Extend the Life of Your Wool Rugs

Just like any other investments, rugs should be taken care of if you want them to last longer. Fortunately enough, your wool rugs are easier to clean because wool rugs are dirt-resistant in composition. Wools fibres are opaque and dirt doesn’t show as much as with some clearer, brighter man-made fibres. It’s true that wools are probably one of the most cost-effective types of rugs because they are easy to maintain. However, that fact doesn’t exclude the need of cleaning them once in a while.

Some people say that vacuum has the most damaging effect on rugs. High powered vacuums can even pull the threads out of the back of rugs and cause sprouts to appear. But for wool rugs, that is not the case. Vacuuming your wool rugs twice a week will save you the penny to buy new one. However, for other rugs, it can still be advised to use vacuum cleaners for as long as the beater bars in the cleaner are removed.

Another way of taking care of your rugs is by becoming sensitive about the dirt that your rugs get. If your kids or pets had soiled your rugs, be sure to clean the dirt rightaway. Or in other cases, if the stain is caused by foods, scoop up the food residues and try to absorb the liquids the moment they spill onto your rug. It’s important to note that you should only use a paper towel or cloth to blot stains. Letting the stain dry on your rug will cause you extra work will only damage your rug -- both causes additional bother to us.

Steaming can be a very effective way for wool cleaning. By letting the steam get into the fibres of your wool, the residues or dirt will let loose on the fibres of your rug. This can make your rug extra easy to clean. Furthermore, it is strongly discouraged that you rub your rugs because it can cause pilling and matting. It’s not advisable to soak your wool rugs in water. Wool rugs have fibres that can absorb more water than synthetic fibres. Soaking them and then letting them dry would take time. Wool rugs will become evidently heavy as well. Excess soap and water can ruin your rug, too.

Every rug owner should know the practice of rotating their rugs 180 degrees every six months to ensure even wear. Exposure to direct sunlight will always be a factor to consider when placing a rug in a room. Rotating the rug will help your rug looks balanced in colour. Besides, all fibres, dyed or un-dyed will normally change over time.

But above all these, it’s safe to say that the easiest, safest and effective deep cleaning solution for any type of area rugs is to have them rolled up and taken away for cleaning by experts.  Not all wool rugs are the same for they have different fibre thickness. The best way to extend the life of your rugs is by reading the cleaning instructions for your rugs carefully before setting up the piece of art in any area of your room.

Runner Rugs

Runner rugs are used in narrow spaces such as hallways and stairs. This type of rug is made greater in length than width. To give the people a platform to the place where you want them to lead to, a runner rug is best to be used. It leads the eyes of the visitors to certain places in your home.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RUNNER RUGS AND AREA RUGS?

While both area rugs and runner rugs give a touch of colour to a pale room, the two have differences. One is that area rugs are made to be under certain furniture to group them together and make them look like they belong together in an area. Runner, on the other hand, is a rug that leads the people to the narrow spaces of the house such as stairs and hallways. Basically, the size of area rugs and runners defines the difference between the two. Area rugs are usually made to be of any size but mostly square while runners are made in a rectangular form and narrowly to fit perfectly in a limited space of a room.

IN WHAT AREAS ARE RUNNERS GOOD TO USE?

Generally, runners compliment wood flooring to contrast the colour of the floor and furniture. This type of carpeting can add a decorative element to hardwood made floors while making them warmer and comfortable to walk on. Even basements and wooden stairs that are not carpeted can be improved through using runners. However, runners can be used not only on wooden floors but also on the following areas of your home:

1. Kitchen - Since the space in the kitchen is also limited, floor runners can do its wonders by fitting nicely down the length of your cabinet or counter space. While the floor is being maximised in appearance, the runners can also provide a cushioned area for your feet to stand on when washing dishes or preparing food.
2. Bedroom - We all know that area rugs are the most common decoration used in beautifying the room space. However, because of its size, so much of the rug ends up hidden under the bed making some parts of the design unseen. Alternatively, the long and skinny shape of runners makes it perfect to be used in bedrooms. Runners can be used on one side of the bed or even on both sides of the bed if the bed is positioned in the centre of the room. Furthermore, runners will surely keep your feet cosy by providing a warm landing in the morning.
3. Walk-in closets. Typical walk-in closets are “mini-rooms” that fit two people at max. Runners are perfect for this kind of mini-room for it creates a focal point underfoot that suggests the space feel like a “real room.” The runner will draw attention away from its small size creating an illusion that the closet is spacey.

