If You’re Not Shopping for This Product at IKEA, You’re Missing Out
Ask any interior designer about their favorite type of rug, and you are almost certain to get an earful about wool. One of the most popular and most timeless rug materials, wool is beloved for its softness and durability. Wool rugs work in bedrooms, living rooms, dining rooms — even bathrooms! I personally like that wool is sustainable: It’s natural, renewable, and readily biodegradable. If you take care of it, a good wool rug will last you a lifetime, and they are naturally stain- and water-resistant, so they’re likely to look good for longer than other types of rugs. However, there’s one big drawback to this wonder fiber: Wool rugs are often wildly expensive.
Enter our old friend, IKEA. The Swedish retailer is my secret source for high-quality wool rugs I can comfortably afford. In particular, IKEA’s flat-woven wool rugs, which are lightweight and often reversible, are long-time favorites in my family. We’ve had a since-discontinued IKEA wool rug in our son’s room for eight years (as shown above), and it has survived everything a young child could throw at it. I may get it professionally cleaned one day, but for now, it’s stayed looking great with spot treatment of spills and regular vacuuming.
Additionally, IKEA’s wool rugs have great style. People always ask where we got the black and white striped design in our son’s room, and I likewise covet a small kilim-style rug my mother got at IKEA decades ago. Both of those patterns are sadly discontinued, but IKEA always offers some appealing woven wool rugs.
When searching for rugs on the IKEA website, simply use the filter option to select ‘wool’ and ‘flat-woven’ to see all the options. Two beauties that have been in the IKEA line for years are the iconic black-and-white STOCKHOLM rug and the multi-color HALVED rug, which is a cheery choice for kids’ rooms (I almost bought it myself!). I’ve also got my eye on the VAMDRUP, a graphic but also neutral option that almost resembles tile in its patterning.
One tip: These rugs do best with a rug pad or a non-slip underlay, which keeps them from sliding around, so don’t skip the foundation layer (it will also help the rug wear evenly!). IKEA sells two affordable rug pad styles that you can cut to fit your rug, but you could also upgrade to something fancier, since you’ve saved so much on the rug shopping at Big Blue.
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