Decorating your home with large area rugs does several things for your interior design — the rug in each space will set a particular mood or tone for the whole room and help provide shape to an otherwise undefined space. But if you have multiple rugs in your home, do they all need to match? The immediate answer is: No!
Whether you place two runners in the kitchen in matching patterns or opt to have a matching living room rug and dining room rug, anything goes. As long as you like it, there's nothing wrong with having your rugs match in the same room.
Use these basics to get you started on your hunt: If your primary furniture, such as a sofa, is a solid color, consider selecting a patterned rug. Match the secondary color in a patterned rug to your sofa. Match the third rug color to your pillows, drapes, wall color or other accents in the room.
You can keep it simple and have differently patterned rugs in the same color scheme throughout the living space or you can really jazz it up and begin layering rugs on top of each other. Mixing multiple rugs can be done throughout the house. Living room, bedrooms, and even your formal dining room when done right.
Use light-colored rugs
The work of light colors is to brighten up a room and its décor. Rugs in tones of beige, sand, and taupe will make your room seem bigger and sprawling.
Though there's no general rule, the most pleasing schemes have a contrast of some kind between flooring and walls. So, a lighter carpet will work well with dark walls, and a darker carpet is a good option with lighter walls.
Pick a rug colour that complements your existing furniture and design. Your area rug should match everything! Using existing features such as furniture in your room is a great way to pin down colour choices. Choosing a shade that matches with other elements of the room can make your interior decoration look cohesive.
There's No Shame in Matching Rugs
The use of area rugs in an open concept living space is vital to the design. They create the illusion of differentiation without walls or dividers. Obviously when you have several different rugs in direct view of each other you want them to coordinate, to flow seamlessly.
The rug really needs to be centered on a major architectural element (fireplace, large windows, main focal wall) in the room. It doesn't necessarily need to be smack dab in the middle of the room - you want its placement to be the island for the visual weight of the room.
Rug Size (Too Big or Too Small)
If a rug is too small, it will appear as if it is floating in the room. If it is too large it will overpower the room and make the room appear smaller than it is. Choosing the right size of rug for your room depends on your design objective.
Make sure your rug is at least 6″ wider (8″ is ideal) than your sofa on both sides. Typically run the rug the length of the sofa. Give 30″ to 36″ of a walkway between large furniture pieces (if your living room allows for it) if not then at least 18″-24″. That will help to inform your rug size.
Your rug needs to suit the space it's in and even more importantly, it needs to match your furniture. A badly matched rug can ruin the whole look of your space, but it's not difficult to find out how to pull this off.
It's OK to have different carpeting in different rooms in your home that suits your lifestyle. Bedroom carpets should be plush, stairway and hallway carpeting must be durable, living and dining room carpets should be stain-resistant, and home office carpeting should allow you to move around.
It's not essential to have an area rug in a living room, especially if it's a compact space or already carpeted. Area rugs provide the most benefit on hard flooring or in larger rooms. Even if it's not absolutely crucial to have an area rug in your living room, you might still want to consider it anyway.
A light, neutral carpet color will also make an interior seem lighter and brighter. Tans, greys, and creams will go with any décor and add a classic appeal to your living room, bedroom, or any room that needs some lightening up.
They warm up a room while adding a decorative touch: rugs are a sure-fire way to add colour and texture to any room. A rug can anchor a room, define it, add warmth, and help layer a room's decor. A graphic, modern rug is enough to create an entire world of its own, showcasing our furniture.
In a big open-plan space, the rug should sit under the front legs of both the sofas – or if you have a large rug, then both sofas can sit completely atop the rug. If you have chairs in the space as well, then the front legs of the chair should be touching or "hovering" on the rug.
Also, don't just consider how dark your flooring is; consider how dark your room is in general. If you are blessed with a bright, airy, sunlight-filled space, you get to pick what color you'd like. If you have a darker space, adding a deeper color rug will make it look heavier and smaller.
Dark colors make objects appear smaller and light colors do the opposite, making objects or spaces appear larger. If your space is small try using a light colored rug to make your room have a more expansive look. Many get hung up on color matching, getting an exact shade match.
Natural colors like green pair well with browns. Any shade of green will work. Rugs in shades of green, tan, and brown are a wonderful idea for a natural design style. These earthy tones will look nice next to natural fabrics, a medium shade of brown, or if your living space has natural decor, such as plants.
While it is not necessary for your wall art and rug to match, if they do, they can contribute to the room's theme. You can highlight color in the artwork with the rug, or create an atmosphere by coordinating their styles.
In general, darker colors will make a room feel smaller and warmer — if you have a big living room, bedroom, or basement that feels too empty and cavernous, a darker carpet or patterned flooring will help draw the eye inward and make the space feel less sprawling.
The top two choices were grey and beige. Just over a third (37%) of respondents said that they preferred grey carpets for their homes. One reason for this choice is that grey, unlike white or beige carpets, camouflages stains and dirt better, making them less visible.