For a room that needs decorating, adding a rug will be the perfect and most cost-effective answer. Through using runners, your hallway or corridor will not look empty or barren anymore. 

Keeping It Classy with Traditional Rugs

By now, we are all aware that rugs play different roles in making our homes more comfortable to live in. The fabric contributes to the design of our abode, while making the place look larger. It keeps our feet warm. Rugs come in all different sizes, textures and materials. For some, the best rug is still the traditional type.

WHAT ARE TRADITIONAL RUGS?

Traditional rugs originated from central and western Asia. This type of rug was used to cover beaten-earth floors. As time moved on, the fabric was utilised to cover the floors of houses and tents. Gradually, traditional rugs were also used to cover floorings of mosques and palaces, which are considered holy places. By then, the rug was already considered as a piece of fabric that symbolised status in society.

To date, traditional rugs are used to define luxury. Using a traditional rug inside your home will give everyone the impression that you are a person of great taste. In fact, traditional rugs are often included in wills and are considered as an item of fantastic value.

WHY SHOULD YOU USE TRADITIONAL RUGS?

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  It’s needless to say that traditional rugs are classy. The colours used in making these rugs are subtle enough to create a refined look in any room or hallway. Any area will surely look sophisticated when accented with a traditional rug. Furthermore, the rug is designed to look timeless. The design of traditional rugs can blend with any kind of furniture, complimenting any area to create a statement of its own.

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    They are a piece of art. A truly traditional rug is meticulously made by hand. The fabric is intricately produced, giving attention to fine details. The design of these rugs is often associated with nature and geometric motifs. Some traditional rugs are now machine made. Nevertheless, the rugs still tend to boast more intricate details and colours over their modern counterparts.

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They are very versatile. Traditional rugs can be used as a centrepiece in any room or strategically placed to blend with other designs around the home. Traditional rugs can offer the perfect accent to any room.

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They provide multi-sensory comfort and relaxation. Most traditional rugs are made with the finest fabrics. There is no doubt why these rugs provide a different kind of softness underfoot. The fabric tends to be thicker and can be contributory in making any room sound-proof. Furthermore, the thickness of traditional rugs can also retain the temperature in a room, keeping it cosy.

TRADITIONAL RUGS AT FANTASTIC RUGS

Traditional doesn’t necessarily mean old fashioned. Our Traditional Rugs are hand crafted, yet made from modern fabrics. We can ensure that the traditional rugs we have to offer will blend seamlessly into the latest designs and popular trends.

Area Rugs Do's and Don'ts

Now that we are completely aware that rugs are the cheapest yet best decorations that we can put in the small areas of our home, we should move to the next step which is knowing the do’s and don’ts in using area rugs. But first, let us define the purposes of our rugs.

What are the purposes of rugs?

Our rugs, aside from giving a touch of colour to a pale room (or give a feel of cosiness in a room made with hard materials), also helps us to define spaces. A rug acts like an area that groups the furniture that belongs together. The piece of art that is lying on the floor unifies the furnishings that are placed upon it. It helps the people distinguish which place is which: it separates the dining room from the living room and the living room to the other areas of your home.

Besides defining space, area rugs also help creating an illusion that your room is big and spacious. When put together with the proper furniture, a rug will definitely give the feel that one is staying in an expansive room.

Lastly, rugs make the areas in your home look “complete.” Through coordinating the colours of your rug, furniture and wall, the decorations in your room will appear as if it has been already given the final touch.

Needless to say, area rugs really do a lot of things in our room without us even noticing it. Now that we know how much rags beautify our spaces, let us take the time to know the do’s and don’ts in using area rugs.

