For most buyers the first consideration when purchasing a dining room rug is generally colour and design, choosing a rug to complement their personal decor and suit the furnishings in the room.
Although this is a very good starting point, there are number of factors that should drive your final decision. The dining room can be a busy area of the home, spillage, heavier wear and appearance retention can all be issues that will affect your choice of rug.
Additional factors such as size, shape, colour, and material will all have a bearing on how your rug will look and how it performs. Our staff at Rugstore NE have years of experience in helping our customers choose the perfect rug for any location in their home. In this article we will offer our expert advice to help you choose the correct rug for your dining room.
1. Floor Type
A rug can be placed over almost any type of floor-covering, and for many different reasons. A rug can hide unsightly damage, wear or fading to a wood or laminate floor, a stained or worn carpet or cracked and dis-coloured floor tiles. A rug can also elevate a carefully selected interior scheme, perfectly complement a beautiful hard-wood floor or be used to introduce harmonious accent colours. A rug can add warmth in the colder winter months and reduce noise in an open plan area with high ceilings.
It is important to choose the correct rug according to your floor type.
Because a table and chairs will be standing on the rug it is important not to use rugs with too a high pile, as this may cause an issue when pulling the chairs out. We would not recommend anything over 10 - 12mm.
On hard wood flooring you can go really thin using flatweave rugs and low-level cut pile rugs without any issues. The scenario changes when placing a rug over carpeted floors the lighter weight chenille and kilim flatweaves should not be used on carpeted floors. Even with a good quality anti-slip underlay the weight of the table and the constant use of chairs will cause the rug to ruck and crease at best and can cause permanent damage in some cases. For carpeted areas we would recommend a heavier type of rug, standard Wilton qualities and hand knotted rugs with low pile height are the preferred choice
2. Rug Size
This is probably the most asked question by customers in store and on the telephone. Often, a buyer will choose a rug that is too small, the rug is lost under the table, chairs catch on the rug when in use and the rug becomes a tripping hazard.
To calculate the size of rug required for your dining room, measure your tabletop and add 50cm - 60cm all round, then choose the closest size in your preferred choice of colour or design. So, if your table is 180cm x 80cm your rug needs to a be a minimum 300cm x 200cm. It is better to always go bigger if you can, as the area will function better and look more attractive. Don't forget to check clearances on doors.
3. Rug Material
Possibly the one of the most important factors to consider, if the rug is to meet your needs and expectations.
Wool
One of the oldest rug-making materials and still the yarn of choice in high end and traditional hand knotted rugs today.
If the budget allows a traditional Oriental rug produced using good quality hand spun wool is still the holy grail for a classic interior. Not all hand-knotted rugs are bold, traditional medallions and heavily patterned patterns. More open designs and contemporary colour palettes are become more readily available. Traditional wool Wilton or Axminster rugs are more than suitable for use in the dining room. The better the quality of the wool used the easier the rug will be to clean.
A good quality wool rug will keep its appearance better than any other fibre.
Polypropylene, Polyester, Acrylic and Polyamide.
All these fibres are excellent for use in heavy traffic areas and where spillage can be an issue. Most stains can be easily cleaned using readily available cleaning products.
Never over-wet, don’t use too much cleaning solution,
Never rub a stain, always blot cover area with a clean white towel and leave overnight.
If you are unsure what to do don’t do anything and ring a professional cleaning company.
Viscose, Bamboo Silk, Tencel, Art Silk.
Used as design accents in small amounts, these fibres can add a touch of elegance to a design.
We do not recommend any of these fibres be used in Dining areas. They are difficult to clean and can lose appearance quickly in heavy traffic areas.
Liquids will cause yellowing and the pile to burst, looking old and tired very quickly.
Use these fibres for bedrooms and areas in the home where heavy traffic or spillage is not an issue.
Sisal Seagrass Jute
Although all three fibres are naturally extracted from plants, they have very different characteristics.
We would not recommend Jute rugs in a dining area, they are hard to clean and will soil quickly.
Sisal and Seagrass is fine although some stains can be difficult to remove, and both are not long-term purchases.
We highly recommend James.be for spot cleaning all types of rugs, they are invaluable when you need to clean a difficult spill quickly.
For plant fibre rugs you can get excellent results using dry powder cleaning kits from Alternative Flooring.
4. Rug Type
All the main types of rugs are fine to use in the dining room although some are better than others.
Hand-knotted rugs
Probably the best for wear and appearance retention, which is because most of these rugs are made from 100% wool.
Hand tufted, Hand loomed rugs
Cannot be over-wetted or steam cleaned without risking permanent damage and tuft loss, due to delamination.
Machine Woven Rugs
Generally these will be Wilton quality and are fine for dining areas, available in all the main fibre types.
5. Shape
It is better to try and replicate the shape of the table on the floor, so as long as you can get the correct size use a circular rug under a round table and rectangular rug under the same shaped table.
There are exceptions, if you are going to go really big on the rug you can mix it up a bit.
6. Colour and Design
The colour of your rug can be the key to tie all your other furnishings and colours together.
It can be bold, textured subtle or a statement piece of art for your floor.
Go with what you prefer, keep in mind central motifs and patterns will be covered by the table, so more overall or abstract designs may work better.
Stripes can make a room appear longer or wider than it actually is.
Lighter colours maybe harder to clean, which is also true for very dark colours such as black and navy.
Patterns can be so eclectic, heavy Persian designs can work in trendy Scandinavian interiors. Decide on the tone or mood you want to create and go for it.
7. Don't Forget Your Anti-Slip Underlay
Although you will have a heavy table on the centre of the rug, pulling chairs in and out from under it can cause issues with rucking and creasing. A good quality underlay will stop the edges or corners of your rug from curling, the rug will be easier to vacuum and feel better to stand on. Depending on the type of rug you have purchased, the underlay will also protect your hard flooring from scratches.
Choosing the Perfect Dining Room Rug
Summary
Choosing the perfect rug for your dining room can be as difficult as you want it to be. In this article, we hope to have shed a light on a few considerations when it comes to finding the best rug for you and your home.
Combine the advice in this guide with your own individuality to ensure that you find your perfect rug that is both practical and stunning.
Start your rug buying journey today - Browse our full collection of rugs at https://www.rugstorene.co.uk/all-rugs
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