The Outdoor Rug - A Rug's Life

The Outdoor rug - Not afraid of the great outdoors

Most houses of any type and size can draw upon the merits of an outdoor rug. Do it right, and you'll open up whole new worlds in space that you didn't really know you could be utilizing more effectively.

Outdoor rugs are just that, rugs that do well when exposed to the elements! We're not really endorsing leaving our rugs outside in the rain but if you have a room that gets a lot of natural sunlight, these rugs could be what you've been looking for.

They're made differently and are not afraid of the elements as much as other types of rugs. You could almost think of them as the rug version of an outdoor eating table you might see next to a swimming pool in a backyard. Practical, sturdy, and used for social gatherings.

♪  Because I'm a material rug  ♫

The material of an outdoor rug is one of the defining characteristics of this rug type, so we should go through and have a look at the two main different types of materials they can be made from.

We'd strongly suggest having a read through this list if you're considering buying an outdoor rug! Let's take a look...

Handmade Outdoor Rugs

If you're looking for a bit more detail on your rug, a handmade rug shouldn't be overlooked.

Much like with any other type of rug, the level of detail in a handmade rug will be far higher than that of a machine made rug. Different textures and rug heights (pile) can be achieved via this method of rug creation! What this also means is that much like the Persian Rug, no two handmade rugs can be the same.

So why choose handmade for an outdoor rug? Due to the way they're made, they're soft and have a cotton-like feel to them but still remain durable.

For the backing of an outdoor handmade rug, that's normally made from woven polyester mesh. This helps to greatly reduce skidding, eliminate mold, mildew (as seen below) and basically can't rot.

Machine-made Outdoor Rugs

Machine-made rugs are really not too different to their handmade counterparts, apart from being limited to 5 colours and being slightly cheaper. In terms of quality, they are still great and you won't be disappointed with a machine made rug. What's most important in any rug is that you like the design and that it is well made!

Caring for your outdoor rug

Much like you would for other rug types, you should still probably try to not get them dirty. They're still pieces of furniture, not a plastic table cloth.

While you probably shouldn't leave that wine stain on the rug sitting there all day, they normally are much easier to clean than other rug types.

Check your rug tag! Chances are, it's water resistant which means you're able to just hose it down.

If you have cleaned the rug, make sure it's dry before you place it down again or it could start to take on the dreaded mildew effect.
The same goes for storing the rug away for long periods of time, such as between seasons.

Your outdoor rug should be treated with the same levels of care and respect as any other type of rug, even if they are a little more durable than most!