Area Rugs Do’s

• Use the appropriate size – How would we know if the rugs that we have on hand is perfect for our area? This may appear hard but it is actually easy; to know if the rug has the appropriate size for our area, we should look at it after we have already placed the furnishings on top of the rug. If it looks like it is awkwardly placed, then the rug is too small or maybe, the furniture that you have is too big for it. There is actually no ideal size for rug – However, in the living room, the perfect rug should cover at least 2 front legs of your chairs. Nevertheless, the other smaller pieces of furniture that you have like coffee table and vases should be placed upon the rug. In the dining room, the rug should be large enough that when the chairs are pulled out from the table, they are still covered by the rug.

• Cover fully the heavy traffic areas of your house – Living room and dining room are the most common heavy-traffic areas of our house. When people walk in those places, they shouldn't have one foot on the rug while the other foot is off it. In our previous blog post, we have mentioned that wool rugs are the perfect rugs for high-traffic areas.

• Check the cleaning instructions – Rugs that have natural fibres may appear to be inexpensive at first. However, they cannot be cleaned. If unfortunately, you have soiled them, you are left with no choice but to replace them. Carefully weigh the types of rugs that you would like to use in your home, while of course, not disregarding your budget before you go ahead and buy a piece or two.

• Match the shape of the rug with the furniture on top of it – People assume that oval rugs go well with almost everything – this is not always true. The rule of thumb when choosing a rug is to match its shape with the furniture that you are planning to place on top of it. For example, if your dining table is rectangle, then it is best for you to buy a rectangular-shaped rug as well to complement your table.

Area Rugs Don’ts:

• Clash colours – The purpose of your rug is to complement your furnishings and not destroy it. If you are not sure of what is the best rug to buy, you can opt to choose safe colours that are one shade lighter or darker than your furniture.

• Be afraid of using patterned rugs – How would you know if a pattern is good for your furniture? The pattern of the rug doesn't necessarily have to be the same as your furniture. You can just pick a furniture and see the dominant colour that it has and make sure that the patterned rug has that colour too.

• Leave your living room and dining room looking bare – As mentioned earlier, rugs make the room look complete and “finished.” Since the living room and dining room are the heavy traffic areas of your house, then you might as well avoid the mistake of leaving it bare-looking. Make sure that your dining room and living room are presentable to your family and future guests as well.

In order for our rugs to meet its purpose, we should also be knowledgeable enough in placing them in the proper areas.

Tips on How to Decorate Your Home Using Shaggy Rugs

Shaggy rugs are soft, textured and chunky home accessories that you can use to decorate your house. Instead of having a regular rug, why not choose a shaggy rug that can definitely change the mood of your home? The use of rugs as home décor has, once again, gained popularity. Our modern ways of living has not changed the way we feel about having a cosy home. Shaggy rugs are the most commonly used rugs at home today. From the living room, to the bathroom, people prefer the feel of shaggy rugs against one’s skin over other rugs. 

Shaggy rugs can be made from various materials such as cotton, wool, nylon and many others. They are also known to be durable and most ideal to be placed in areas of the home where there is much foot traffic. If you are thinking of decorating your home using shaggy rugs, here are some tips that you can take note of.

Shaggy Rugs with Playful Hues.  These types of rugs are best placed in the children’s room to make it look more fun and youthful. On the other hand, you can also place them in an all-white or all-black room to add a hint of colour and make the room look more interesting. 

Shaggy Rugs with Animal Print. Ideal for rooms with not much colour, animal print shaggy rugs are central pieces in themselves. They tend to attract attention and are usually placed in the living room or bedroom. These rugs add greatly to the personality and feel of a room.

Shaggy Rugs with a Solid Colour. Best placed in monochromatic rooms – either to match a theme or to stand out from it – shaggy rugs with a solid colour are the easiest ones to place anywhere around the house. If you are going for a formal look, it is recommended that you purchase a rug with a neutral hue, so it can fit almost anywhere. 

Shaggy rugs come in different sizes, shapes, materials and hues. All you need to do is to ensure that your choice would fit the look that you are going for. Keep in mind that it’s all a matter of styling and matching colours – if you are not confident with your choice, try seeking the help of a friend or looking for ideas through magazines and other resources. At Fantastic Rugs, we offer a variety of stylish, affordable and high quality shaggy rugs that you can choose from.

