Unique Uses for Area Rugs
Around a year ago, we encouraged our regular readers to ignore the rules about area rugs when purchasing one or more for their homes. At that time, we focused in on the many strict and rigid rules or guidelines that interior decorators had long insisted on when using area rugs in a home or other space. For example, if you were intending to use an area rug beneath a dining table, you are supposed to allow two feet (at the minimum) of rug to extend beyond the chairs. Yet, scores of designers are breaking or ignoring that “rule”.
Today, though, we wanted to delve into the more unique uses for area rugs that seem to be appearing in the hottest design sites, including Pinterest and others. After all, many of the nicest area rugs are also works of art and should not be limited to areas beneath furnishings or almost entirely out of sight (such as the ones under dining tables).
Clever Ways to Use Your Beautiful Area Rugs
Below are some of the most unique ways we’ve seen area rugs put to use, and you should take them as inspiration if you are eager to purchase rugs or use them to add color to a home or other space:
Wall Art – It is impossible to argue with the simple fact that a beautifully made rug can also be seen as a form of art. When you have a large or unusually shaped area to decorate, it is often possible to put a nicely designed area rug to use. If it has fringed edges and a colorful pattern or print, it adds an unusual and visually appealing finish to everything from entry halls to stairwells.
Yoga Mat – Rather than using an unattractive and unappealing rubber yoga mat, you can easily purchase a lovely area rug and leave it, in place, for your daily yoga practice. Whether small or large, it can be a warmer and more appealingly textured piece on which to do daily practice.
Dining Area Patchwork – You can add a tremendous amount of visual appeal if you take an array of colorful area rugs and use them to fill the dining room. That old rule of “at least two feet around the perimeter” can be entirely ignored and you can fill the entire room with a “mish mash” of gorgeous area rugs. Try to line up edges and overlap only slightly to keep the floors even. NOTE: You can even use a beautiful and narrow runner rug as a unique runner down a table!
In the Bathroom – One of the most visually stunning things to do with a fine art rug is to use it in a bathroom. While you won’t want to toss a delicate and antique Oriental on the bathroom floor, you can use a modern “spin” on a classic and add a lot of visual punch and style to the bathroom, and even a bit of luxe!
There you have just a few clever ways to use area rugs. You can also put two smaller rugs together as a runner in the hall or kitchen, use loosely woven rugs as bed covers or to drape over a headboard, toss them over a settee to create a stunning “bench” effect, and more.
