apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

It depends on the kitchen.

In one of our kitchens, we had small Persian and African tribal rugs, which looked great in the space. The floor was wood, which was a good match. Our current kitchen has a rubber floor, which would not look good with a rug.

We have small rugs in front of the stove & fridge. I'm so used to them that it would seem weird not to have them. Just one of those things that you grow up with and carry on without thinking about it.

I use a very ugly 3M anti-fatigue kitchen mat on the floor in front of the sink and main counter. My feet need it in order to be able to cook and wash dishes after a long day at work on my feet.

Does anyone know of a more attractive (yet still waterproof) alternative?

Seems like a rug would need to be washed waaay too frequently to be worth its decorative value.

I bought that damn Orla Kiely kitchen mat and it was a absolute dog hair magnet. I threw that crap away after a week. Orla, you owe me $15.

A rug would not work for my kitchen I spend enough time vacuuming and using the Bona cleaner every four days.

In a larger kitchen with an area where there is no food prep, water splashing then I could see it.

casualgrace- can you share where you got the 3M mat? I have Achilles tendon issue and I think this would help some.

The tile floor in my kitchen gets so cold that I have to use a rug especially during the cold winter months — and kitchen rugs aren't up for the challenge so I have a wool rug that covers much of the floor. Yes, I do worry about massive spills, but since it's wool most liquids take time to sink in and are always caught in time. It does get a good cleaning twice a year too.

We have a rug, only for looks, not comfort. But I found out the main purpose is to only collect any lint, cat hair, crumbs, sauce, and other food particles it possibly can.

I have a small, semi-circular rug in front of the sink to protect my vintage hardwood floors from water splashing.

"Does anyone know of a more attractive (yet still waterproof) alternative?"

Gel-Pro mats:
http://www.gelpro.com/

Since I have concrete floors, I've been considering something - but I'm kinda messy too, so I've been avoiding it too...
...so I've just been wearing fuzzy socks when I cook to keep my feet warm and comfy.

I use 3 small matching rugs in my kitchen. One is right underfoot at the sink so any water drips from dishes are caught on the rug and not our wood floors. The second rug is at the sliding glass door to catch any dirt, debris, or grass that we or our black lab drags in. And the 3rd is under our the water/food dish for our lab.

We have aweful white lineleum in our apartment kitchen, and without a rug by the sink, any splashes from dishes combine with whatever small amount of dirt is on our shoes to make little muddy prints all over. It's infuriating. We have a small bamboo and cotton mat that can be wiped down and shaken out, and it's helped immensely.

We employ a no shoes rule in our apartment which is great for keeping our hardwoods squeaky clean, but its a little hard on the feet. After a day of work, my feet would ache when I walked around.

To solve this problem I bought a pair of indoor only sandals (crocs). They are terribly ugly, but they only see the light of day when I am cleaning and cooking.

I second Kathryn and thepragmatist comments. Get a washable rug.

I have an outdoor rug at the kitchen sink, mostly to distract form the hideous beige vinyl, but also for a tiny bit of cushiness.

I have a long runner in my kitchen that I purchased at the Crate & Barrel outlet. It adds color and disguises the ugly floor tile until I can replace it. I vacuum it regularly, and throw it in the wash if it gets spilled on.

One rug, must be able to go in the washer.

I live in a very old building with wood floors, and in the kitchen there are substantial cracks between the boards. If I don't use a washable rug, crumbs and any liquid-y spills get into the cracks and are not easy to remove. A washable rug in the sink/prep area is a godsend. I've either used a grass mat I can hose off outside on a nice day and dry in the sun, or just replace, or an Ikea cotton area rug. I like the feeling of a mat under my feet, rather than the hard floor. It makes a big difference when you're in the kitchen for a while - it's the amateur version of an anti-fatigue mat, I guess.

I have kilm from Afghanistan in the center of the kitchen floor mainly as a safe island for my senior greyhound (whose afraid of slick surfaced floors) to walk on on the way out the back door. It also helps pick up some of the muddy paw prints before he enters the rest of the house. I like the deep warm colors and texture the rug adds to the kitchen and, as it is 100% wool, it is durable and pretty easy to keep clean. Spots are easily removed with a wet sponge. The pattern and texture help make it always look good :o). I routinley shake it out and vacuum it and about once a year spread it on the sidewalk or driveway and hose it and gently scrub with Woolite and a brush, similar to the method the "natives" use.

