8 Tips for Layering Rugs
Warm Up Your Floor with an Extra Rug — or More
You layer your clothes and your bed (an extra blanket, please!), but the floor? Oh yes. The last great layering frontier has been conquered, thanks to designers willing to think outside the box when it comes to rugs. Mix them, match them, and create instant interest with this new-found trend going on below your toes. Here are 8 ways how:
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by Workshop/apd
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| Spotlight something special. A small red rug directs the eye right to the awesome hanging seat in this amazing eclectic room. |
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Fill in the blank. When you seriously love a rug but it doesn't quite cover the area you need it to, it's prime for layering. Stick a simple rug underneath in a natural material (jute, rattan or seagrass work well) to cover the difference.
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Protect, protect, protect. Replacing wall-to-wall carpet is a pain. Swapping out a rug? Far easier. For rooms prone to random stains (think nurseries and kids' rooms), an extra rug can prevent stains from hitting the carpet... or cover up some that already made their mark.
by Lindy Donnelly
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Play areas, heavily trafficked sections and under the dining table could all use an extra rug as a buffer over more permanent wall-to-wall carpet.
(This rug is far too pretty to chance it, but you get the idea.)
(This rug is far too pretty to chance it, but you get the idea.)
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| Create contrast. Most of the furniture in this room would get lost against the similarly hued carpet. A rug on top breaks up the sea of ivory. |
| Heap on the hide. Hides are great for layering for a couple reasons: 1, they are very thin, so you aren't likely to trip over the edges; and 2, the shape is so funky that you kind of need something beneath it to fully cover the area. |
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They can also bring a pleasing textural element to a room.
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by twenty7 design
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| Look! Two hides together make one normal-sized rug. |
by CWB Architects
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A brown hide contrasts with the neutral chairs and sofa and picks up on the fireplace surround and leather armchair, all while helping to ground the space.
Reach for sheepskin. For an extra spot of warmth, layer a small sheepskin on a patch of floor. Their size makes them perfect for layering and moving with ease.
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Similar styles. Layering rugs with wildly divergent patterns is tricky. Instead, stick to similar styles if you plan on mixing more than two. Here, a few tribal-patterned rugs play off each other well.
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| Define an area. Focus a larger room into separate spaces by clustering seating around different rugs. In this example, the bottom layer of rugs match, keeping the areas separate but cohesive. |
by Lexi Tallisman
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This works well with a smaller rug in a pattern or color layered over a neutral.
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You can even delineate the space simply with a slight change in texture, as shown in this sitting area.
More ways to decorate with rugs:
11 Area Rug Rules and How to Break Them
Oriental Rugs Beyond the Living Room
Go Bold (and Green) with Eco-Friendly Carpet Tiles
More ways to decorate with rugs:
11 Area Rug Rules and How to Break Them
Oriental Rugs Beyond the Living Room
Go Bold (and Green) with Eco-Friendly Carpet Tiles
Ideabook updated on March 4, 2011.
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I did it in my house, and even though I was making do with a small rug that I already had, I think it helps to tie the space together and add some interest.
Great ideabook!! Thanks for validating my decision!! :D
Fantabulous as per usual :)
Mandarine, that sounds really cool. Would love to see.