6 Unexpected Ways to Decorate With an Area Rug

Area rugs, whether a vintage family heirloom or a brand-new washable rug, are an underrated home decor essential. And while you likely already have a rug hanging out under your living room sofa, there are many more spots where a beautiful rug can add a burst of color and pattern all around the house. Think outside the living room, and try adding a machine-washable rug to your kitchen or let a new woven rug double as wall decor. Below are six brilliant area rug decorating ideas to try in every room in your home.

Turn Vintage Rugs into a Stair Runner

To create a soft landing on this staircase featured on One Kings Lane, interior design Megan Pflug pieced together multiple vintage runners with similar color schemes and coordinating patterns. If you're considering carpeting your staircase, this DIY runner could turn a boring staircase into a statement piece.

Swap in a Rug for a Throw Blanket

If you have a spare rug that you consider too pretty to step on, drape it across the bottom of your bed instead, as artist Sharlene Kayne did, above. It will act as a throw blanket, keeping you warm on chilly nights.

Add One to Your Bathroom

Over the past few years, area rugs in the bathroom have become more and more popular. Adding a vintage rug to the bathroom ups the elegance in this room and helps it match the rest of your home's decor, as demonstrated by Loom + Kiln's gorgeous bathroom, above. To keep the rug looking fresh, don't use the rug as your bathmat and vacuum the rug regularly. Look for a wool rug, as wool dries relatively quickly compared to other materials.

Warm Up the Kitchen

If your kitchen is feeling a little stark and cold, adding a soft woven area rug can help warm it up. Depending upon the shape of your kitchen, a runner, like the one from Rug & Weave above, may be the perfect fit. Again, to maintain a rug in the kitchen, you'll want to vacuum it regularly to keep dust and crumbs from collecting. Or look for a machine-washable rug that you can clean during your weekly laundry session.

Hide Your TV

If you consider your tv an eyesore, try hiding it behind a beautiful woven area rug, as Domino did here. You'll be able to enjoy a new piece of wall art, rather than a big black box.

Make It a DIY Headboard

If your bed doesn't currently have a headboard, let a vintage rug do the job, like blogger Haley Stuart did. If you already have a headboard but want to switch up your bedroom's style, try draping a rug over the existing headboard. This low-commitment move will let you decide if you want to live with the pattern before you dive into a DIY project.