Interior Design and Redesign

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Rugs vs. Furniture: What to Buy First?

QUESTION
I have a great room, exposing my dining room, kitchen, hallway, and living area. I plan to purchase the same pattern rug for all rooms. Which should you purchase first, furniture, or rugs?

ANSWER
I'm taking it you're talking about area rugs and not wall to wall carpeting.

First I recommend you work out on paper the furniture layout you want to use, because area rugs need to be coordinated with the configuration. I would purchase nothing at all, were it me, until I knew what my furniture would be, it's size and location. This will play a part in deciding the size of the rug needed for each room. I would also pay attention to whether I'm likely to want to change the configuration of the furniture around from time to time, as the rug could hamper that process.

I would also make sure that I have plenty of fabric choices that will blend with the color of the rug before committing to either furniture or rugs.

You should gather samples if you can of everything you think you might like to get to make sure they look good together and in the light conditions of each room.