11 Area Rug Rule + How to Break Them!

People often worry needlessly about interior design ‘rules’, protocols and etiquette as to the correct placing of certain items within a room or design scheme and rugs are no different. It seems that when confronted with a vast array of rugs in all different sizes, colours, materials and shapes on offer – and that is just from www.rugretailer.co.uk alone! – the task all of a sudden, becomes insurmountable.

And so here, we attempt to explain the rules of how to use area effectively – and then tell you to ditch the rule book, stand back and admire the stunning results.

Does it all depend on size?

Read an interior design manual and it will say ‘yes, it does’ and it is all to do with legs. So our first 4 rules to ditch when using area rugs are:  

#1: Front legs on, back legs off

This will have designers spinning on the spot but there is a rule somewhere, lost in the midst of time, that said categorically, either furniture legs are all off, or all on the rug. You cannot go for a mix as the front on and back off will mean a dining chair could turn in to a rocking one.

But, it seems that far from people being catapulted from dining chairs and sofas, the effect of front legs on and back legs off actually creates a sense of cohesion in a room – it also creates a sense proportion. Try it!

#2 Some front legs on

If you haven’t already run for the hills, then this rule breaker certainly will; look away now if you are of a nervous disposition. In your lounge you may have one sofa, and two easy chairs – why not just put the front legs of the sofa on the rug, but all of the legs of the easy chairs on it? Again, this is all about proportion, and can work in any sized room.

#3 All legs on the rug

But, if you want to pull the room together and create a sense of cohesion, opting for an area rug is a great way of doing it but to really make it work, you can put all your furniture legs of the rug. Ths works with all kinds of patterned or block colour rugs.

#4 All legs off the rug

But, we know that area rugs do not always have to be huge, emulating a wall-to-wall carpet; some customers prefer a smaller rug to complement their interior design schemes. So, if you fancy adding a much needed splash of colour or depth to a room, opt for a small one and place your furniture around it, rather than on it!

Other rules to flaunt or follow

#5 18 Inches

This has been a golden rule for decades. It suggests that there should be 18 inches of bare floorboards  (or the flooring underneath your rug) visible around the edge. Now this as a guideline in an enclosed room is no bad thing; it gives definitions and symmetry to a room BUT, we live in a modern world and some of the 21^st Century interiors are not the traditional, enclosed rooms from times gone by.

If you are in an open space, throw out the 18 inch edge rule but if your room is small, you can also bend the rule and allow 8 inches around the edge.

#6 Even fewer inches!

This was never a rule and is, in fact, a modern quirk that some people will like, and others will hate. To the design eye, it may not be the done thing but rather than having 18 inches of bare floor around the edge of your rug or opting for a wall-to-wall approach, why not leave a smaller channel? Works great when the interior décor is modern, quirky and fun but not if your room is designed along traditional lines…

#7 An area rug under the bed

That 18 inches in back again but if you using a rug under your bed, you really do need to extend it rather than it being the exact match in size to your bed. Hence, the design rule is that your rug should extend around your bed by 12 to 18 inches maximum.

But seeing as we are throwing out the rule book, then you can extend it out from under your bed as far as you like.  This can be a great way to dress the floor of your room but if you prefer smaller rugs, then you can use those too; try placing a delightfully shag pile at the point where you drop your feet out of bed in a morning or placing a rug at the end of the bed.

#8 The dining table challenge

On one hand, we are throwing out the rule book but there is one rule that has always been hard for us mere mortals to adhere to and that is the area rug under a dining table extending for at least 24 inches all around. The reason why? Designers said that this was the space needed to move the chairs in and out, without diners being at risk of being flung backwards out of their chair. Not a bad rule as it goes but, depending on the proportion of your table, chairs and room our challenge for this rule is whether you can find the right sized rug that gives you exactly 24 inches – without opting for expensive, custom made ones…

#9 Your walking safety

Again, probably not the rule that you should look to break but there has always been a designer rule that any rug used in a walkway should be wide or big enough for you to walk down it with two feet comfortably meeting the rug with each step. 

#10 More than one rug!

This is a great rule-smasher that has really taken off in recent modern years and that is the use of rugs to layer and add texture to a room. At one time, you had one rug; anything more was considered decadent and just plain wrong. More than one rug in a room was enough to set designer tongues wagging but layering the rugs, one of top of the other was unheard of! Break the barrier – layer your rugs (use different shapes as well as sizes for a real up-to-date twist http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/287380/list/8-tips-for-layering-rugs).

#11 Bend the rules – after all that is what they are there for!

With any interior design ‘scheme’, from colours to wallpaper, to cushions to furniture and rugs, you make the decision as to what works for you.

Create your own individual space is my best advice on how to make a home feel like your own domain.

~m