Wools: High-Traffic Area Rugs

Rugs do not only give warmth and cosiness to our rooms – rugs also connect us to our space. When buying this piece of art, we should always remember that rugs should be treated as a textile product.  Thus, the furry things under our feet should also be cleaned and maintained. However, one may formulate an argument about the real purpose of rugs. Of course, rugs do not need to be flawless and they are meant to be used. Perhaps, the best way to answer this juxtaposition is to put the perfect rug in the best area.

Choosing the right rug for your home’s high-traffic areas such as living room, where you entertain your guests, and dining room, where you serve your specialities to your guests can be considered as an investment. Doing so means that you choose a rug that is durable and will surely last. For us, wools are the best material that can be used in areas where people walk to and fro. Why? Because:

• Wools can be easily cleaned.  Wools are stain resistant. Furthermore, they contain natural oils that can prevent dirt from adhering to the yarn. However, using it for a long time may change its appearance. Using a vacuum cleaner, you can already get rid of the dirts and residues that are stuck in a wool rug. But if you feel that using a vacuum cleaner is not enough, you can try using dry extraction powders. On the other hand, it is not advisable to use cleaning solvents when cleaning a wool rug. Scrubbing the rug excessively and letting it be soaked for a long time in a cleaning solvent will damage its quality.
• Wools make us feel luxurious. If luxury is the only consideration in choosing the perfect rug for your high-traffic areas, perhaps, silk is the best answer that you may think of. On the contrary, people should avoid using silk rugs in their living room because of a number of reasons. Aside from the fact that silks are not durable, silks are too soft and smooth that it may cause an accident to the person who would walk over it.
• Wools are fire resistant. You may wonder why this quality of the wool is included here in the list. I will explain why. Most of the time, our living rooms and dining rooms have several windows. The windows let the rays of sunshine pass through our house. By using a rug that is fire resistant, you can be at peace that nothing bad will happen to your house while you are away.
• Wools are cosy. Lastly, wools are made of continuous fibre loops that provides warmth to our feet. Naturally, our reason for buying a rusg is to treat our feet and avoid the feeling of stiffness.

Now that we know that wools are the best rugs for your living room and dining room, let us take a quick look at these fantastic wool rugs that will perfectly suit your taste:

It is also good to take note that it’s better to choose dark-coloured rugs for your high-traffic areas. A plain black rug is good but a patterned rug is better because the illusions of the fabric will definitely hide the dirt.

If  you want to  know more about rugs and what rugs are best for the other areas of your home, you may find this article interesting.

Why are Rugs Good for Wall Hanging?

Hanging of rugs on the walls is not a new trend. However, the application of rugs for wall hanging has expanded over time. Aside from the many things that a rug does to our house flooring, it can also be used for hanging. Here are the reasons why:

1. They can be used as an art. Opting for rugs instead of expensive paintings is a good idea if you are a practical person. A fine art can be expensive and many people would not probably opt to spend lots of cash just to buy something that they will just hang on their walls. One painting costs twice or thrice the price of an elegant rug.
2. They create an instant focal point in the room. Instead of putting your rugs on the floor, hanging it on the wall may create a better decoration in your house. Hanging a rug behind a furniture that you fancy will make the furniture more outstanding and appealing to the eyes of your visitors. Rugs add up to your house’s friendly atmosphere, too!
3. They can be used to customise your room. There are some rugs that appear to be too good to just set our feet upon. We sometimes have a feeling that certain rugs are not okay to be soiled by our feet. However, rugs don’t always have to stay on the floor. You can try adding some personal touch to your room by hanging your rugs instead of just putting them on the floor.
4. Rugs can be used to reduce noise levels. Who would’ve thought that the most overlooked thing in the house can be useful in reducing noise? Because of its thickness, a rug absorbs the sound waves better than plain walls. Rugs are useful, most especially if you are living in a crowded apartment. Amazing, right?

In line with these, we included some of the rugs which we think will look good on your walls:

This Funk Rug Multi will surely blend with a white walled room with minimalist-designed set of furniture. The funky bright colours will create a lighter mood to a plain room.

On the other hand, this Bob Marley rug will fit well to break the colour of any dark painted room walls. The design of the rug will without a doubt complement your music room.

This Harlequin Bamboo rug is indeed a great wall decoration that will add a cozy feel to your place.

To find more of these decorative rugs, please feel free to browse on our page and check out the rugs that we offer!