Recently, reading through Swedish design magazine Plaza Interiors, I came across the Stockholm apartment of stylist Hanna Wessman. Though I enjoyed her mix of white space anchored by matte black design elements punctuated with the occasional pop of color, the element that really caught my eye was in her kitchen.
In her bright white kitchen I couldn't help but notice that the room benefitted from her use of a throw rug that added a bit of soft pink. While I love the way this looks, I have a difficult time imagining how it's possible to keep a rug in the kitchen clean and free of stains.
Would you ever use a carpet in the kitchen?
(Image: Plaza Interiors)
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i have a rug in my kitchen. it's completely and totally machine washable. so i just pop it in the machine on a regular basis...and voila no ick factor
You can't always keep it free of stains; you wash the rug when it gets yucky. Carpet is a different matter because of the way it's installed. Of course you could rent a steamer and clean it by yourself.
Recycled plastic rugs are also a good idea! You can mop or wipe them easily. Bambeco.com has really cool ones ;)
Yes, rugs as opposed to carpet. I wash them regularly.
I'll find out soon!
I'm nearly done painting in my kitchen, but won't be able to update the much-hated floor for awhile, I'm putting down a wool prayer rug to dress up the kitchen and hide most of the floor. If I like it, and it doesn't prove to be some sort of bizarre tripping hazard (in which case it comes out immediately), I might replace it with an indoor/outdoor rug that I can take outside and hose off when needed - there are some great indoor/outdoor rugs that would be perfect for a kitchen or laundry room.
We have a wood floor in our kitchen, and I have two Gel Pro mats, one on either side, and three small rag rugs in the middle. It looks cute, and I do wash the rugs, as I mentioned above. But I've been noticing that the unevenness of the wood floor is only exaggerated by the five different things on top of it, and I'm considering putting down an office chair mat in the middle instead of the rugs, if I can find one of those funky ones IKEA used to sell.
My gran had a large area rug in her kitchen. It was a thick plush number that was almost impossible to clean food out of. I still remember the hours spent cleaning up a dropped jar of applesauce. When I inherited the house, that was one of my first changes. I pulled out the rug, had it washed and moved it to the entryway. There is a new rug in there now, but it is machine washable one that fits comfortably in front of the sink so I have a softer place to stand while tidying.
I used to have an IKEA synthetic rug in my old apartment kitchen. It was a funky layout-- the entry door and the doorways to all of the other rooms opened directly into the enormous kitchen, so the runner helped define a pathway through the kitchen to the rest of the apartment. It got pretty gross over a couple of years' use. If I really liked/treasured a rug, I don't think I'd ever put it in the kitchen. But a cheapo rug can definitely serve a purpose!
I would luv to have a rug in my kitchen but it's tough to keep it clean,.:)
oh yeah a rug in the kitchen is a must for me-- catches splashes from the sink, keeps my toes from getting cold when i make coffee in the wee hours.
i stick to really colorful rag rugs-- helps hide any spots from spills. also, i make sure to machine wash it every other week.
it's also a nice way to add color, since my cabinets are white.
i have a wellness mat - not quite a rug, but much more comfortable! i love it - and you can get decals that go on top so that you can change it with your mood!
http://www.wellnessmats.com/
No, no, no, not for me. You can circumvent the spills problem by getting a machine washable rug and washing it frequently, but the tripping hazard is a deal breaker for me. I had the, uh, pleasure of staying with my in-laws for six months and they had a rug in their kitchen that was always sliding all over the place. I can't believe I didn't crack my head, impale myself on a knife, or dump boiling water all over myself from tripping on that rug all the time.
To be fair, there are probably some great non-skid rug solutions that I've never looked into because I've never had a rug of my own on a kitchen floor type surface. So this may be a surmountable issue as well, but I'll never go there. Too many traumatic memories.
Carpeting, no! But, a rug, yes. It does make things softer and cozier. However, they also need to be cleaned MUCH more often. They get dirtier faster which is not surprising.
If you are willing to have a rug in your bathroom, I wonder how the kitchen is any "ickier"?
My rugs are actually bath mats from IKEA so I never trip or slip on them. There is a built in non-skid back since they are "supposed" to go in the bathroom. There are plenty of bathroom rugs that could work in the kitchen without looking like your typical bath mat.
I have an indoor/outdoor rug in my kitchen now. All I have to do is spot wipe as needed. I can take it out side and hose it down if it needs a more intense cleaning. It drys fast.
IKEA has tons opolypropylenene rugs for low prices. I've used one in the kitchen before. It's not quite as wipe and go as the indoor/outdoor flat weavbeausse it's fuzzy, but stilmanageablele. And it too can be hosed down for a deep clean.
Just echoing SEWTRASHY's comment. I use six of Ikea's round bathmats in red on my kitchen floor. Looks great, they don't slip, and I just throw the bunch of them in the washer when they start looking dirty.
I despise rugs on bare floors. When I sweep and mop and see all of the dirt and debris I am so thankful that I can clean the area. Rugs make me feel like they always need to be washed. I think they're great for less traffic. The kitchen is the highest maintenance area, rugs are pretty just not at all practical.
I had a 5x6 area run in the kitchen to protect the new hardwood floors. The rug was a pain to keep clean. I had to vacuum the rug and then go around the rug on the bare floor using an attachment. Stains accumulated quickly. It was too big to wash and dry easily, and it never looked as nice after the first wash. I ended up having to replace the rug about every six months.
So I say no to rugs in the kitchen! And on the related note, no to rugs under the dining table!
I also have the ikea bathroom rugs in our kitchen (grippy bottoms); my mum has some in hers that slide around (and it drives me mad as well). My grandparents had a carpeted kitchen that always looked dirty, I would never want that in my own home. However, the rental we're currently in only has about 2' of laminate in front of the 10' of countertop (including the stove!) then it's on to carpet. I had a bottle of blueberry liqueur (destined for the ice cream maker) fall today and I'm not sure I'll ever get the stain out...Timely post! A great follow up post to this would be green solutions of getting stains out of carpets/alternatives to use in a steam cleaner!
I definitely wouldn't recommend a natural fibre rug/mat like jute. Food gets in the crevices and is impossible to get out. Also if it gets a spill on it the fibre will shrink where it's been wet, leaving the rug misshapen.