Why? Pick a reason. Start with the fact that for thousands of years area rugs have brought warmth and comfort to our living spaces. Next, they contribute color, design and texture to any room. Let’s not forget how quickly area rugs transform the look and feel of a room. And how easily they can be changed to help our homes reflect each season. Entertaining? But don’t have time for a full room makeover? Area rugs make a stylish cover-up for floors that aren’t in tiptop shape.

Rugs can be used to create or enhance a focal point of the room –– even become THE focal point of the room –– creating those intimate places for a fireside chat, for example. Yearning to be outdoors? Maybe it’s a good time of year to “bring in the outside,” say with rugs featuring botanical themes... leaves, plants or flowers.

Area rugs are versatile. Use them to link rooms together using your rugs’ colors and patterns. Combine these with intriguingly different shapes and you can see how rugs will contribute to the design flow throughout the house, inviting visitors from room to room.

Consider buying more than one rug for each room. This way, you can move them around the house or change the rugs as you move your furniture for an always-fresh look.

Keepsake rugs or rugs for special occasions are becoming very popular. Collectors and creative home decorators find that specialty rugs like these can tell a family story or set the stage for a special family or seasonal event. Talk about conversation starters!

Getting the hang of decorating with area rugs is relatively easy. Walk through your rooms and get a feel for the way the rooms flow. Then bring your favorite, personal looks to these rooms with a rug, say a very modern rug with lots of colors. Using the same color family makes for an unbroken flow. Maybe you prefer all rooms to all look different, like an art gallery. Animal print rugs are attention-getting yet look great with virtually any style of furniture or any design period.

Create your own area rug with your favorite colors and have it made at the store. Bring in a piece of wallpaper or fabric swatch and have them create a rug with colors that coordinate with what you already own.

If your rug is going in the dining room, designers say to determine first if you want the chairs to be on the rug or off when they are at the table. If you have a large sofa, you will want the area rug to be 12 inches larger than a “normal” sofa and 24 inches longer than a very large sofa. If you are putting an area rug over wall-to-wall carpet, try to stay 30 inches from the wall. This will give you more of a picture frame for your room. If you only have two or three inches, both of the rugs will look out of proportion.