Finally Facing Facts in the Foyer

There comes a time in every home blogger’s life when she has to face the reality that her foyer rug just isn’t working out. Well, or maybe it’s just me.

This is how my foyer used to look:

foyer-updated12

I bought the blue batik rug from Urban Outfitters (it looks like it’s not available anymore), and I really loved it. It was a big, bold statement as soon as you came in the house, like, “hey you! In this house we really like birds! and blue things!”

But it spent more time stuffed in a drawer than it did on the floor, because it was just kind of a big PITA to deal with. Even after i finally got around to buying a rug pad for it, it was so thin that I had to straighten it out 30 times a day. And, I’m not sure why it took actually buying the rug to figure this out, but a rug with all that white on it is not idea for right in front of the door (especially since there’s no covered area on the front steps; we have a doormat out there, but the doormat gets wet right along with everything else when it rains, so this rug became the defacto doormat). It’s cotton, so I threw it in the wash from time to time, but the pattern was starting to fade from all the washing.

Eventually I had to admit that it just wasn’t going to work. So now my foyer looks pretty much the same except with no rug in front of the door.

Which is also not what I want.

But I think the only thing for it is an indoor/outdoor rug, and I’ve yet to find one I really like. Does anyone know of a great source for afforable indoor/outdoor rugs with fun patterns? Like maybe blue and white batik with pretty birds?

Okay, so then the rug hung over our upstairs bannister for a long time after I took it out of the wash, because I didn’t know where to put it, but I didn’t want to stick it in a closet somewhere and forget about it.

I was thinking it might work well in a future incarnation of Abe’s room, and then I decided, “hey! why not THIS incarnation of Abe’s room?!” Abe’s room is supposed to have an oceany theme, but it’s already gotten less oceany over time, so, you know–whatever.

And I really like it in there! The carpet that we will someday pull up and replace with hardwood or bamboo is pretty stained and yuck, so seeing less of it is never a bad thing. And I really like the patterniness of the rug in there; it makes the room feel more finished. And Abe likes it, too. And the carpet (plus having it anchored on one side under his crib) keeps it from sliding around and driving me crazy.

Urban Outfitters batik rug in nursery

nurseryrug02s

I know it doesn’t look like Abe likes the rug in this picture. He’d just woken up from his nap and was still very grumpy.

 

 


Comments

Finally Facing Facts in the Foyer — 15 Comments

    • Thanks, Cassie! The first picture, where you can’t see him, was actually taken after the one where he’s glaring at me. By then he was lying down in the crib moaning miserably but wouldn’t let me take him out….so I just took pictures while I waited for him to get over it 🙂

  1. I love it in Abe’s room. And I also love the statement you were making with it in the front door. (Because everyone should immediately know how much you love birds and blue.)

    As for sources for indoor/outdoor rugs, have you considered FLOR tiles? We have them put together as a run in the barn right now and I love them. They are sturdy – super easy to clean – and thick. There are also some awesome colors available.

    We had a white/red striped rug inside the door at our last house and it was a NIGHTMARE. Never stayed clean, always looked horrible. I wanted to make a statement with that red and white pretty but it didn’t work out.

    • hmm….I’ve looked at FLOR tiles before, but not for here specifically….will have to do that–thanks! (there’s actually a place near us that sells (non FLOR) carpet tiles cheap; we did a whole playroom with them at our last house)

  2. When you find that awesome source, let me know. We’ve been making do with an old wool Ikea number. It’s a perfectly fine rug and is actually quite functional (which is why it’s still there), but it’s not the thing. We’ve looked at FLOR tiles, but the dimensions aren’t quite right for our space. The entry rug is trickier than it seems it should be!

    • It really is! I thought cotton over wool would solve some of the problems, since it’d be washable, but different problems just popped right up.

  3. Love it in Abe’s room! It looks like it was meant to be!!! And look at him scoping it out! I can’t stand rugs that become more work than what they are meant for so I totally get it. We have an indoor outdoor rug under the kitchen table…just from target….I will keep my eyes out for you though! Happy weekend to you! Nicole xo

  4. He’s a cutie, even with his that enthusiastic look on his face 😉 I think the rug looks really great in his room, too!

  5. The rug really does look nice in Abe’s room. Have you thought about maybe getting one of the IKEA jute rugs then painting it? You could get a rad stencil, and paint it blue and white, and it would have a similar look. I hear painted rugs are very durable still. I wouldn’t know because I haven’t done one. But at least the cost would be low so if it DID get ruined, it’s not really a huge deal.

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