I normally focus on the color of the rug, then the texture. As for when to buy, I think a great rug can be a nice starting point or the final element to pull a room together.

It TOOOOOOTALLY depends. For our new house, we brought a lot of rugs with us, so we used an existing rug and matched the couch to it in the den, for example. But in the office we had the paint picked and knew generally what furniture we had/wanted and looked for a light, neutral rug for the floor. If you've made an investment in a rug, like the oriental rug we bought early in our marriage, then you design around that, because it's not a disposable item.

Where do you guys find are good places to go rug shopping? Anthropologie is so expensive, but I like the style...-

Random side note: I love that orange lamp in the first photo. Does anyone know where to find it? Thanks!

I have at least 3 sisal rugs in my house..goes with everything and i love the relaxed casual look about them. Plus they are affordable!
I've been wanting to get a nice gray blue stripe rug(maybe wool or cotton) for my daughter's room.

I love looking for/at antique rugs, particularly Moroccan or antique kilims. Unfortunately I'll never be own to own a really nice rug thanks to my cat...

I rarely start putting a room together based on a rug. It's usually the last thing to arrive. Colour and texture are important for me. I want something soft on the feet, and interesting to look at.

I can't have fancy rugs either though - for some reason the dog will always make his way to the rug when he's sick :(

Where is that last rug from (the teal one)? That's the kind of rug I want.

Weight. I prefer studier rugs because we have carpet in our apartment and I hate when heavy furniture pinches the rug.

@kd_muse - I agree. I wanted to buy a rug before anything else, but I'm glad I didn't. When all was said and done, the room has changed so much that a rug would have cluttered the dining room.

I seriously have a rug buying phobia! They are so expensive, so I don't want to make a mistake and buy one that ends up not working. Any pointers on how to get over this would be helpful. It is all so overwhelming to me. color, texture, pattern or solid, material? how does one decide?

I DESPISE looking for and choosing a rug. It's so overwhelming and expensive! I always want to try certain "fun" pieces, but I can't commit to the price. I inevitable opt for something safe and boring. Boo!

@kozy11 I totally agree and have the same phobia!

@ChristieSue24
Overstock has lots of rugs in various styles.

@kozy11: I only buy rugs second hand or I would never be able to stand getting it dirty at all (even though there's a no shoes rule). I buy everything I like under $100 that seems like a good value, with the plan of reselling the ones I don't end up using (aka CL return policy).

I go for how it feels against my feet, and I'm trying to generally match the early 1900's look. I have a smaller house so I buy small rugs (5'x8' max) and then just layer them when I need more space covered.

First thing for me in a rug are colors that don't contrast too much. Anything with white contrasting with a dark color is going to show dirt. Then its all about how much shedding and care. Then its about look. I think rugs styles change WAY to drastically over time (just search for rugs on craigslist), so something that isn't too "interesting" will help it hang out for awhile.

Bethany, thank you so much for the post!

All rugs shown above are, of course, from Anthropologie (http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/catalog/category.jsp?popId=HOME&navAction=top&navCount=6&pushId=HOME-RUGS&id=HOME-RUGS).

And @burningcoin: the lamp was a vintage find from one of my (other) favorite stores, Three Potato Four (http://threepotatofourshop.com/).

Happy rug hunting!

I shop old, vintage, antique rugs all the way because I feel like they have the most durability and life to them. Rugs on etsy is great for affordable antique and vintage rug finds or going around to different shops in the rug district of nyc can be fun (although I find that there prices can wind up being through the roof in person).

This is an awesome article and I love the photos of the different rugs! I am a big rug lover -- when I am shopping for a new rug or re-designing one of the rooms in my house I start with theme and color. If I am thinking that I want there to be reds and whites in the room, I hunt for a rug first and foremost that would look good with red and white (whether it has those colors or not) and then once I find the rug, I let it help the decor for the rest of the space. It all starts with the floor!

I have moved so much since relocating to London, that I have to say- buy something you love!

Yes, it sort of needs to go with the rest of your furniture, but when you move around and need to constantly be changing furniture to fit spaces and different light conditions, having something you really love to live with and cherish is more important than fad-buying. And anything too match-y is boring!

As another commenter (Kozy) mentions, rugs are pricey... Invest in something you love and you can't go wrong. This doesn't mean it has to be boring - just something you really like and won't get tired of.

Kilims are my first choice.

ps. ebay is great for finding decent priced second hand kilims in the UK!