Which rug to buy?

We like to look in person because texture is so important. I think our rugs have generally come from Cost Plus or Crate & Barrel. Huge price variance with rugs. If you have a sense for texture, you can try buying online. Delivery (and returns) can be a pain, though. Rug pad is often unnecessary for a rug that big.

Second Ruggable!! They're amazing

I'm a big fan of vintage rugs, which are usually pricey, but made well. If a rug is 50 years old and still looks beautiful, it's probably because it's great quality and cleans well. I used to own a retail store and we borrowed rugs from a local vintage seller, and his rugs stood up to sooooooooo much foot traffic. In my home, I started with a cheapie online purchase and have slowly upgraded twice over 6 years because cheap rugs need to be replaced (not just cleaned). We have a small Ruggable in our kitchen, which I recommend, but for our living area I prefer some texture and pile. We currently have a West Elm rug that I got on sale, which has been decent. But next rug will be a splurgy vintage rug that I hope to keep for decades! The vintage seller I used to work with that I highly recommend is Online Oriental Rugs (that's my shop on the home page)

Whatever you do, DO NOT BUY VISCOSE! I made that mistake once. It should not be used for rugs - period. It is extremely soft and lush to look at, but any liquid at all ruins the texture - the fibers harden into a lump that cannot be undone. Not cleanable. I have one Ruggable rug, a few wool rugs, and several areas where I've used FLOR tiles. I love them all for different reasons. The Ruggable rug is great where I have cats that like to throw up on my rug - it goes straight into the washing machine. However, it does have that synthetic look and feel, and it's not very cushiony and the fibers are extremely low - good for high traffic or areas you know will get dirty. Wool rugs feel and look great. Natural fibers, more cushion, fairly easy to spot clean - it is recommended you use a rug pad still, as it extends the life of the rug. Plus it helps keep it from sliding/shifting around. Only feels more cushiony with it! I've purchased my wool rugs from West Elm and Pottery Barn - both are great. I LOVE my Flor tiles for my entry ways, kitchen, and hallways. They aren't very soft/cushiony, so not as ideal for living rooms (although I'm using it in one of our sitting areas off the kitchen), but wonderful for areas that get dirty or have more spills. You can pull up and clean or replace individual tiles (my husband dropped a whole jar of salsa on ours, and I pulled up the 3 tiles, washed them in the bathtub, and put them back after they dried - absolutely no staining). The "dots" that stick them together can be a pain to deal with when re-sticking tiles that have been previously stuck together - the stickiness clings to the tile and in my experience, I had to get that stickiness off to get the new dots to stay. But after figuring that out, it's not been a problem. Easy to vacuum, tough, and water/liquid can't penetrate to your floor underneath because of the backing. No pads needed or even recommended under Flor tiles. I will add that one of my cats does like to scratch the wool rugs, but doesn't bother with the others - so that might be a consideration for an expensive wool rug.