A while back, we did a post on everything you need to know about living room rugs. It’s been extremely popular ever since we published it and I believe it has answered a lot of your questions. So I thought the next obvious step would to be to take you through my thought process when I select bedroom rugs. I hope you’ll find this one just as useful!
How To Style Your Bedroom Rugs
First things first, so let’s start with the most obvious.
(1) Under The Bed:
The simplest, most basic way to lay bedroom rugs is to place them directly under the bed.
The bed, obviously, is the star of the bedroom. Laying the rug under it frames the bed beautifully and accentuates it as the highlight of the room.
When picking the size of the rug, make sure it is at least 15″ to 18″ wider than the bed on each side. This ensures that when you step off the bed, your feet easily land on the rug and not on the bare floor.
Length wise, you can have it start all the way from the headboard or from about a third or half way down the bed. Again, the rug must extend about 18″ to 24″ beyond the base of the bed, so that when you walk around the bed, you can still keep your feet on it.
There is no limit to how much further down the rug can extend. That would depend on the size of the room. Usually though, you don’t extend the rug all the way till the wall. You keep the rug a few inches away from it.
Here is a time I broke that rule.
The wall was only about 2 feet away from the base of the bed. It didn’t make sense for the rug to be just a little strip extending in front of the bed, so we took it all the way up to the wall.
(2) Side Of The Bed:
Rugs under the bed look best if your bed is off the floor. They absolutely do not work when you have storage drawers under your bed, as many of us living in small homes in big cities do. In that case, a great idea is to place your bedroom rugs along the side of the bed.
They serve the same purpose. That is, they add warmth, colour and a soft touch to the bedroom and give you a warm place to put your feet when you wake up in the morning.
You can use a small sized rug, or even a runner just along the side of your bed, enough to lay your feet on it.
Or, depending on the space you have, you could use a bigger rug. This is especially useful if you are using the area next to your bed for, say, dressing.
And I’m not just talking about a mirror here. It could be a full dressing table.
Or, as in the case of my bedroom, a seating area. The rug extends into these areas and helps to tie them into your bedroom space too.
This also makes sense when your bed is pushed against one wall in your bedroom. Lay your bedroom rug along the open side of the bed to fill up the rest of the room.
And who says a rug has to be rectangular? This round rug by the side of the bed makes quite a statement. See how it goes up to that chair and ties in the seating to the bed?
(3) Foot Of The Bed:
If you have a larger room, with more space at the foot of the bed, it might be a good idea to place your bedroom rug there. It helps fill up the floor space and stops the room from looking bare and cold.
In the pic below, if they had laid the rug at the foot of the bed, it would have gone all the way up to the wall. Instead, what they did was push it under the feet of the bed by a bit, so that it stays a few inches away from the wall, which is ideal.
In our pretty pastel bedroom, we too laid the rug at the foot of the bed. You can see the entrance to the bedroom right in front, which means the foot of the bed is what you see when you first enter the room. We decided to add the rug here, so that the warm vibes are the first thing you see, across the passage, as you enter the room.
And just like with bedroom rugs on the side, who said bedroom rugs at the foot of the bed have to be rectangular? I love how pretty this round rug looks here.
(4) Side AND Foot Of The Bed?
Yup, in the case of bedrooms, the more is definitely the merrier. Rugs will only add to the cozy of the bedroom, so go ahead and put them on either side and at the foot of your bed.
I love how this little shaggy piece on the side, in addition to the rug at the foot of the bed, makes this room look so much cozier.
Or place the rug at an angle in the corner, so that it works as a side-cum-foot rug.
I think a round rug in the corner looks great too!
(5) Define Areas In Larger Rooms:
In a larger bedroom rugs are a great way to define or separate different areas.
In this room, for instance, a large rug under the bed defines the sleeping area, while a smaller rug under the chairs defines the sitting.
A rug under the study table and dresser separates these areas from the main sleeping area in this room.
A long runner separates the study area from the beds in this kids’ room.
While, placed under the chairs, it defines the study area in this one.
We used a rug to define a reading corner in our little girl’s bedroom makeover.
(6) In A Nursery:
Just like any other bedroom, a nursery too would be incomplete without a rug. And just as with other bedroom rugs, there are different ways you can use the rugs in the nursery.
You could push the rug under the front legs of the crib. This way it remains a few inches off the wall as we had suggested earlier, yet your feet remain on the rug when you reach out for your baby.
You could lay it in front of the crib, keeping its legs completely off the rug.
Or you could place the entire crib on the rug. Feel free to mould the ‘rules’ to suit your style!
(7) Layer Them:
Finally, don’t be afraid to use more than one rug.
I can see at least 3 rugs layered on top of the carpeting in this room, and it looks fabulous.
Try that thing you saw in a pic, or that thing you had in mind. Be bold, get creative. After all, they are only rugs. You can easily change them around if you don’t like them one way.
I think we’ve covered the absolute basics in here. Reading this will give you the confidence to pick up some bedroom rugs and start styling them yourself. If you have any questions or comments in mind, please write in the section below and I will do my best to answer them.
Also, if you are looking to spruce up your bedroom, you must check out this post on ‘7 Essentials For a Super Stylish Bedroom‘. It’s a must read!
Until next time,
This was so helpful! Thanks for taking the time to create this.
Great ideas.
Thank you! 🙂
I loved the rug ideas.
Do suggest how rugs can be used to add color to smaller apartment homes . And in humid temperatures .
Thanks
Thanks Aparna. Do check out the post on living room rugs which is linked above in this post. That talks about various ways you can use colours in rugs.