Building the Space Between: Getting Off On The Right Foot

Project Fun-This-Place-Up has gotten another boost courtesy of a coupon for Overstock.com. Overstock is awesome if a) they have exactly the thing you want, or b) you have endless patience to wait for exactly the thing you want.

The rug in our entry. It is the perfect size. And I do like the colors and pattern. BUT- it's not very fun, just kind of average. And dark. And it hurts to walk on it in bare feet. Side note: what's the point of an area rug that's uncomfortable for bare feet?? "Welcome to our home, please remove your shoes and endure foot discomfort now that you've arrived." Not exactly the warm welcome we want to give guests.

Ouch.

Which led me to stalk Overstock for a rug that would be the perfect dimensions (3'x5' or something very close to that), durable and easy to clean, more "fun," more colorful but still coordinating with the blues, grays, and browns we've already got going in the rest of the entry and the living room. And soft. It had to be soft.

I picked a few favorites that were blue/green combos that were either in brighter colors or more bold patterns (or both). And typically when we purchase something like this, Steve and I both have to love it. Or one of us has to be desperate for it and the other one agrees to trust their judgment and go with it.

In this case, Steve and I went against our natural tendency toward a more traditional style and stepped out on a limb by choosing a rug in a modern abstract pattern.

Look Ma, I learned how to take a screen shot!

Read that? Durable. Soft pile. 4.7 out of 5 stars. Hues of limeaid and raisin. Oh yeah. Upon deeper inspection, all of the reviewers talked about what great quality the rug was and how plush it was for the price, and one talked about how well it had held up to abuse in her husband's man cave/game room. It was already on sale for 15% off. Plus I had a coupon. And the great thing about Overstock? Free shipping and easy returns. So we crossed our fingers and went for it.

Here's what things were looking like before. Stanley the stuffie squirrel is looking cute! What a handsome devil, even in profile.

Squirrel charm.

We were home with the UPS delivery man dropped off the new rug, so obviously I brought the rug inside immediately, giddy to open the packaging and unroll it. Indy was suspicious at first. There was vigorous sniffing of the packaging and not a little barking and cowering.

It appears this tube of carpet intends to kill us all.

Steve held Indy while I opened the rug and laid it in our entry. Wow, it was exactly what we were aiming for! The colors were bold but not in-your-face bright. It was deliciously plush on bare feet, and it juuuust fit where we wanted it to go.

Hello limeaid!

Even Indy approved, once he got over being scared out of his wits. I've actually caught him rolling on it the day after the rug arrived.

Dachshund stamp of approval.

The green is a little different than the hydrangeas in the giant ball jar, and a little different than the embroidered green leaves and vines on our bench pillow, but I think it still works.

Stanley approves, too.

Although I really like the rug, I'm still not 100% sold on it. I think it's like getting a bold new haircut and then being surprised by your reflection when you walk past a mirror. I'm still adjusting to seeing something so modern there. It definitely is an attention-getter. And I think it'll be less divergent from the style in the living room, kitchen, and dining room once I make a little more progress with my "fun things up in here" project.