A Contemporary Area Rug Has the Style and Shape You Need for Your Living Room
A contemporary area rug brings together great color, clean geometric shapes and lines, and subtle sophistication.
It's the perfect accent to tie together a comtemporary, modern or casual living room.
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Contemporary Decor Basics
Contemporary decor is characterized by clean lines, bold colors, texture and simplicity. Patterns tend to be bolder, emphasizing clean geometric shapes.
With a contemporary living room, the space that is used is just as important as the space that isn't. Think "less is more". Each individual item in your room must stand out for an effective design.
Check out this video on contemporary design...
Contemporary Area Rug Elements
If your living room is retro, vintage, or cottage, you don't need this type of rug. Contemporary is the "style of today" and as such you'll find these common elements in this type of rug.
- Colors that set trends, rather than follow them
- Art Deco influences
- Geometric shapes
- Easy to care for materials (olefin, polypropylene, and cotton)
How to Decorate
Here's some quick tips to help you choose the right contemporary rug for the living room of your dreams.
If you've created a conversation area in your living room, choose a bordered rug to help tie the area together. Also, if you have darker colored walls or an absence of incoming light, use a lighter colored rug to brighten things up.
Match the rug pattern to the room size. A larger room should have a larger rug pattern and vice versa. Finally, place your rug at least three feet away from any wall to keep it from interfering with inward opening doors.
Buyer's Guide
Choosing the right contemporary area rug for your living room isn't just about color, size, and pattern. When you buy a rug, you want it to last and be easy to take care of. Here's what you need to look for.
Browsing is your friend. Look at many rugs before settling on any one rug. You may have a style in mind, but you may find something that's even better than you expected. If money is an issue, look for machine-made rugs made from synethetic materials. You can still find a quality rug at a great price.
The next thing we recommend is being sure of the size you need before you shop. Rugs are priced based on size and if you're only guessing what size rug you need to may get it wrong and find out that the rug you want costs more than you want to spend.
Finally, we strongly recommend you buy a rug pad. It's easy to skip this important step but don't. Your rug will last longer with the proper pad underneath it.
Where do we shop for contemporary area rugs? We thought you'd never ask! These 3 stores are our absolute favorites.
Care and Cleaning
If you want your rug to look dull, matted and grimy then just set it down and forget about it. We guarantee that's what will happen. If you want years of life from a rug that looks as good today as the day you bought, then follow these tips.
- Shake it Baby - Vacuum or shake your rug regularly, depending on the manufacturer's guidelines. (There are rugs that should not be vacuumed!)
- Rotate - Once a year, rotate your rug 180 degress, unless that doesn't fit with the rug's design.
- Let the Pros Do It - Periodically have your professionally cleaned, especially if it's a more expensive item.
- Take Spills Seriously - Stain-resistant does not mean stain-proof. Spills should be addressed right away, before they can soak in.
Our good buddy Gordon has a plethora of information about area rug care and cleaning at Area Rug Tips.
We hope this helps you find the perfect contemporary area rug for your living room. Happy decorating!
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