Over the years, I’ve shared a few pictures of the braided rugs we have throughout our home — but since I get SOOOOO many questions (and compliments) about them, I thought it was time for a full-length blog post just about our rugs!
NOTE: this post is not sponsored!
I’m honestly not sure if braided rugs are in-style, trendy, or even remotely popular right now, but I really like the look of them in my home! They fit my semi-primitive-country-farmhouse style and they add a nice pop of color to my otherwise very white spaces!
I like how sturdy and durable these rugs are, I like that they LAY FLAT and don’t bunch up or curl up on the ends, I like the old-fashioned vibe they bring to my decór, and I like that I can easily shake them out, vacuum them, or even just sweep the crumbs off the top with a broom!
The one downside of braided rugs is that they are NOT machine washable.
My rugs are darker in color, so they truly do “hide” a lot of dirt and stains! However, I have successfully spot treated stains with carpet cleaner, and we’ve had our rugs cleaned professionally a couple of times when our carpet guy cleans the rest of our carpets. But I can’t just throw them in the wash like I can with our smaller bathroom rugs.
Our Rugs:
We purchased all our braided rugs from RugsUSA.
The exact rug style/color we have are the Azalea Braided Green World Rugs from the Homespice Collection.
We purchased 3 of the 2’5″ x 6′ Oval Runners and 3 of the 2’3″ x 3’9″ Ovals.
We did NOT purchase a pad, but we do have this pad under most of our rugs to make them less slippery. I buy a bigger pad and cut it up to fit under our various rugs (you don’t need the pad under the entire rug, just a small section of the rug so it doesn’t slip)
click on the image below to enlarge it in a new window
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We currently use these rugs in our mudroom, our kitchen, by our front door, and by the back door in our office.
My Review:
We’ve had the same rugs for over 7 years now and we are not “gentle” on them. They are in high-traffic areas and they have held up really well.
The “thread” of our first mudroom rug did start to unravel about a year ago, so the whole rug basically came apart. I contacted their customer service, but since the rug was already several years old, they basically just said I needed to buy a new rug, which I did.
Overall, I am TRILLED with these rugs.
I LOVE the colors, the pattern, the design, etc. etc. They look so great in our home and we get compliments on them ALL the time!
How to get a Great Deal!
Usually, Rugs USA offers very good discounts (sometimes up to 60% off) every Memorial Day and every Labor Day — which is why I’m sharing this post now!
If you are interested in buying a new rug for any space in your house, now is the time to start looking! I have a feeling they will start offering discounts later this week and into next week.
We’ve purchased a few other (non braided) rugs from RugsUSA as well — including the one for Clara’s nursery which is SOOOOO soft!
Like I mentioned above, this post is not sponsored in anyway — I just wanted to answer some of the questions I get about our rugs, and share why I personally like my braided rugs so much!
Do you have braided rugs in your house? If not, what are your most favorite rugs?
Jenny says
My great-grandma made lots of these from scraps and remnants from the 1920s on. I wish I had known not to wash mine, because I did, and it ruined them. So sad. I just figured they were cotton and small enough to fit in the machine on gentle cycle. But they fell apart, unraveled, and although I tried fixing them, it didn’t work. I wash all of my store-bought rugs with no problem, because they do get really dirty. I might try the car wash or pressure washer on a few carpet-type runners and doormats.
Andrea says
oh bummer. I’m thinking about using a pressure washer on our braided rugs now — I’ll blog about it if I do!!
Vickie says
I, too, have an LL Bean braided wool rug, about 2 x 6 or so that I bought almost 20 years ago. For many years it was at a door entering our home, but we live in a very dry climate, too. For a year of more, it’s been in front of my kitchen sink and so far no major stains. I love braided rugs!!! Yours look great.
Brandette says
Man, these rugs would NEVER work in our home. Anything and everything we have has to be machine washable. With multiple cats and a young boy, things need washed frequently.
It would also drive my OCD cleaning into a frenzy not being able to wash these. I just couldn’t do it.
