The Wardrobe Stylist

Rugs make all the difference in a room. They make a space bigger, add dimension, and colour.

Furnishing a New Home

When I moved into my new home (it was brand spankin’, I told myself that I would model each room to my liking, whatever the cost (within reason of course). In my previous home, I had purchased a few cowhide rugs that I got at a good price. I was in love with cowhides and so was everyone else that set foot in my house.

I was definitely using them in my new home but adding to that collection. However, after the land transfer fees, lawyer expenses, taxes deducted, and mortgage payments kick in, it’s hard to justify buying additional cowhide rugs especially that I already had some and the ones I wanted for the size would be a minimum of $300 before taxes and shipping.

Some Different Options

Now, thinking about what I needed and given that the house was bigger, it meant that I needed more rug to cover more floors. So when I started to think of my bedroom after I had pictured the furniture set in it, I began debating between a cowhide rug to complement the rustic wood crate wall art that I was planning to create (which I will give you the steps too soon in a post), or go for a more chic look such as an Ikat rug that had been all the rage on home shows the last few years.

Since I’m deal lover like all of you, I set out to search for my options in Ikat rugs. I stumbled upon this beauty from RugKnots.

They’ve been in business for 3 generations. Their styles are authentic and reflect the traditions and way of life of what their prestigious business stands for. This rug option was definitely on my want list. They have many more to choose from but I surely love the colour combo of this one as it jived with the rest of my furniture and colour scheme.

And Then We Got Robbed

As we settled into our new home and got our sofas, I proudly set up my cowhide rugs to see their effect with my new sofas. We weren’t living in the new house as we hadn’t sold our previous one and figured that we would take this time to settle in slowly since we have time.

All that was good until we got robbed! I did not expect that. I was sad, upset, disappointed and couldn’t understand why it happened. Amongst everything that was swept up were my beautiful cowhide rugs.

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Believe it or not, it was what saddened me the most. I know, you must think, really?? But they’re just rugs!! Get over it. You’re right, get over it, and I did. But I had a sentimental attachment to them. I found them at a great price. I loved what my cowhide rugs looked like, when I lost them forever I was afraid I was not going to be able to replace them. Sure, maybe a little dramatic but there are some material things in life that hold much more meaning to you than their appearance. The cowhide rugs were one of those things for.

A Lover of Cowhide Rugs

After I got over the situation and accepted that they left me forever, I was on the hunt for new ones. If anyone knows me, they know that I am a leather lover. As a lover of cowhide rugs, I was surely going for that again.

Before starting though, I was determined to find the same prices I had found before or better, without compensating on quality. I also identified which rooms needed to be addressed first.

Locating Vendors

To find my leather rugs, I looked at Overstock.com, Amazon, Costco, eBay, local shops like Home Sense, and many other smaller websites or dealers. Most had options but it was either too small, too saturated with the main colour, too pricey, or the shape was a bit awkward.

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I finally decided to tackle Kijiji, which is the equivalent of Craigs List for those of you who don’t know. Kijiji had become my best friend over the course of shopping for my home. It was by far the best place for anything second hand, and sometimes new things that were simply no longer favoured by the owner.

Lucky for me, I was able to locate a few wholesale vendors looking to sell beautiful area rugs at decent prices, AND they specialised in cowhide. After reviewing them, I settled on Quebecuir.

I made request after request to see closer images of the cowhide rugs I wanted. I must have had 7 or 8 options. The service was so great that they didn’t mind at all sending photo after photo of my selections so I can be sure of what I was to purchase. They were upfront with me and told me about any imperfections. 

Cowhide Details to Look out For

When shopping for cowhides, especially online, you ask for closes ups as you’ll need to look for these things:

• Burn marks
• Imperfections
• Colour
• Discolouration
• Colour consistency
• Pattern
• Hair length
• Size
• Shape

Everybody has a preference but generally the longer the hair the softer it is. Most cowhides will have natural discolouration or inconsistencies if they are un-dyed, which is ok but as long as it’s not everywhere.

The size is determined on the area you want to cover, and the shape is a personal preference. I like my cowhide rugs to have a bit of the long edges sticking out while others might not.

As for pattern, I don’t like the blocks of patches and I don’t like to have the colour everywhere. I prefer mostly white with spotting of colours splashed out. That’s a personal preference that you have to determine.

Cowhide Rug Options to Beautifully Decorate Your Space

My heart finally set out on one. It was a tricolour beauty large enough to cover my family room. When it arrived, I was like a kid in a candy store.

For $207, tax AND shipping included, it was a steal. It was almost half the price that I would have paid at Ikea or elsewhere (don’t get me wrong, I love Ikea for other things, especially those you can hack, but cowhide rugs are not their forte)…and WAY nicer.

It was styled in my all white family room that had a modern rustic chic look to it, with mainly silver accents.

Of course, at such a good price, I could not pass up purchasing another, this time for my living room. I opted for a traditional black and white one, similar in size than the first.

Another hit! This one at $195! Wow! I soon forgot about my stolen cowhide rugs now that I had this new found love..lol. This one went in my living room which was a mix of gold, white, and beige.

They are each between 76-80″ wide by about 110″ width. It totally revamped my space and made it homey with a super trendy feel.

I’m tempted to get a third for my dining room and I’m still also thinking of the Ikat option for my bedroom. Looks like there will be some more shopping done soon!

How do you feel about rugs and what is your favourite kind?