If you follow me on Instagram, @fromsusie, then you were able to help us decide which rug to use for the living room inside our Beckhaus Project.

Kim Beck is my client and she has a gorgeous, Texas ranch-style home. The living room has exposed cedar beams and black iron work. The fireplace is a gorgeous limestone and the walls are Sherwin Williams Repose Gray with trim in Benjamin Moore Dove White.

When I came to the Beckhaus, Kim had very modern, black leather sofas, a medallion rug and tiny coffee table. She expressed her desire for a warm and inviting living room, but she also wanted it to be unique.

Because she loved the leather I knew we just needed to round out the sofas. This way she could get the masculinity of the leather, without the contemporary look of the squared arms and corners. Shop our selection HERE.

I chose the oversized, down-filled chairs from Six Penny Furniture. The linen upholstery brings a softer touch to the room. They hold their shape but they do have a little bit of slouch and I love that. It looks like someone would actually sit there and that’s important if you’re going for a cozy, inviting look.

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Usually I like to choose a rug first for a room. It grounds the space. If you find a beautiful rug you can then begin to play off the colors and style that you choose.

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For example, if you fall in love with a coral oushak rug, then we want to find those dark wood furniture pieces to go with it. Maybe bring in the creams and grays in the accessories and add greenery to brighten it all up.

However in this project, the rug came last. This is more challenging, but it’s doable. Size is the number one concern.

Kim’s living room is 18’ long x 16’ wide. It’s an open concept home, so we also have to take into consideration her all white kitchen, and the fixtures over the island and in the dining room. It’s a grand room with tall ceilings and an enormous chandelier from Restoration Hardware. We know with the furniture placement that we want an absolute minimum of 9’ x 12’.

Remember, you want at least the front legs of every seat on the rug and your tables either all the way on, or all the way off the rug.

With that in mind, a 9 x 12 would really be too small. So, after trying lots of options from the internet, I told Kim we really should go to our local shop and pay Ben @empirerugs a visit.

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Shopping local has a lot of perks, you guys, and one of them is seeing the products in person. Not only that, but Ben takes it one step further and he brings the contenders to your home and let’s you see each one in your space.

I knew we didn’t want any colors that were too dark. The leather sofas, and the wood beams would need a lighter rug for Kim’s taste. We could have gone old world with it, but I know my client and she likes fresh and airy. Again, we are also keeping the all white kitchen in mind.

So, we just looked at blues, grays, creams, some pale yellows, blush pinks, etc. We chose 8 and Ben brought them over the next day.

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Rug #1 was the winner from the start. I knew it when we saw it in the store, but nonetheless, we tried them all. However, let me tell you why it won. First of all, size. It was the largest at 10’8” x 16’ 9”. With this size rug we were able to place all the furniture completely on the rug. That makes for a grand room. If you want your space to have that WOW factor, get all your furniture on the rug.

Secondly, this rug was one-of-a-kind. Buying local from a guy who buys his rugs direct form Persia is going to ensure that you aren’t getting a mass produced product. Also, most big box stores don’t sell rugs this size and if they do, it’ll be a round number like 10 x 14. No random inches.

Third, the colors. A lot of the rugs we tried would pull different tones out of the limestone fireplace. Sometimes it would look sage, or too blue. Other times the fireplace would look really dark and almost purple. This rug brought out the creams and that’s what we wanted. It also had a touch of brown in the weave that tied perfectly with the leather and wood beams.

Last, but certainly not least was the pattern and design. This rug has a story (as do most Persian rugs). The pomegranate and fruit detailing means that its a “Tree of Life” rug.

The idea of a ‘tree-of-life’ and its meaning has existed for centuries, and been referenced in science, mythology, religion and other realms of academia. At its most basic, the tree of life is represented a tree of many branches which stand as a metaphor for how all life on Earth is connected and the liveliness of the spirit. It is commonly depicted and patterned in Persian and Navajo rug works. (source: orientalrugcareny.com)

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This rug is special. It tied everything we needed together. Colors, style, uniqueness, and size.

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I will tell you that it was expensive, but very much worth every single penny. It was not overpriced, it was just an investment.

We are so pleased with how this room is coming together and I can’t wait to show you it completed! Stay tuned for that!