Rugs by Room — Find the Right Rug for Every Space

Rugs by room

Each room asks something different of a rug. A hallway needs a weave that survives shoes and grit; a bedroom needs something to stand on barefoot; a dining room needs a surface chairs can move across without catching. Getting this right matters more than the origin name on the label.

Living room

Size first: at minimum the front legs of the seating should stand on the carpet, which usually means 200 × 300 cm or larger, and the rug should be wider than the sofa. Wool is the sensible material; wool with silk highlights gives you lustre where the wear is lighter. Classical Persian, Ziegler and contemporary designer work all sit well here.

Living room rugs · 8 × 10 ft formats

Dining room

The rug has to extend 60 to 70 cm past every edge of the table so chairs stay on it when pulled back. Choose a dense, low pile and a busy pattern — a classical field hides crumbs and daily life far better than a plain ground. Avoid long-pile Berbers here: chair legs sink into them and catch. Silk and viscose are also the wrong choice for a table.

8 × 10 ft rugs · Heriz · Bidjar

Bedroom

The one room where softness beats durability, because traffic is minimal. Long-pile Moroccan Berbers, Tibetan wool and plain grounds all work. Either lay one large rug across the lower two thirds of the bed, or use two runners at the sides — both are more practical than a small rug at the foot.

Berber rugs · Tibetan and Nepalese rugs · Perfect Plains

Hallway and entrance

The hardest place in the house for a textile: grit, wet shoes and constant traffic in a narrow line. Take a dense, short pile in a dark or busy pattern, and use an anti-slip underlay. Tribal weaves and runners are made for exactly this.

Runners · Qashqai · Afghan and Kazak rugs

Study, office and library

Medium formats, low pile, quiet palettes. If a desk chair on castors will run over the rug, put a clear chair mat under the chair area — castors abrade a pile over time and open the slits in a flatweave.

Medium rugs · Kilims

Kitchen

Honestly, the hardest room to recommend anything for. Grease and water are the two things wool handles worst, and a kitchen supplies both. If you want a rug there, take a flatweave or an inexpensive tribal piece you will not mind replacing, keep it away from the hob, and accept that it will need washing more often than anything else in the house. Do not put a fine or antique rug in a kitchen.

Kilims and flatweaves

Two things that apply everywhere

Underfloor heating. Hand-knotted wool on a cotton foundation conducts heat well and is suitable throughout our collection. Very thick or long-pile rugs slow the heat transfer noticeably — not harmful, but worth knowing if the room relies on it.

Soiling. Wool holds its natural lanolin, so dirt tends to sit on the fibre rather than working straight in, and a fresh spill can often be blotted up before it penetrates. That is a real advantage over synthetics, but it is not stain resistance: acidic liquids such as red wine, coffee and fruit juice will mark wool if they are left, and speed matters more than any treatment.

Also browse

Rugs by size · Rugs by style · Rugs by colour · Made-to-measure rugs