Decorating With Oriental Rugs

How Can I Avoid Making My Room Look Old Fashioned With an Oriental Area Rug?

Trying to create a contemporary look in a room that centers on an oriental rug can be tough. Take out your old fashioned décor blues with a few contemporary changes that won’t wreck your fashion balance.

When a rug has been passed down from generation to generation, it’s hard to pass it by, especially if the passer meant it especially for you. Oriental area rugs are one of the most frequently passed down rugs because they are hardy, durable rugs that can stand the test of time. When your grandmother received her first oriental area rug it was beautiful treasure—50 years ago, oriental rugs were much too expensive for many people to have in their homes. But today, oriental rugs are everywhere, making them slightly dated and an option you’ll need to carefully study before you invest in the now much cheaper solution to your flooring needs.

The hardest part about selecting or using an oriental rug in decorating is that along with being beautiful, flame retardant, fade resistant and long lasting, these rugs are also extremely ornamental and indicate the fashion sense of times long past. So how can you use your oriental rug without making your home look old fashioned?

• Choose contemporary lighting—The light source that you bring into a room in your home is one of the quickest ways to change the feeling, mood, style and overall attitude of your room. Fancy lighting that produces low light will only serve to make the room seem more old-fashioned. Don’t choose lighting that is brass, gold or bronze. Silver is a more contemporary color for your lighting fixtures and will help offset the natural golden colors that will be eminent in your oriental rug. And don’t forget, bright lighting is more contemporary.

• Choose equal parts contemporary and old-fashioned—It’s perfectly okay to want to purchase items that accent your oriental rug. It is not okay to fill your entire room with old fashioned or antique items when you are trying to create a contemporary look. The rule of thumb is that for every item you buy at Pottery Barn, you must also buy an item at Bed Bath and Beyond. Joking aside, you should vary your shopping locations so you can be exposed to different styles.

• Favor the most contemporary color—This has been said a thousand times before, but when you’re trying to create a contemporary look in an old fashioned setting, the best way to make it happen is to choose the most contemporary color from both styles and use that one color to accent everything. With oriental rugs, you can most often count on that color being red, and contemporary design loves no other color more than red.

• Contemporary furniture is your friend—A solid white couch featuring red and brown striped throw pillows is the contemporary beauty of the century. Plus, it will not only bring a contemporary feel to your old fashioned room, but it will also lighten up the mood and look exquisite against your oriental rug.

Remember, creating a modern, contemporary look against your oriental rug is not impossible. Remember modern shapes and lines against solid colors can work wonders for any room.