The best rug colors to make your room more exciting (without being overwhelming) depend on the color and design scheme. Your personal tastes, how the room will be used, (entertainment room, living room, family room), and the other elements in the room ultimately determine what rug colors will help your room pop and look more appealing.
Neutral Rooms
A room outfitted in white, beige and greys gives the area a relaxing ambiance, but it can get a little cold-looking without occasional pops of color. A bright blue or orange area rug under a coffee table or near the TV can add enticing elements to draw the eye to other objects in the room, such as artwork.
Add a bright area rug to an open, neutral kitchen or dining room. Place a multi-colored rug with yellow or orange stripes near the dining table or by the kitchen counter to add a bit of coziness to the room.
Laminate and Hardwood
Laminate or hardwood floors are neutral so you can choose any rug color and thickness you like to get attractive results. Choose colors that complement the walls, furniture, and artwork in your room. This red-orange polyester rug adds a bright spot to any space with a hardwood floor.
What to Consider
If you want to give your room a cozy vibe that’s perfect for long conversations or lounging in front of the TV, choose rich, deep colors like reds or forest greens. Warm colors, like golds or oranges, also give the space a homespun, inviting look. Do you have a living room with large windows and lots of natural light? Cool colors (pale blue, mint green, lilac) will give the room a peaceful, calming atmosphere.
Neutral, solid-colored floors or simple patterns allow you to choose many designs or colors. Use a complementary group of colors for contrast. For a dramatic look, you can put a blue rug on an earth-colored or orange floor. If you prefer a balanced look, use a beige or earth-toned area rug on the floor. Faux wood or stone floors usually have simple patterns or colors, so try a bright, bohemian area rug to liven up the space.
Don’t choose white or light-colored rugs for a room frequented by pets, playing children or visitors tracking in dirt from outside. Dark, solid colors or black rugs with bright patterns are better for these areas, especially if they are made of wool. Avoid using jute, sisal or seagrass rugs, regardless of the color, in high-traffic areas.
Light Wood or Light Floors
Since pet hair and dirt show more on a light wood or light-colored floor, a large area rug will help control the debris. A rug in a pastel color can give the room a seamless look. Darker shades will make the area pop, but the contrast may be too jarring for some people’s tastes.
Use a Color Wheel
Always check a color wheel to determine if your floor has a cool or warm tone. A basic color wheel has 12 colors and three categories. The primary colors are red, yellow and blue. The secondary colors – orange, green and violet – are a combination of primary colors. Tertiary colors mix a secondary color with a primary color beside it. Blue-green and yellow-orange are tertiary colors.
When decorating your house, you can use a monochromatic color scheme, which involves various shades of one color, such as pale sea green to dark forest green or baby blue to dark blue. Your area rugs can contain bright shades to make a room outfitted in paler tones pop. An analogous color scheme consists of two to six colors, such as red and orange, that are next to each other on the color wheel. A high-contrast, complementary color scheme pairs two colors directly opposite each other on the color wheel. Red and green are complementary colors, as are purple and yellow. As you can imagine, this type of color scheme would certainly make a room pop. A citron rug contrasting with purple hues elsewhere in the room would certainly offer a dramatic effect.
If you prefer a bold contrast in a room, choose a navy, black or crimson rug as an anchor. It will provide a visual focal point to a sparsely furnished room or one with plain or neutral furniture. Although most people use the words hue and color interchangeably, hue refers to a pure color on the wheel. If you add white to a color, it’s called a tint. Add black to form a shade of a particular color, or use gray to generate a tone.
Muted Shades
Any room with orange, red or gold walls will work well with light yellow/mustard or melon. Rugs with the same color and vibrancy would make the room look too busy. Visitors wouldn’t know where to direct their attention.
Small Spaces
Some experts say that white or pastel rugs will make a small space look larger, but other decorators disagree. Solid, neutral colors and striped or borderless patterns add appeal to a room without looking too cluttered. Save bold colors and patterns for hallways. Large, white, beige, or off-white rugs with subtle patterns can give the illusion of space. Soft material, like a wool or silk, can also make a small space cozier for reading or relaxing.
Combine the right texture, color, and size to make the most of your room. Choose the colors and patterns that look good to you, but always consider how the colors and patterns on an area rug will mesh with the other design elements the room. Find rugs that will balance out the colors elsewhere in the space.