Melinda says
Andrea,
We use rugs in our house and they are about the size you have. When a rug gets to the point where I don’t like it anymore because vacuuming just doesn’t take cut it, I take them outside, spray some cleaner on them, let them sit about an hour, hose them off, then hang them on the fence to dry. I’ve even been known to take them to the car wash and hang them up where you wash car floor mats too.
Manufacturers will tell you not to wash some rugs but I ignore that if the rug just doesn’t look good anymore. I feel it’s better to chance it and get more use out of the rug than do as the manufacturer recommends. I’ve never been disappointed in trying this and I’ve kept my rugs for many more years by doing this. Thank you for all of your posts!
Andrea says
haha — I’ve never thought of taking them to a carwash or hanging them on the fence!
Susanne says
I teach preschool and each year my TA takes our rugs out, hangs them on a fence and washes them with a pressure washer. I think they get MUCH cleaner than when the custodian hits them with the shampooer.
Andrea says
I’m definitely going to try this once it stops raining around here!
Pascale says
I like your ides of putting some type of adhesive backing, Andrea. I actually remember my aunt having braided carpets on top of wall-to-wall carpet.
She raised me from age 12 to 19 and those braided carpets unraveled and I tripped down the stairs more than once. She had them at the top of two staircases and in several other spots.
I’m more of a minimalist and I’m also allergic to dust mites so we don’t have any carpet/area rugs anywhere in our home.
Everybody is different and I know some people love carpets and area rugs, but that’s not our case.
Andrea says
oh wow — yeah, I would never put these by stairs! yikes!
Nancy Pease says
I have a beautiful 11’ x 9’ braided rug made by my grandmother 70 years ago. Not one broken thread so far. I do need to clean it, though, so it’s a very slow process.
Andrea says
oh wow — that’s a biggie!! So amazing that it’s still in such great condition!
Bonnie'sMama says
My two small oval braided rugs are very special to me, because they were handmade by my grandma from wool blankets she bought second hand. Besides dozens of quilts and comforters, she made lots of rugs. She made enough braided rugs to give one to each of her 11 children and 40 grandchildren, and there were still more at her estate auction after she died.
One is at my kitchen sink, and it is the perfect memorial for her–durable, sturdy, hardworking, and beautiful.
Andrea says
WOW — that’s a lot of rugs!
Susan says
We have several room-size braided rugs (LR & a couple bedrooms), which we have had for years. We got them at a local rug outlet. Very happy with them!
Andrea says
glad to know they have held up over time — such a cool process to make these rugs!
Sherry says
L.L. Bean is also a good place for braided rugs.
Andrea says
good to know — I’ll have to check them out too (although I do love that I can buy all matching rugs from Rugs USA now 🙂
Chris says
I have a large braided rug under my kitchen table. It does have a stain or two, but I have had it probably close to 25 years!
Andrea says
I’m guessing a carpet cleaner could get the stains out if you were ever interested. It probably wouldn’t be a big extra expense either, as long as you were doing it the same time you got other carpets cleaned as well.
Jen says
We’ve had a smaller braided rug just like this for years and love it. I’ve been wanting to get a larger one from RugsUSA but every time I get a coupon or they run a sale the braided rugs are not included. (I’ve been waiting 2 years for a price drop, ha!) Maybe they’ve changed their policy recently? Any tips to finding better deals on them elsewhere?
Andrea says
Yes, there are always exclusions to the sales (It looks like they are offering 70% off right now – wow!) I’m not sure if the braided rugs are included though??
Jen says
Yes sadly I’ve never found braided rugs to be part of their sales. Might have to splurge anyways for a second one!
Rhonda says
I have one from LL Bean. I’ve been happy with it (had it at least 6 years), but I’ll be checking out your link.
It seems a lot of companies have summer holiday weekend sales. It’s usually a good time of year to look!
Andrea says
yes, this week and Labor Day week/weekend are great times to buy home items for discounted prices!