Spills, stains, scuffs and scrawps – our rugs often get a raw deal. They’re protecting our flooring, but in doing so, they end up getting damaged themselves.
Something that’s designed to feel soft underfoot can end up getting covered in muddy footprints. The item that adds a gorgeous splash of colour to your room often gets splashed with drinks that stain. And a runner (like my DIY one above) that protects the floor in a high-traffic area can get worn down to tatters.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. Even though it’s possible to replace a rug within a day or two by ordering online or heading to a home decor store, let’s shun throwaway culture together and keep your rug maintained to help it last for longer.
After all, I bet you initially chose that rug because it was the perfect fit for your space and decor, so why would you want to replace it when you can repair it? Plus, you’ll be keeping your old rug out of landfill, making your clean-up effort a sustainable solution.
Here are some things you can do to keep your rugs in tip-top condition so that they’ll last for a decade or more:
Cleaning when needed
The first solution for keeping your rug super is to clean it when needed. Yes, as soon as a spill occurs or a mucky pawprint steps on the rug, it’s time to tackle that mark. Spot-cleaning a small area is much easier than trying to clean a whole rug and you can get it done within a couple of minutes.
That way, you don’t end up with stains that are harder to shift or, even worse, liquids absorbed into the fibres that leave a lingering smell (think gone-off milk, urgh). There are domestic cleaning products available to spray onto rugs and upholstery immediately to solve spills (test for colour-fastness in an unseen area before you use it), but natural solutions are even better.
The best tip is to dab and blot, don’t rub! It may take longer, but you won’t ruin the pile of the rug by scrubbing it. And if you think the rug is a bit whiffy, try an old classic shake-on-and-vacuum carpet freshener powder to neutralise odours and leave it smelling much fresher.
If your rug is already covered with marks or muck from over the years, that’s no reason to ditch it. You can get it professionally cleaned and have it returned to you in like-new condition. I have a rug that was inherited from my grandparents and I love the traditional pattern.
However, it definitely needs cleaning. But I’m not going to attempt to tackle it myself because it’s too precious for me to accidentally ruin. I’d rather hand it over to a specialist and allow them to use their professional equipment and solutions to bring it back to its best.
Keep it flat
While rolling rugs seems like the natural way to store and transport rugs, this can lead to creases in the base and upturned edges. It’s therefore always best to keep a rug as flat as possible in order to help it last longer.
If you’ve got a rug that you’ve recently got out of storage and have noticed that it’s curling up at the corners or just won’t lie flat, there are a few things you can do. Firstly, you can try to ‘undo’ the curl by rolling up the rug in the opposite direction and leaving it for a couple of days before unfurling it. This should help it to lie flatter on your floor.
Secondly, you could try to gently steam the rug while it’s laid out flat. This will relax the fibres and flatten out creases, but make sure you don’t make the rug too hot or too wet, as both will result in damage to the rug. Even easier is to lie it out in a place where the sunshine will naturally warm and flatten it. But make sure you only do this for a limited amount of time, as the sun can fade colours.
Avoid dents and dints
When heavy furniture is placed on top of carpets or rugs, it’s likely that the pile will flatten beneath it. Likewise, if a bit of furniture has rucked up the rug, it can cause creases that are hard to shift. I’ve previously ended up with squares from the foot of my sofa pressed into the rug and have found it difficult to remove those dents.
The first thing you can do to avoid this is not placing furniture on the rug. But, if you already have a squished pile and want to help it puff back up after you’ve moved the chair or sideboard off the rug, there are a couple of natural things you can try.
You could vacuum those areas of your rug to move the fibres around – an upholstery attachment on your vacuum might work well for this. Alternatively, you can try to fluff up the fibres with your fingers or a brush – be gentle! Another tip that’s regularly cited online is to allow an ice cube to melt into the dent, let the rug dry and then fluff up the fibres and vacuum it.
I hope that these ideas will help you to maintain your rug and bring your old favourite floor-covering back to life. It’s so much better to repair rather than replace, from an environmental and thrifty point of view, so fingers crossed that you’ll be able to get your rug looking great again. Let me know your own tips for taking care of your rug in the comments below, I love a good cleaning hack!
Pin it for later
This article is a sponsored collaboration. The pink links in the content indicate a sponsored link or information source. The blog post reflects my own experience and the sponsor hasn’t had any control over my content 🙂
