How to Choose the Best Entryway Rug for Your Foyer

So, you want to leave your guests in awe whenever they come visiting? One very sleek way to make that happen is by beautifying your foyer with a sensational entryway area rug. Yes, it works all the time. By doing this, you will not only be giving them an appealing sight to behold but also a warm foot cushioning as they make their way into your apartment.

Whether you call yours an entry way, an entrance hall, or a foyer, it is that space that gives visitors a glimpse into the rest of your home. It is only right that it reflects your personal style, taste, and creativity.

If finding the best entryway rug for your foyer seems like a long call, we’ll be walking you through all you need to make the best entryway area rug decision for your home, in a bit. Read on!

 

Things to Consider Before Buying Entryway Rugs for Your Home

If your entryway rugs must serve the dual purpose of beautifying and protecting your foyer, then you would need to do more than just walking into a store and picking up an area rug. There are some other things you need to keep in mind while trying to achieve these two goals. Some of them are:

Size of the Entryway Rug

Like every other area rug in your home, size also matters when it comes to choosing the perfect entryway area rug. Take time to take some measurements before you go shopping for your foyer area rugs. That way, the size of the rug can match that of your entranceway.

You should also consider how much space is ideal to allocate while giving some consideration to the overall size of your entryway door(s).

For instance, Shag rugs and other area rugs with high piles are exceptionally fanciful but they may cause hindrance to the movement of your entrance door. You want a rug that’s low enough to allow free swinging of the door, so the pile height of a rug equally matters when deliberating on size.

If you choose a rug as a result of its aesthetic qualities only, remember that constantly brushing your entry door against a rug surface is a fast route to shorten the rug’s lifespan.

A fluffy flat weave rug or any other rug with a shorter pile would fit excellently into your entranceway.

Shape of the Entryway Rug

Another easy route to finding the perfect entryway rug is to match its shape to that of the space you plan to place it.

If you’d like to give visitors a warm welcome into your home, try runner rugs on narrow, long entrance ways.

And for larger entrance ways, small rectangular rugs with bold patterns offer a great avenue for maximum impact in shallow, wide entryways.

Oval and round rugs provide incredible visual appeal and complementary features to the furniture in a or room with grand entryways. Other shapes like square, oblong, and some unconventional shapes will compliment your entranceway and home décor.

Material of the Entryway Rug

Your entryway area rug will definitely be exposed to lots of traffic, probably the most among all floor coverings in your home. Therefore, much of the rug's ability to withstand exposure to traffic stress, stain, dirt, dust, and moisture, would depend on its material. That is why you need to pay proper attention to the material used in making the rug you plan to buy for your entranceway.

Choose materials that appear sturdy, durable, stain-resistant, soft, easy to clean, and can retain their colors for a long period. Some natural and synthetic fabric materials (like wool, polypropylene, nylon, seagrass, bamboo, jute, etc.) have these qualities and would comfortably tick many boxes on the list.

Others like silk, hide, fur, etc. are quite fragile and are more suited to areas with low traffic such as bedrooms, bathrooms, etc.  Below are some of the best rug materials for our entranceway.

• Wool - Wool is popularly known for its softness and durability. Hence, the high demand for wool rugs. Rugs made from wool have all the qualities anyone would admire in an area rug. However, they are usually expensive and can get very heavy when exposed to moisture.
• Nylon – Nylons are affordable and have become the most common synthetic rug materials. They are also very easy to maintain and don’t bow easily to traffic pressure. If you fancy durability and pocket-friendliness, do well to check out rugs made with Nylon materials.
• Natural Materials – Natural fabrics like jute, bamboo, and seagrass can do excellent work outdoor, and in high-traffic areas. While they are not as soft as wool and other materials, they do not easily flatten nor wear out. They also make cheap entryway rugs.
• Polypropylene – Polypropylene is another synthetic rug material in high demand. Rugs such as the Luxe Weavers' Oriental Otika Collection are made from polypropylene, and are stain-resistant. They are also easy to maintain, and suitable for both indoor and outdoor use.

Style of the Entryway Rug

Do you have a style, taste, or personality that you want to express? Or your home has a certain feel, ambiance, or décor that you plan to enhance? Consider only foyer area rugs that match these preferences.

Don’t just buy an entryway area rug for the sake of it. Rather, buy it for the improvements it can bring to the look of your home and the impression it would have on your visitors.

Color of the Entryway Rug

While white and brightly colored area rugs may look more appealing, one thing to keep in mind is that your entranceway rug will get a fair share of mud, dirt, dust, water, and snow. So, ensure you get colors that will not only match your existing home décor but will also withstand the dirt from a large amount of traffic.

