Best Area Rugs

The fastest way to change a mood or character of a room is to add an area rug. Using the appropriate pad, area rugs can go on top of any kind of flooring, usually with dramatic results. There are three things to consider when choosing an area rug; first should be the design, second should be the quality and third should be the price.

1) Design of the rug: Color and pattern are the first things that should draw you to a particular rug. Visualize the desired total look of the room. Do you want a room that's uncluttered and monotone or a room rich with colors or textures, or if you start with a totally empty room, choose a rug, then paint or paper the walls in colors found in the rug.

2) Quality of the rug: Choose a rug that will perform well, with the right combination of density and fiber. The denser the pile (with closer tufts or stitches), the better your rug will wear. Synthetic yarns - nylon, polyester, acrylic, and polypropylene - and the naturals - wool and cotton - are durable, soft, and easy to clean.

3) Price of the rug: Area rugs can be very inexpensive or phenomenally expensive depending on the material used, how they were made and the degree of artistry or intricacy in their design. Handmade wool, 100% silk or wool and silk Oriental or Persian rugs have been known to last hundreds of years and just seem to increase in value. But you’ve got to hand it to machine-made rugs: they may look strikingly similar to the handmade kind, but they’re usually much less expensive. The bottom line is that the price of rug needs to be within the budget allowed for the specific room.