Generic question? Generic answer = no. If you show us pics of your space and pics of the rugs you're thinking of, it would be easier to give a less generic answer.

We all make some concessions for our animals. As long as our choices look reasonably attractive, then it only makes good sense that they're practical. Function first, form later.

I'm sure most of us who love our furbabes tend to do quite a bit of decorating 'around' them.

Zayda's (large rescue Heinz 57) husk-filled bed isn't what anyone would call dining room decor but hey, at least I got the bed with a terracotta fabric that matched the decor of the dining chairs. *s*

To answer your question, yes I am using an indoor/outdoor rug in my kitchen. Actually two of them, both runners of different lengths.

After purchasing many pretty rugs, nylon, wool, 100% cotton, and various other fabrics, I found the only solution for us, for our furbabes, was to purchase indoor/outdoor rugs.

I got them from Overstock dot com and I don't have a single complaint.

I can run the vac over them but for ground in dirt or hairball remnants from our kitties it doesn't bother me or the rugs one bit to take them out on the back concrete patio, a couple tablespoons of laundry detergent on them, a stiff broom and a hose. Let them dry hanging on the fence and they are as good as new.

The fact that indoor/outdoor rugs come in wonderful colors now and mine are a terracotta print, doesn't hurt either.

We bought our mother one for her sunroom that has beige tiled floors. The room really needed some color to pull the room together, plus this room gets a lot of foot traffic, so indoor/outdoor was the way to go. I agree with amity, they come in so many colors and styles, plus are reasonably priced.

For those of you who are using them, do you have any issues with the edges curling? I bought 2 i/o runners from Ballards and could not keep the edges down at all so had to send them back. It may have been that particular rug and they were on clearance (maybe that's why!) but have hesitated to try again. I agree, the functionality is extremely appealing and in the right setting they will look like a nice flat weave rug.

No problems with edges curling on my mother's. I wish I could remember where we purchased hers (online) - hers is really pretty - very subtle scroll design on it. We didn't want anything too busy that would conflict with her furniture.

I found it - we ordered from Rugs Direct online, (good prices and free shipping.) They have a great selection, even better than when we ordered Mom's - which was Shaw's Terrace "Garden District" in Wheat.

I have two I/O rugs from Ballard Designs with no curling edge problems. They've held up beautifully except that the red clay we have here in VA that the dog tracks onto them does stain pretty badly. It's awfully hard to get out without a lot of scrubbing.

I've had a couple of I/O rugs inside and they're great for pets and spills. They're made SO much softer and easier on the feet these days than they were years back.

Someone here posted a brilliant solution to the curling edges (which happen on other kinds of rugs too). Cut two self-stick vinyl tiles diagonally and stick one half on the back of each corner. They act as weights to hold the corners down.

That is an ingenious idea! I may give this another go.

Thanks....

We used overlapping indoor/outdoor rugs to "carpet" our basement. I'm glad we did, as we've had 3 water events since doing it. A couple of the fibers have broken (kid-related?), but they're easy to clean. Ours are made of recycled bottles, and they're reversible.

One note: Indoor/outdoor rugs don't absorb moisture. Part of the point is to allow moisture to pass through, so you don't have mold or mildew problems under the rug. If you spill something, the rug won't absorb the liquid and you will have the clean the floor underneath.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mad Mats Examples (couldn't find their homepage)