Darker colors and patterns on rugs, aside from adorning your doorway with incredible visual appeal, can also withstand dirt and hide footprints.

Brightly colored foyer area rugs, on the other hand, can also inject life and purpose into any space if it’s not the main entrance.

Pile Height of the Entryway Rug

The pile height of a rug describes its height from the floor or the thickness of its weave. Rugs with a higher pile like shag rugs are very plush and fluffy but getting stains and dirt out of them can be a very difficult task.

High pile rugs can also hinder the entrance door from opening and closing freely. When your door constantly rubs against the rug’s surface, it damages the rug and reduces its lifespan. Choose good-looking flatweave rugs or low pile rugs that measure about a quarter of an inch. That height will easily slide under the door and would not take too much time and energy to clean.

Qualities of Good Foyer Area Rugs

Any area rug you plan to buy for an entryway must have the following qualities:

• Easy to Clean

An important quality to look out for in foyer area rugs is the ease of cleaning. You already know that your foyer area rugs will be exposed to lots of dust and dirt, so it must be easy to maintain. Synthetic rugs and low pile or flat-weave rugs are most suitable in this sense.

• Durability

A rug’s durability stems from its ability to last for a long time, regardless of how often it’s used, stained, or cleaned. Rugs made from natural materials such as wood, seagrass, and sisal tend to last longer than those made with synthetic materials.

A good entryway area rug would have beautifully weaved patterns and not lose its sparkle, even after several years of use.

• Style-fit

Your foyer area rug should be able to complement the style and décor in your entranceway. It should reflect your style and taste, one that complements the furniture and other items within your space. If you fancy a unique rug that stands out from every other thing and is the center of attraction in your home, it will only draw attention to itself.

• Proper Size

Your entranceway rugs should be properly sized in a way that is proportional to the doorway and space allocated to it in the foyer. It shouldn’t be too big nor too small.

Entryways and Foyer Area Rugs Ideas

Homeowners build houses (including foyers or entryways) differently, and a particular area rug design may not work for all the different entryways. While some entryways are just the standard or regular ones, others are grand and luxurious. Whether you find yourself living in a house with the former or latter architecture, here are some ideas that may help you make the best out of your entryway décor.

Tips on Grand Entryways

If you have a lot of space and luxurious flooring with or without a dramatic staircase, then what you have is a grand entranceway. Match up the luxurious ambiance with an eye-popping area rug to complement it all. Go for unconventional or irregular shapes like an octagonal rug or go for regular shapes with a focus on its geometric patterns. A Persian or oriental rug would be the best for this, except you are not a fan of antique traditional rug patterns.

Tips on Small Space Entrance Ways

You have to make the most of your entryways if all you’ve got is a little space. For a long, hallway-style entranceway, we suggest you cover almost the entire length of your hallway with a long runner. You can also use any other rug type that’ll make your entryway look more spacious and larger than it actually is.

Mudroom Entryways

Mudroom entryways are famous for getting a lot of pressure, dirt, dust, and stains from numerous foot traffic. Give such entryways some extra care and elegance with a classic foyer area rug that can withstand the dirt and foot pressure. Buy a durable, patterned indoor-outdoor rug that can hide dirt and prevent more from getting into other parts of your home.

Standard Entryways

Most homes in the US with defined entryways are of this design. They have regular shapes like squares, rectangles, etc.  In this case, you may want to match the shape of your entranceway with an area rug of a similar shape (i.e., complement a rectangular entryway with a rectangular entrance rug). Leave a minimum of 8 inches on all sides of your entrance area rug if it is a fairly large entryway, or have it extended wall-to-wall in a smaller one.

How to Protect Your Entryway Area Rug

Entryway area rugs protect our doorway flooring from dirt, dust, rain, snow, sunshine, and foot traffic. We must give them some care and protection, so they can remain in top shape and serve us for longer periods. Here are a few things on caring for your entryway area rug.

• Place a doormat or an accent rug outside the front door so, everyone including visitors can wipe their feet before coming into the house.
• Place a small shoe rack at the entrance so visitors can take off their shoes and keep them there before coming into your apartment.
• Under your foyer area rug, place a high-quality rug pad (preferably latex material) to prevent it from moving, shifting unnecessarily, and sliding around the hallway.

Doing these will also help reduce the time and energy you’d spend on cleaning and maintenance.

Before you go shopping, remember size, shape, durability, color, material, and style are crucial to your plans to wow your guests with your entryway rug. Keep these at your fingertips, and you'd never go wrong. Happy shopping!