Cowhide Rugs: 10 Rooms That’ll Turn Any Skeptic Into a Believer

published Jul 21, 2017

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Modern With a Hint of Glam in Seattle (Image credit: Mackenzie Schieck)

Cowhide rugs tend to be a bit of a polarizing home design item. People either love them or hate them, but regardless of how you feel about them stylistically, you can’t deny that they are incredibly versatile decor. For one, they are nearly indestructible and can take a serious beating. Plus, it’s really hard to stain a natural cowhide—as long as you’re quick to clean up messes. They’re great for high-traffic areas or to bring a sinuous organic shape into a room with mostly straight edges. Below you can see this durable stunner in a variety of aesthetics (and to do a little shopping of your own).

(Image credit: Lonny)

Remember when I mentioned that cowhides are a great pick for high-traffic areas (it was only a few sentences ago)? This eclectic foyer from a home via Lonny puts one to the test (and adds a little edge to balance the candy-colored front door).

(Image credit: Lindsay Marcella)

Taking her bedroom from dated to dignified, Lindsay Marcella went with a brown and mostly white palette. A large cowhide at the foot of her bed draws the eye as the only pattern in the serene room.

(Image credit: Instagram)

Cowhides come in a plethora of colors, including a more contemporary gray like the one seen in this modern dining room via oh.eight.oh.nine’s Instagram.

(Image credit: The Every Girl)

Another dining room (this one more transitional), another gray cowhide rug. This space, from The Every Girl, proves that rug size rules were meant to be broken.

(Image credit: People)

Pretty Little Liars star Shay Mitchell’s home, featured on People, is a study in California cool (with a girly vibe). Here, her designer layered a light cowhide over a cute rug for added texture and visual interest.

(Image credit: Palm Beach Lately)

Not all hide rugs have to look like they come from a cow, as evidence by this Palm Beach Lately living room. The rug, from Wayfair, is natural cowhide with a metallic zebra print overlay that gives it a bit of a luxe look.

(Image credit: Instagram)

From Park & Oak Design’s Instagram, a bright, welcoming living room adds even more tactile goodness underfoot with a cowhide-layered sisal.

(Image credit: The Every Girl)

Great faux options exist on the market to get the curvaceous look of a hide rug without the price tag or animal skin, like this faux zebra rug spotted on The Every Girl.