking across the fibre.
- Colour Depth: This yarn dye works well with most dyed solutions (including black), providing an array of vibrant colour combinations to enhance the interior design of your home.
- Appearance: Due to its natural sheen and glossy finish, the product has a strong visual appeal due to its attractive ability to draw the viewer's eyes downward, thereby supporting the principle of Visual Luster in interior design carpeting.

2. The Naturalist: Myrtle Rug (Jute/Wool Blend)

Here, we detail some qualities of 'The Myrtle is a rug — Jute and Wool Blend.' Here is the profile of the durability of 'Myrtle.' High Durability, Textured, and Natural.

'The Myrtle rug' has been designed to maximise the blending of different textures. The added benefit of using two strong, durable products, as well as the ability for them to be woven into different textures, provides the possibility for a wide range of attributes. The Myrtle retains the natural, organic texture created by the use of Jute (from a plant, grown quickly) and has incorporated wool into its design, thus providing an additional layer of soft and long-lasting product. 'Myrtle rug' is considered to be a durable wool rug that fits into multiple style categories, including coastal, contemporary, modern farm, ruffled, or even eclectic.

How the Myrtle Rug Performs:

Eco-Conscious and Tough: The fiber used to make the Myrtle Rug is sustainable and stands up to the rigors of everyday use.
Great for Using with Other Rugs: Its neutral color as well as its basic yet durable fibers enable the Myrtle Rug to be used as a perfect foundation rug underneath smaller, brightly colored accent rugs.
Temperature Control: The natural fibers of jute and wool help with the temperature control capabilities of a room by keeping your floor warm in winter and cool in summer.

3. The Hallway Hero: Ashby Rug

Traffic Profile: Designed for maximum durability yet slender in appearance, the ideal addition to mudrooms, front entrances, or other high-traffic areas (i.e., mudroom runner ideas).

The Ashby Rug has been specifically crafted to handle heavy usage areas, with support being provided in at least the pathway locations between the kitchen and front entrance door.

A low loop weave and tight construction have been used to make this particular rug able to take a lot of abuse without damaging the appearance of the rug or the flooring it protects, and to provide the necessary support for doors that are sliding on floors covered by this rug.

In addition, due to the slim profile design of the Ashby Rug, it allows sliding doors to move over easily, as well as trapping dirt and other debris that may fall onto or be tracked onto the rug by shoes entering onto it from outside or by persons inside when dirty shoes have been removed before entering onto the rug.

Reasons to select the Ashby rug:

Best results regarding soil & stain resistance - Superior soil & stain resistance makes Ashby rugs ideal for high traffic areas.
A low profile allows placement by all covered doors.
The Linear design of Ashby mats makes it easy to come up with ideas for hallways - runners create a visual effect that elongates hallways, thus enhancing their appearance.

Design Tip: Scale is Key

With your area rug selected, you have completed the color palette and foundation texture for your living room; now, your rug's size will determine the rest of the furniture in terms of scale. One of the most common problems with sizing is that people tend to select area rugs much too small for their room, which leaves the space feeling cramped and creates awkward floating furniture.

An easy rule of thumb to follow when placing an area rug in the living room is to ensure that all primary pieces of furniture (sofa, chair, and love seat) are sitting comfortably on the rug with the front legs at least resting on the rug surface. The same rule-of-thumb applies when selecting an area rug placement for your bedroom: make sure the area rug extends 18-24 inches beyond the edge of the bed so that when you get out of bed, you have a soft landing for your feet. A fantastic area rug is eye-catching, and you wouldn't want to take away from the appearance of your newly purchased area rug by allowing a bare box spring to ruin the look. Use a Box Spring Cover to provide a smooth finish for your area rug.

Not sure what size fits your room? Contact Our Design Team for personal assistance.