Friday, May 27, 2011

THE GREAT RUG HUNT

Now that our apartment is mostly "done," the only chances I have to buy things are when other things break or are destroyed in some other fashion. With my fiancé around, that happens more often than we would like [one of the first to feel the effects of his clumsiness: the vase on our dresser that so beautifully echoed the curves of the lamp. RIP. If anyone knows where to get one, please let me know! I got it on the clearance rack of the NY Botanical Garden's gift shop last year]


The rug in our entry is also nearing the end of its life. It lasted as long as a mostly-white $18 canvas rug from Urban Outfitters could be expected to, and my last-resort attempt to clean it in the washing machine left it slightly cleaner but very faded. 



Rather than going to UO and getting a replacement that will last for another 6 months, I'd like to take the opportunity to give the entry a little more sophistication and replace a cheap stand-in piece with a more permanent, grown-up one. It's also a chance to splurge a little on one of my dream rugs that I would never be afford in a "real" size – many of these are reasonably priced in a 2x3 size. 
With a maximum budget of $100, I have plenty of beautiful options. Too many, actually! So, newfound readers, I'm going to put you to work. Here are the candidates – help me choose! 

First stop, Madeline Weinrib. 2x3 patterned flatwoven rugs are supposedly about $100, which is the absolute upper limit of my price range. Here are some favorites, in a selection of colors:


[rows, top to bottom]
"Westley" in Indigo
"Song" in Goldenrod
"Brooke" in Black
"Mandala" in Turquoise
"Over Easy" in Cement
"Orleans" in Turquoise and Black

These Surya Weinrib-esque rugs have been seen all over the internet in the past couple of years, and they come in a multitude of colors:


left, "Fallon," $52 at Timeless Elements, selected colors $45 at The Furniture Domain
right, "Frontier," $52.50 at Floors and Surfaces

I think a graphic pattern would be a great choice with the floral fabric of the table skirt. A more wide-reaching search brings up plenty of these in saturated colors as well as bold black and white.


[rows, top to bottom]
"Tile" Jaipuri rug, $85 from Calypso Home
"Jodhpur" Jaipuri rug, $85 from Calypso Home
Liora Manne "Chains" rug in Black, $42 at Amazon
"Iznik" dhurrie rug, $49 from West Elm
"Rajasthan-stripe" dhurrie rug, $29 from West Elm
 Liora Manne "Chains" rug in Natural, $42 at Amazon
"Ikat Diamonds" rug, $48 at Garnet Hill
"Fez" rug, $69 at Home Decorators
"Arabesque" rug, $28 from Williams Sonoma Home
"Grecian Tiles" rug, $59 at Horchow
"Anna" plastic mat, $60 from Impliciti
"Kite" kilim rug, $49 from West Elm
"Cane" indoor/outdoor rug, $49 at Ballard
Surya "Frontier," $63 at Rugs USA
Momeni "Elements," $79 at Rugs USA

Or should I go a more traditional, masculine route to balance the feminine trendiness of the room? 


[clockwise from upper right]
antique persian rug, $100 on Ebay
Surya "Nomadic" kilim rug, $75 at Buy Area Rugsmini cow hide rug, $48 at Rugs USA
"Tauna" kilim indoor/outdoor rug, $49 from Pottery Barn
antique persian rug, $85 on Ebay
antique persian rug, $50 on Ebay

Making decisions has never been one of my strong points, and it's even harder when there are so few decisions left to make! Perhaps I'm just destined to endlessly tweak details and never be truly "done" decorating...

19 comments:

  1. There are so many gorgeous rigs here! I would suggest eliminating the light ones for an entryway, because they will show dirt too quickly.

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  2. So many choices!!! I like the "kite" kilim rug from West Elm. I like the look of geometric prints mixed with floral prints.

    I found your blog yesterday through Copy Cat Chic, and I love your style! Can't wait to see which one you choose.

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  3. Here from Copy Cat Chic - love your place, and everything you've done! Thanks for sharing!!!

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  4. Another visitor from Copy Cat Chic! Just wanted you to know that your space is beautiful and perfectly done! Love the mix of styles to make it your own!

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  5. alos from copycat chic, love what you've done with your place!!. graphic prints always looks nice against the floral. your lights are black so maybe a black and white? maybe they will let you borrow the rugs and you can put them down. Usually that helps to see them in "action"

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  6. Another visitor from CCC. Super LOVE your apartment! Amazing what you did on a budget and small space. It's apartments like yours that always makes me love a small space.

    Now back to the rug, I am voting for MW Song in Golden Rod, it seems to best complement that gorgeous table skirt print (Robert Allen Dwell?); there is a great balance of yellow and white.

    Keep us posted!

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  7. new follower here--great blog! Love your place.

    As for the rugs--I just posted about many of the same MW rugs (all in the pinks and oranges) for my daughter's room yesterday. I LOVE all of her rugs, so I guess my first vote is for the Westley or the Brooke. I think the Brooke would go really well in the space and complements the fabric in a more masculine way.

    I have the Surya rug, and while I'm fine with it in my bedroom, I wouldn't want it in a high traffic area. It (and most wool flat weaves, I had another in a dining room) don't vacuum very well, tend to stretch, and the edges curl up.

    I kinda like the cowhide for a bit of a surprise--they are great in high traffic areas, stylish, and isn't overly feminine.

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  8. I'm digging the Tile Jaipuri rug from Calypso. Have you checked out Overstock, yet? I got my 8x10 chevron pattern rug from there for $129 plus free shipping. Hooray for bargains!

    turn up the rad blog
    turn up the rad creative

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  9. I would say definitely go with a pattern that is a bit bigger and scale and bolder, to balance out the awesome peacock fabric you have going on there. The purple on in the third grouping, top left hand corner would fit the bill. Your place is looking good!

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  10. I agree with the last 2 posters, the oversized pattern of the purple Tile rug balances the tiny details of your fabric and the items on your shelf (even your lamps are tiny :) It will sort of continue the nice effect of the oversized text of the UA rug.

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  11. I also found your blog from copycatchic... I LOVE what you did with your place! I'm usually a huge fan of bright colors, but I love the natural and subdued look you have, but it's still so interesting! You have fantastic taste!

    www.stephfascinations.blogspot.com

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  12. I love your place. I love how you've mixed styles. I just ordered the Anna plastic runner for my kitchen in black and white, and I'm loving it. I haven't posted about it yet (I have some cleaning to do), but I will soon. Sorry, google is not letting me comment under my account. Here's my blog www.jandjhome.blogspot.com

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  13. another 'stumbler' from CCC! I too vote for the 'Song' rug...it'll bring out the yellow in your table cover without being too over the top. LOVE your blog!

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  14. hi there, love ur place, where did u get the great geometric silver mirror from?

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  15. Thanks! The mirror is from HomeGoods - sources for everything in my entry are here: http://luisadesignblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/last.html

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  16. Enrique’s is Louisiana’s finest area rug cleaning service. Treat your beautiful area rugs to our unique eight-step Turkish Rug Bath. They deserve it.

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  19. Wow! Those beautiful rugs are good to show off! It must be really hard to choose among them. Anyway, I’m curious which among them have won your heart. If I were to choose, I'll pick one with a graphic pattern.

    Kraig Baade

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