I have a small bamboo mat that I put in front of the sink. It's mostly for looks (and to cover up some cracked tile in my apartment kitchen). It's light and can easily be rolled up to be stowed away, shaken out to get rid of stray crumbs, and wiped down if anything splashes onto it.

I have Chilewich mats in front of the sink and stove. I bought them at Crate & Barrel. When they get dirty I can just throw them in the tub or take them outdoors and hose them off.

I can't stand the hideous beige linoleum in my rental. I've wanted to make a floor cloth ( http://www.sandpoint.net/~rafter4/floorcloth.htm ) for years, but my DIY backlog is huge. At Target this year I found a cute canvas rug that fits in my kitchen precisely. A coat of waterproofing, a broom to sweep it off, visually much better than 'ick' and provides just a hint of insulation between bare feet and cold floor.

I have bought inexpensive vinyl tiles (they come in some great colors) and have made various size rugs by using duct-tape on the back. They clean very easy. It's a no brainer that does the job.

our kitchen fllor is cold and grey, but i have to cats dining there, a washing mashine that leeks a litte bit and a SO that makes a mess everywhere he is cooking or eating. so no rug!

I have a small rubbery rug from MOMA in front of the sink which doubles for where I do most of my food prep; it's a little padding to collect spills and wash off easily but also to cushion my feet while I stand & work.

We had a rug in the old house to carry the purple part of our color scheme down to the mainly dark green floor. It looked nice, but it shed a lot of lint in the washer, and required washing periodically since our cat liked to barf there after eating too fast! (The joys of pet ownership!)

Now the new kitchen floor is kind of a slate look vinyl tile in shades of greens and browns, mostly, and it's nice enough without any rug. If I spent more time standing around there, I might get a gel mat, but I'm short, and I often need to drag a step stool to various cupboards to reach very high, and a gel mat would make that process a problem...

i have a small Chilewich shag floor mat at the kitchen sink. I have it in the lime green color. Works great since it's really easy to vacuum and if needed i can completely hose it to wash and dry. A regular rug just did not work with our dog.

My mom's insisted on having the rug in front of the sink for as long as I can remember, but it's honestly a huge annoyance. The garbage can slides out from under the sink, and things often wind up spilling on the rug when they're being emptied. It's on a rubber rug mat, which it constantly slides off of.

I wouldn't have one in my kitchen. Too dirty. I don't like bathroom rugs either, with the exception of a bathmat for stepping out of the shower or tub - but one that can be easily thrown in the wash with the towels.

Runners are the only way to go: http://stylenorth.ca/blog/2008/11/inspiration-go-big-with-kitchen-mats/

I can't use one- my husband trips on them. Honestly I don't understand how, but he does. Also, the dog thought he could pee on the kitchen rug. Again, I didn't understand that either. ....

I have a short cotton stripe rug kinda like this one:
http://snurl.com/dqu2y [www_flickr_com]
It goes in the machine every week.
Really no trouble ~ and cosy on the tootsies.

Interesting topic, but the second post today about kitchen rugs.

I do have a kitchen rug. It is a simple striped cotton rug that is reversible and washable. I wash it about once a month. One reason I have it is because it is nice under foot, the other is to give the dogs a soft place to lay and it seems to keep them from being under foot.

Yes, to cover up the hideous tile my house came with.

I don't use KITCHEN... ;-P

I've always found rugs in kitchens to be ... well, less than attractive. I renovated my kitchen and put in beautiful porcelain tiles. I don't want to cover them up!!

I lost the battle for a heated kitchen floor but thankfully, the floor isn't very cold in the winter. So I don't need carpeting to keep my tootsies warm! And if my feet do get a bit cold, I throw on my slippers.

i just bought the pop circles rug from the andy warhol collection for underneath my round docksta table in the kitchen nook. works wonderfully for spills and gives an additional design element to my kitchen.

I NEVER have mats of any kind in the kitchen - can't stand the thought of the germs they are picking up from food droppage and feet and pets etc - I always install a washable floor and clean it regularly - no issues with coldness as the family always wears slippers in the house

I put flor tiles in my kitchen. The floor is slate and COLD during the winter. What I like about the Flor tiles is that if I spill anything on them, it's super easy to clean. Pick up tile, clean in sink, dry, put back.