For me, flooring is one of the biggest factors in getting a design scheme right. It can be the starting point of the scheme, it can tie everything together and it’s one of those things we instantly see when entering a room because our eyes are naturally drawn to it. Thankfully, wooden flooring is having a huge moment with more and more people choosing to refurbish their old wooden floorboards instead of hiding them under laminate planks.

Although we wouldn’t want to hide it, wooden flooring comes with its own challenges. Will the kids slip and fall on it? Will the furniture move around on it? Will my dogs nails scratch it? A pretty obvious solution to these issues are rugs. Besides looking great, a well chosen rug can also elevate a room into a stunning, well thought out space with clearly defined zones.

A word of advice is that you should never rush into purchasing the first one you like because the wrong rug in the wrong space can easily look clumsy and have the opposite effect of what you were hoping to create.

There are a few pretty straightforward guidelines you can take into consideration when snooping around for the right rug and I thought I’d put them together for you!

THE SIZE
Don’t underestimate the importance of this, it really can make or break a design scheme. Go too small and it will look like you’ve got too much furniture and and your rug shrunk at the dry cleaners. Go too big and your furniture pieces will look like lost puppies looking for their mamas. Think about the size of your room. In a living room I would always suggest having a rug that is large enough to fit your coffee table and all legs of the sofas/armchair on it.

Same applies to the bedroom and dining room: choose a rug that will sit comfortably under your furniture groups. Think of it as a way to define functional zones in your home.

POSTAGE STAMP RUG IS A NO-NO
It’s a pretty obvious one but there is no logic in buying a rug that is the size of your coffee table. Rugs define a zone by sitting under a group of furniture, not one single piece of furniture. Tiny rugs in large spaces will scream ‘I-don’t-belong-here’ and look like a bath mat, which is not what you want (unless we’re talking about your bathroom).

PATTERN
Think of your existing furniture (or the ones you are looking to buy) in relation to the rug. For example, if it’s a patterned rug, make sure your coffee table will not obscure the pattern.

USAGE
What activities will you be doing the most of on this rug? There is nothing wrong with going for a white shaggy rug for your bedroom but the same does not apply for your dining room. For one, there is a huge risk of someone falling over ending up under the table when pushing chairs around on a shaggy rug. And then there is the food and white colour combo, which is a no brainer. If you love to entertain or have tiny humans throwing food around, consider going for wool or a flat weave rug.

THE FEEL
Go for something luxurious and soft for your bedroom (waking up is hard enough and you want to feel comfy when you get out of bed and put your feet down in the morning!). Silk rugs feel amazing under bare foot, but wool and tufted rugs are a good option too. Don’t choose natural fibres such as jute or sisal – they look great in a living room, but they are too course for a bedroom.

LIFETIME
If you aren’t planning on replacing it in five years, spending a bit more on a durable, good quality rug is a great investment. Avoid cheaper synthetic and high pile options – they are great short term but not what you want if you’d like to keep them for 10+ years. If you really want to treat yourself, look into hand made rugs. They are my absolute favourite; I know they come with quite a hefty price tag but can you imagine anything nicer than spreading your toes on a 65 year old rug made in Morocco?

That’s it folks!