I have a high end flooring store and we also make custom rugs. We love selling seagrass carpet and rugs. I personally have it wall to wall in my home, including on the steps, along with area rugs. We also have it wall to wall in our store. I have trained 3 puppies on it and have had major spills. I find it cleans up wonderfully. I basically use two products, Woolite Oxyclean, which you can buy anywhere, and Capture (a Powder cleaner) which you can buy at Lowe's. You can totally soak any type of stain with the Oxyclean. Use a vegetable brush if you need to get any solids out of the crevices. Once the spot dries (and it can take a few days and look really bad while it is drying so don't worry) use the powder Capture to sprinkle in, to clean up any residues, then vacuum up the powder. I have kept all the Seagrass that I have looking new and some of the Seagrass is over 10 years old. Also, Seagrass is not expensive and looks great in all types of decor.

The best way to get rid of smells is sunlight. If you could take it outside on a patio in full sun for a few hours it would probably help the smell leave quicker. Although if it is room size, that may be difficult. My mom bought a house that had been lived in by smokers and she left little bowls of vinegar all around the house. It really seemed to somehow draw out the smell (even out of the carpets). I just bought a sisal rug. It had no smell but the rug pad I bought was off gassing like crazy. I wished I had left if outside for a few days, but by the time I realized it smelled bad I already had moved the rug and furniture back on top it. It took about a week for the smell to go away. Hopefully, you won't have to wait long for your smell to dissipate. Good luck.

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. Seems like my seagrass rug idea might be workable--I get so seized up trying to figure out what to do with the finishing touches! Patricia, re. the windows. The LR window is HUGE, almost 10'x6'. I do have 2" white wooden blinds and have been stumped on what kind of drapes to use. Here is a picture of the window, though the cotton tap top drapes are gone now as is the end table at left. I'm not sure if I should go with what you mentioned, sheers like maybe these from JC Penney: Or do something striking, to be a bit of color or at least more of a focal point, like these drapes from Restoration Hardware: Dlm, thanks for the reminder about the size. Talk about mentalpause moments! I checked and duh, somehow I had gotten it into my head that 6x9 would fit. The rug in there was a custom cut remnant and it is 7x9. So refiguring the cost of the seagrass, it comes out to more than I thought but still less than anything I've found elsewhere. Thanks again for the responses. I've been working on this LR/DR for months now. Finally have the painting done, the trim work-my son put in crown throughout, yippee-and the furniture. And now it's time to figure out all the things that will pull it together and that's where I get totally stuck. I so appreciate you all taking time to help me work on finishing this space. Ann

No personal experience, as I have all wool rugs (and three dogs) but I found several articles on the web about pet hair and seagrass. This is taken from one at the link below. "A less expensive choice would be a natural fiber rug, such as sisal, jute or seagrass. The only one we ever use in homes with pets or young families is seagrass. Unlike sisal, which immediately absorbs liquids, seagrass is naturally water repellent, and spills will initially sit on top. We add a sealer such as Sisal-Guard on top, and puddles will bead up and not soak in immediately, allowing the owner a chance to pick up the mess before damage is done. Because of the tight, slick texture of seagrass, pet fur and sand sit on top and are vacuumed right up. Seagrass rugs are inexpensive enough that if and when they do become stained, they are easily replaced. Many of our clients stick with seagrass in family areas and simply replace them every few years. However, they canâÂÂt really be cleaned, so if you have an oily-coated or muddy dog like a labrador, we would recommend wool or nylon." Here is a link that might be useful: Designing the Pet Friendly Home