apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

We used to have a rug like this outside at our last apartment. It was VERY cool looking for about a day and then we realized that ANY furniture placed on it would slowly eat away at the rug underneath and make it flake away. no amount of sweeping got rid of the "plastic party" happening on our porch and inevitably the shrapnel migrated into our house, which was needless to say, less than awesome. I will say it was not this particular brand, but be warned, because that stuff gets EVERYWHERE.

not to be a total grumpus, but shouldnt we at least think twice about turning the outdoors...even if it is an urban patio...into an extension of our living rooms?

yikes... i just read the comments about mean posts...i hope my comments above are ok...i have been thinking about the tendency to "groom" the outdoors, and this rug struck me as an example of that...so it was the concept, not the person i was dissing (a bit).

hmm, but I think extending our homes into nature is actually a good thing. I can understand your desire to not "groom" nature, but I don't think that is what we are speaking of here. As you say, this would most likely be used in an already urban area, probably on a hard surface, such as a patio, or by the pool. In other words, an already man-made surface...

btw snoozin- I don't think your post was mean, but opens up a discussion....there are a lot of just flat out mean posts out there...

You know, snoozin, I was thinking of that, too. I don't have overly strong feelings about it, but I would only want to see this in very limited situations. I guess the term "woven polypropylene" in conjuntion with nature gives me the willies.

The Wall Street Journal agrees with Snoozin about the "outdoor room" trend, including lively anecdotes about waste, maintenance, and attracting rats.

I'm not saying I'd never put a rug on a patio, but the prospect of having to use water to hose it down (as opposed to just sweeping the cement) doesn't thrill me right this second.

I got this exact rug from urban outfitters online for $11.99. Don't pay $40 for it!!

True story: I just bought a "patio rug" from Target for $56 (for a 5X8). Its currently sitting in my living room and its amazing. Soft on my feet, very neutral, and there aren't any big loops for the cat to claw away at.