The most common look for layering rugs seems to be an animal hide (faux or no) over a sisal — this is probably the most neutral option. Other examples mix patterns and colors, sometimes creating a bohemian wonderland of textiles. Dusty, perhaps, but cozy and romantic!
Images:
1 Jenna Lyons layered a zebra hide over a Beni-Ourani rug, photo by Melanie Acevedo for Domino, via Bride's
2 Floral over plaid in this room designed by Jeffrey Bilhuber, via the decorologist
3 Layered Oriental rugs lend an air of mystery, via Matters of Style
4 Layered rugs keep this garden room feeling cozy, via Sara Says Awesome
5 Eclectic patterns layered in this room featured in House to Home, photo by Paul Raeside
6 Mixed stripes in the bedroom chez Lisa Maycock of Vena Cava, via Design Sponge
7 Nicole from So Haute layered a neutral hide over a neutral sisal, via Apartment Therapy
8 Mismatched oriental rugs serves a wall-to-wall carpet in this room, photo by Tony Cenicola for the New York Times
9 Oriental rugs layered in the J. Crew catalog, via Apartment Therapy
10 A zebra hide rug over an Oriental rug, via Sara Says Awesome.
Images as linked above
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I love layered rugs - the only downside is you have to be able to afford multiple rugs :(
if you had a room like #1, anything will look pretty...no rug, one rug or triple rug..lol
I've seen this done well, but generally I think it's too cluttered looking.
I agree with SweetVirginia. I really don't think it looks very good at all.
I do like how it looks. On the other hand, I would worry about tripping on all those rugs.
LOVE the striped sofa in pic #5...source?
I like it in pictures, but I have feeling you'd be tripping over the layers, and it feels very staged. Reminds me of the Beatles rooftop concert.
I like the "Just Bone Me" poster above the bed in picture #6. Tee hehe! I like the look and idea, but I don't think its practical.
I understand the necessity of this look when you have a rented space with hideous beige carpet, but when that's not a concern it just looks like the floor is wearing too many clothes.
I hate this.
Always looks like a rug showroom to me. Plus uneven furniture and the chance of tripping? No thanks.
I love this look. One thing to take into account, though, is that it will make a small room look smaller. Better in a bigger space... except that rugs are expensive and then you need more rugs.
mixed feelings
ick
I do this
I tried this with a bunch of small 2x3 Persian-print rugs. Needless to say it didn't work out, they kept getting kicked out of position. I love the look though, but as others have remarked it's definitely cost-prohibitive. If you used floppy worn antique rugs instead of brand new ones it would probably reduce tripping issues.
I like the idea of it, but I can't quite figure out the cleaning part of it. Do you have to lift up each rug to vacuum all the layers? Seems like a lot of extra work when just one rug would do.
I like the idea when they aren't the same style of rugs otherwise it looks too patchworky. I love it when they are similar scale, especially when the top rug is animal hide (my grandparents have an animal hide rug... so I think that's where it comes from).
I <3 Jenna Lyons' home (pic one)
Really creative. I'll have to play around with it. Suddenly my SO and I have a surplus of rugs, lol.. Otherwise, down in storage, I suppose.
Thanks for the examples though. Some are incredibly effective.