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Rugs are a long-term investment for your home and its appearance, so taking the time to pick the best one for you can determine whether you’re still satisfied with your choice as the years go by.

To help you in choosing the best rugs that will meet your needs now and in the future, consider these helpful tips to narrow down your selection and determine the quality and style that you need.

 

Rug Patterns

When most people think about area rugs, they think of the complex and busy patterns of Persian rugs. Persian and traditional rugs made in a similar style typically have a border outlining the rug, and the entire design incorporates flowers, vines and intricately detailed spheres aligned in neat geometric patterns. While Persian rugs are an excellent choice, there are a wide variety of patterns, colors and styles available to you besides this.

Contemporary rugs take a different approach, using big, bold patterns and colors. These often don’t incorporate a border, but highlight a specific shape or design element such as a branch of leaves or a large striped pattern. If you love the modern look and your other decor reflects this, contemporary rugs are an excellent choice.

Not sure you want something so bold? Transitional rugs often find a happy medium between contemporary and traditional styles. Tribal rugs also use a more traditional approach while incorporating tribal designs and colors to create a stand-out look.

 

Rug Shapes

Once you have an idea of what style of rug would do best in your home, the next step is to consider the shape.

Living rooms are perfect for large area rugs — just make sure the furniture will be completely on or off the rug. Uneven distribution of weight will lead to more wear on the rug and a leave your furniture off balance.

Round rugs can highlight specific pieces of furniture and decor, or they can be used to fill an awkwardly sized space.

For hallways and walkways, long and narrow area rugs are appropriate.

 

Rug Materials

Before you fall in love with a particular rug style, you should know what material types you should be looking for.

Depending on where you want to put the rug and how you want to use it, different materials are appropriate.

Cotton and wool area rugs are durable and will stand up to more wear, making them perfect for hallways, living rooms and other high traffic areas in your home.

Silk rugs can incorporate more delicate designs but the material is less sturdy, so these make better accent pieces that won’t see a lot of foot traffic or wall hangings.

Cheaper materials such as acrylic and polyester are often less expensive, but the durability and value of such synthetic materials don’t compare to those of natural materials.

 

Rug Types

Which type is better?

Hand-knotted rugs are by far your best bet for value and longevity — if you want a rug that will last you for decades with some care, hand-knotted rugs have the high quality you are looking for.

Machine-made rugs tend to be cheaper and more uniform, but they won’t last as long because the manufacturing process takes shortcuts that hand-knotted rug makers don’t.

Still can’t decide? Here are 10 more rug buying tips to help you choose the right rug.

 

Allison Edrington is a business writer for Alyshaan, an area rug store in Arizona providing fine handmade area rugs and custom rugs in the United States.