It’s so hard to find a nice, soft, simple rug. We think the best one out there right now might be the Grand by Nordic Knots. Editor Simone Kitchens has one in her living room and would “honestly love to swath the whole house in them, but at $1,600 for an eight-by-ten, that’s not happening.” So recently, the Secret Strategist — our weekly newsletter devoted to unearthing special things, which you should sign up for if you have not already — decided to look for good stand-ins and alternatives. Nothing scratchy, nothing patterned, nothing distressed.
The perfect rug
Some others Simone ended up buying …
But first, a few others that Simone tried herself. In an attempt to find a cheaper Grand, she ordered something in yellow-gold from Rugs.com, hoping it would be surprisingly rich in color. It was not, and it was also scratchier than she’d hoped. So that one went into her kid’s room. From there, some Googling led her to Boutiquerugs.com, where she found a promising solid wool option. She ordered the sage green and has been pretty happy with it — it has a “cushy high pile and a selection of rich colors (dark blue and that green may be the safest bets). There is a subtle striped effect, created by a slightly lighter shade of wool, that you really only notice up close. It’s not a bad thing! (Revival makes a washable option that looks very similar.)” She’s also interested in — but hasn’t actually ordered yet — this made-from-plastic-bottles rug from Quince.
What some tasteful people suggested …
Feeling like this wasn’t exactly completist, we decided to reach out to some tasteful people to ask if they had any plain-but-great rug suggestions.
Designer Nick Poe recommended a rug from a source we never would have thought of — Ralph Lauren! “Reasonably priced, given the quality,” he says. “Colors can be tricky if too demanding, but I like this indigo shade, a classic that has nice life to it. The braids and straightforward weave are unfussy in a charming way and offer some subtle character and texture.”
Our own design editor, Wendy Goodman, as we’ve reported before, bought her beautiful, richly hued orange rug at Aronson’s Floor Covering, a 150-year-old showroom in Chelsea that does wall-to-wall but also sells area rugs. Hers was inspired by Kim Hastreiter’s wall-to-wall carpeting of the same color.
These are more expensive, but Lauren Snyder, owner of the Primary Essentials, says she loves anything from Armadillo and has several cream-colored versions in her own home.
The one Katy owns …
Features editor (and Secret Strategist co-writer) Katy Schneider owns this Txt-ure rug, which we’ve written about before, in Yves Klein Blue. A warning that while it’s beautiful, and she still thinks it’s worth it for the striking color and texture, it’s un-vacuumable (the knots come up). For a non-knotted Yves Klein Blue option, this Calvin Klein Home option seems good, too.
[Editor’s note: Txt-ure lists all prices in Mexican pesos, so the price shown above is an approximate conversion to U.S. dollars.]
A few more we found in person and online …
While shopping in a homeware store we love recently, we noticed some especially nice brickish-red rectangular and brownish circular rugs on the floor. So we called and asked if the store would reveal their source — yes, they would, they said, but they asked that we not use their name. Unclear why, exactly — they said they “fully vouch” for the rugs, which are from Rugvista, and they suggested searching “Hand-Loom.”
[Editor’s note: Rugvista lists prices in euros, so the prices shown above are approximate conversions to U.S. dollars.]
Also: Hook and Loom’s handwoven cotton option, which we love in solid bright pink, medium blue, and navy ($290 for an eight-by-ten-foot rug!).
And finally, a cheaper dupe of our favorite
To close the loop here, this Rugs USA option might be the closest-looking color-wise to the Nordic Knots — especially in brick and verdant green. The latter color is on its way to Marisa Carroll, executive editor at the Cut, who Slacked to let us know she just ordered one; she’s been “Googling ‘GREEN RUG’ for years.”
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