a tale of two rugs.

Published on by Quandie

Remember way back to last winter when I repainted the walls in the q branch (a.k.a. my study)?

I absolutely love the color I ended up choosing, Globe Artichoke from Pittsburgh Paints.

Once I had the walls painted, I then hung my gallery of garage sale art on the wall.

The room still looked rather unfinished.

It needed a rug, and I also needed to wait until summer to paint those radiator pipes in the corner.

I’ll be the first to admit that I am not very patient when it comes to shopping for things like rugs.  I went to a few different brick and mortar shops with my friend opK, but nothing jumped out at me.  I also did a bunch of online browsing, but every time I picked a rug that I thought might work I either couldn’t get it in the size I wanted, or it was too expensive, or I just wasn’t absolutely sure I liked it.

And then there’s this little consideration …

That’s Lucy, a.k.a. the barfer.

Yep, she has a tendency to upchuck.  She’s also somewhere around 19 – 20 years old at this point (she was a rescue, so we’re not entirely sure, but we’ve had her for 18 years and she wasn’t a kitten when we found her), so we don’t hold it against her.

Usually we get a little warning when she’s about to blow, she makes a very unique and rather loud noise.  So we have time to move her to a washable surface.  But if we’re not home, then all bets are off.

So for that reason, we don’t want to invest in a high quality rug right now.

Which brings me to the rug I finally ordered from Wayfair.

This is the DeSoto Oriental in cream/grey.  It also comes in 4 other colors, including an option that has some green in it.  Unfortunately that one was not available in a square, and I really wanted a square rug.  As you can see above, a square fits really nicely in almost perfectly square room.

It also was less than $100, which was a good price for a rug that I don’t plan to keep forever.

So I thought I’d take a chance with this one, and that perhaps the grey would pull in the color of my dark grey walls in the neighboring piano room.

Now that the rug is in place in the room, I think it’s OK, but not spectacular.  It definitely helps give the room a more finished look.  It was also cheap enough that I plan to just keep it and use it until the perfect rug comes along, if it ever does.

As you can also see, I did manage to get those pipes in the corner painted over the summer.

I may have to bite the bullet and paint the radiator too, but that’s another job that has to wait for summer.  I’d kind of like to paint it gold, like this inspiration photo from pinterest.

I think the gold radiator would tie in with all of the gold frames in the room, and it would look gorgeous with the green walls.  What do you think?

In the meantime, next on the list is going to be window treatments of some kind, and hey, maybe I’ll even sew them myself on my new sewing machine!

One quick side note, as you may have noticed, I placed my skinny silver Christmas tree in the q branch this year.  It fits perfectly in this wonky little corner, and I can admire it while I sit at my computer working on this blog.

This tree holds my non-collection of vintage glass ornaments.

I also hung my ornament wreath over the mirror that hangs in the q branch.

Last year I displayed my Christmas village on top of the giant English pine cupboard that is in this room …

but this year I decided to forgo putting up the village.  Maybe I’ll get it back out again next year, if I have a little more time for decorating.

But wait, the title of this post is a tale of two rugs.  Are you wondering about the 2nd?

Well, here it is.

Ironically, I was shopping for both full size rugs and miniature rugs at the same time.  I looked at so many options online for both that at one point I was getting them mixed up.

I had similar requirements for both rugs; pale neutral colors, a muted pattern and a specific size.  A square no more than 7′ x 7′ for the q branch, and a rectangle at least 8″ x 10″ for the dollhouse.

I ended up finding the dollhouse rug at Life in a Dollhouse.

And I think it works perfectly with my French Country Cottage style dining set.

What do you think?

31 thoughts on “a tale of two rugs.”

  1. The rugs are a great find. I get the (aka Barfer). I had 2 cats. Rhythm and Blues. Rhythm died at age 18 and Blues was 22. I really love the little miniature rug with the dining set. ❤️

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  2. Awe…..sweet Lucy! I had Stanley the PITA cat (pain in the ass). He was not only a barfer, but a pee-er and pooper too when he got older. (in inappropriate places) He was my first, a stray we found, so I had to love him, boy oy, what a bad boy! He was 16 when he passed. The rug looks like a good choice for now – I get it, especially with animals!

