I titled this “The Rug Saga” because nothing is ever simple! Ha!
As you know, we recently purchased new living room furniture and are in the middle of giving the room a makeover (more details here and here). Our previous rug was way too busy paired with our new chair and ottoman, so we sold it to our friends and former fabulous neighbors and it is looking wonderful in their living room!
I tend to gravitate toward coastal colors and textures and have been wanting a natural fiber rug for a couple years now. In fact, we tried one out a couple years ago, but ended up returning it because it shed worse than Chewbacca. Isn’t it pretty, though? I really loved how it looked!
We love the neutral color and texture of natural fiber rugs, so decided to try our luck with another natural fiber rug. This time, we did lots of researched and invested more money into a quality rug. We went with the Jute Boucle Rug from West Elm in the Flax color. I LOVE the texture it brought to our living room! Don’t get too attached, though…and definitely excuse the phone pictures.
Look at that beautiful, chunky texture!
The one thing that bugged me was how the color made our wood floors look really orange. But, I was willing to get over it because it was beautiful and exactly the look I wanted.
BUT…you knew that was coming, didn’t you?! That wonderful, chunky texture that I loved also caused some troubles. The first three days, my feet ached and felt tired. Granted, we hadn’t gotten a rug pad for it yet, so it slid around a bit. But, the chunky texture took some getting used to and that’s coming from a barefoot girl with tough feet. About day four, I was used to it, though, and ready to throw away the receipt and keep it forever. Jeremy thought it was comfortable from the beginning, though, and loved the way it looked, too!
BUT…yup, another but. But not butt. Geesh. 😉 Little Man started sitting on a folded blanket so “his hynie wouldn’t hurt.” And when Little Girl’s head rubbed the rug, she cried. My goals for how I want our home to feel are light, airy, and comfortable. As wonderful as the rug was, it didn’t meet the comfortable criteria for the littles, so back it went. I may or may not have told the cashier who was refunding my money that I’d be back in a few years when my babies are older to buy the rug again. Haha!
If you are looking for a great quality, thick, chunky, soft to the touch jute rug and don’t have tiny babies, I’d definitely recommend the West Elm Jute Boucle rug!
Back to the drawing board for us, though. I considered a solid ivory rug, but that option didn’t excite me. It felt too boring. I also considered a comfy shag rug, but they don’t seem like they would get matted down easily and would collect a lot of crumbs. I did a lot more research on soft, comfortable natural fiber rugs and read that a jute/chenille blended rug is the softest. I tested the Heathered Chenille Jute Rug out at Pottery Barn after reading great reviews, but it was rougher than the West Elm one I returned. Boo. The Chunky Wool and Jute Rug at Pottery Barn was so soft and had great texture, but it was out of our price range, even with the 15% off sale they had going on.
I finally found the Bordered Jute Chenille Rug at Pottery Barn in the Honey color and knew it was perfect for our family. (It’s not online, but here’s a similar one.) It has a great woven herringbone pattern. The texture is much more subtle than what I was originally going for, but it’s soft, durable, and comfortable and has more texture than a plain ivory rug. For this phase of life with two small kids, it’s the perfect compromise!
Everything is about to be much less beige! We are in the process of painting the living room! Hooray!
I love how durable it is and how light and airy it feels. Little Man accidentally got crayon on it, and I was able to get it off easily with a damp Magic Eraser!
The texture is hard to see in the pictures, so here’s a couple close ups for your viewing pleasure. 🙂
The ultimate test, though? The kids love it! No more tears or sitting on blankets! Hooray!
And as proof that our living room is usually full of toys, I had to include this picture. Look who I found hiding under the ottoman even after I picked up all the toys? Love!
Thank you! This is so helpful. I've been debating between a bunch of these same rugs for our master bedroom and living room. Reading about someone else's experience really helps!
Just wondering…. do you still like your rug? I’m looking to replace the chunky wool and jute rug you mentioned in your post. You’ll be glad you didn’t purchase it because not only is it more expensive but it sheds A LOT (like vacuum two or three times a week just to pick up the giant fur balls kind of shedding). I’m interested to know how this rug you purchased is holding up. Thanks!
Hey! SO sorry you are having trouble with your rug! I loved that rug visually, but you are making me so glad I didn’t get it! I do really like our Pottery Barn rug. It doesn’t shed at all and has held up really well despite the light color. One of my kids even colored on it with crayon and I was able to get that up easily with a barely damp Magic Eraser. The only drawback… it hates water. One of my kid’s sippy cups of water leaked on the rug and I didn’t notice it for a while, so it was very saturated with water. I didn’t think it was a big deal since it was just water, so I got up as much water as I could with a towel, then let it air dry. Big mistake. It discolored the rug! After some research, I discovered you have to blow dry any wetness out of jute to keep it from getting a water spot. The water spot is not super obvious, but it does bother me. Since then, if any water has gotten on it, I have blotted it up with a towel, then blow dried the area on cool and it has been fine. A bit high maintenance for my liking, but it has been durable with other types of spots and stains. Who knew crayon would come right out and water wouldn’t?! Hope this helps!
So….I am scheduled to have the Pottery barn wool and jute boucle rug delivered on friday and i’m having second thoughts. Its for our family room…i’m afraid it will be tough to clean and may shed forever….thinking of cancelling and opting for a 100% wool rug instead…..thoughts?
That’s a tough call. Jute has proven to be pretty durable, except with water or any liquids. You need to blow dry it if you have a liquid spill. Wool may be easier if you have kids/pets… Let me know what you decide! I’m curious how yours holds up!