5 Tips to Successfully Pair Persian Rugs With Your Decor

It’s happened. You’ve fallen in love with a stunning handwoven Persian Rug. You long to take it home where you can forever enjoy its bold, exotic beauty and the hint of mystique that comes with two and a half thousand years of history. But you have doubts. Will it work with your patterned sofa? What if it clashes with your artwork?

Even our most design-savvy customers sometimes ask these questions, so we thought we’d share some advice for pairing your Persian Rugs with your décor. By following these five simple tips, you’ll find it easy to make your beautiful handwoven treasure look and feel like it has always belonged with you.

Know your style personality

Is your home contemporary, modern, traditional, bohemian, or something in between? Are you looking to create space that is calming and restful, or lively and fun? Knowing your style and what you want to create will help you make decisions about where and how to tie your rug in with what you have, bearing in mind colour, scale, contrast, and your creative flair.

Connect with colour

Colour is one of the most effective ways to create a unified feel in your home, and no matter whether your style is simple elegance or quirky eclecticism, what you’re aiming for is a balance. If your backdrop is mainly neutral, then any rug will form a magnificent centrepiece, and you have plenty of scope for accessorising. Create a sense of harmony with a bold Traditional or Tribal rug in rich reds or blues by repeating a pale shade of either colour in cushions or artwork. For something more neutral-toned and subtle, like our Kashmir panel pure silk rug, you might accessorise with a darker accent in the same colour family. If you have a lot of patterns in your furnishings or on your walls, keeping colours in the same family can make otherwise different design elements fit seamlessly together.

Work to scale

Colour is essential, but you also need to factor in scale. A lot of bold, large patterns in one space can make a room seem darker and smaller at the same time as lifting the energy and drama. Too many fine, complex patterns can be distracting and create a sense of chaos. Again, it’s about balance. If your wallpaper or furnishings are finely patterned, you can use a more significant scale rug with a stronger presence to anchor the room. Conversely, if your room features bold colours or prints, a more delicate rug provides a settling contrast. In either case, it’s important to break up the patterns with solid colour or neutrals, so the overall effect isn’t overwhelming.

Contrast with classics

A handwoven Persian rug in any style is a timeless classic, so why not pair it with other enduring favourites? Classics never clash. Toss some paisley cushions on your sofa, lay a plaid throw over your favourite chair, or add an art deco lamp to your antique coffee table. By paying attention to colour and scale, mixing design eras and classic pieces can create an exotic effect. Your rug will become the striking feature that ties it all together.

Dare to be different

If you have a house full of much-loved items you’ve gathered from far and wide and nothing matches, then make the theme all about you. The rug you’ve fallen in love with and want to take home will fit right in, and embracing the clash of design elements with abandon can be spectacularly successful when it radiates character and confidence. Ultimately, your space needs to be right for you, and you and your handwoven piece of history will never go out of style.

Want more tips?

As handwoven rug specialists, the team at Persian Rug Co. are the experts at helping you with any of your interior design questions when it comes to pairing Persian Rugs with your existing or newly introduced patterns. Feel free to browse our online store or call into our Rozelle warehouse outlet, where our friendly staff will help find the perfect piece to complement your style.