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  3. We have a geriatric cat that pukes also. A rescue that we got when the kids were in middle school so we’re guessing she is 16-plus years old. So I can relate!!! But I really want to ask about the ornament wreath!! I’m obsessed!!! Did you make it?

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    1. I did make it. It’s basically a Styrofoam wreath form with vintage glass balls attached using hot glue. I’ve had it for ages, and I do occasionally have to re-attach some of the balls, but for the most part it has held up. I will say that it took approx 75 ornaments to make it, so it’s not especially economical if you’re purchasing vintage Shiny Brites. But if you happen to have a plentiful stash of old glass ornaments, it’s relatively easy to make.

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  4. the dollhouse rug is perfect but I’m not loving the q branch rug. In a room with warm brown wood floor, warm green walls and warm gold toned frames, the neutral/cool color doesn’t work for me. I love the idea of a square rug in a square room ( I have a square rug in the grandchildren’s play room) and I had really good luck finding the size I wanted on Amazon. Many rugs are available from the warehouse at a deep discount. They are returns that don’t come in original packaging. For example I got a gorgeous 7 ft wool runner for the kitchen for $27. So I don’t care if it gets spills on it. I’m not putting out all of my Christmas decor this year, either. Have big fun in Mexico!

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    1. Yep, I agree on the rug color being too cool. The Wayfair description said ‘cream’ and the picture on their website made it seem warmer in tone than it looks in my room. That being said, the rug is growing on me over time. So I’m going to hang onto it for now. I need a few more rugs around here, so I will have to check out those Amazon deals!

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  5. Great choice on the rug. We had to replace the carpet in my office after our elderly cat died—especially after I shone a UV light on it and saw just how much upchucking had taken place. Not a cheap fix. I love your Q branch! I vote yes on the gold radiator 😀

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    1. So true on the carpet replacement being much less budget friendly than just replacing an inexpensive rug! For now I’m going to stick with the cheap stuff. And I’ll keep you posted on the radiator, didn’t you have gold radiators once? Or am I imagining that?

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  6. your Christmas tree is beautiful and looks great in that room. Your doll house is going to be a masterpiece when you complete it. Merry Christmas!

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  7. I LOVE the green you chose, and also vote yes, gold for the radiators! The rug is also great. I bought an inexpensive rug because we have two young dogs and live on a farm. It’s light colored but bullet proof for stains, and cleans up nicely with a damp microfiber cloth. (I bet the one you purchased is also). But my favorite part is the gorgeous tree, your fabulous wreaths, and that dollhouse!!! Merry Christmas and have a lovely time in Mexico!

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    1. I often struggle with choosing good paint colors for walls, and often am ultimately disappointed by my choice. But in this instance I absolutely love the green I ended up with too (after trying about 5 different samples first).

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  8. I love it all! And I think the rug brightens the room and it works with your GORGEOUS desk/table. As for the radiator, I say “go for the gold.” (You can always paint it again, if you don’t like it.)

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  9. I vote for a gold radiator also! It would give a touch of elegance to such a mundane object. LOL Elevate it to a worthy status.

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  10. your home is so beautiful. I would like to just sit in one corner and admire!!
    funny story of rugs…..I, too, have a barfer 🐱. ended up with a washable rug also from Wayfair. A little pricy, but so worth it – because it’s lovely. Lil puky pants still runs to the overpriced shag when he wants to hurl – but I got a nice rug out of it. LOL

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    1. Your comment literally made me laugh out loud …. ‘lil puky pants’, lol. I’ve wondered about those washable rugs, but haven’t been tempted to try one yet. I may have to check those out.

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      1. again! A delayed response. Your replies went to spam 💔

        have you dabbled in the washable rugs yet? I’ve purchased two more, 4×6 for front door and in front of kitchen sink. I’d buy more if I had more spots!! xx

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  11. I have 8 indoor rescue cats and I admire anyone who is brave enough to put rugs in their homes. For me that is not an option between the hairballs and the claws! Love the little miniature “room”. It’s really coming together.

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