The most inexpensive way to have a vinyl rug is to order online from a big box home improvement store (Lowe's and Home Depot offer free shipping). Look in the sheet vinyl flooring section. The width is usually 12 feet. Order the length you need. You can always trim width to size with a good razor knife and straight edge. I have a dog who ruined my rug by stealth peeing in the dining room on cold days. Perfect solution and it looks great while protecting my hardwood flooring.

you don't want white, and the darker colors, you say, will make it too dark, so that leaves you with light gray or one of those tones. what in the world are those cab made from? and who picked that granite to go w/those cabs? you say you're renting. they're letting you paint those? if they're made of a laminate type of material, the prep work for those will be necessary. quite frankly, I don't think it will look great painted. Do you really want to go through all of the work to paint those? have you ever painted cabinets? It's not something you can do in a weekend. Besides, that wood strip on the cabinets is kind of cool looking. changing out the country style cup pull to more of a bar pull will look better w/that style cabinet I'd leave the cabs and look into gettin a pre-fab, plain white or soft gray, quartz countertop. a 9' piece will cost about $450. fabricator can cut it to fit for another 600-900. maybe less depending on the layout of your kitchen. here's an example of pre-fab quartz, you only posted a small picture. post a pic showing the entire space

So after a lot more research, I’ve elected to paint the floor with Wise Owl One Hour Enamel. Plus primer and a sealant. It’s possible I may add a crackle glaze between the first and second coats of OHE, with a darker paint color over a lighter one, then seal, then use a brown glaze to softly define the grout lines, then seal again. I found lots of great info through White Owl suppliers & users. The OHE is super strong & durable. But this is still in the thinking stage. I’ll be doing some experiments, then decide. And if I want a rug/rugs in there, I’m going with Ruggable washable rugs. Thanks for all the advice & comments here. Love the internet!

I've been part of a Residential Home's purchase of 8mm cork glue down cork tiles in their common area. The tiles were site finished with 2 coats of Loba 2K Supra AT. The cork is thick with natural energy absorbing abilities. The Loba 2K Supra AT is a HIGH GRIP product - even when damp. An elderly resident fell from a standing position. They landed heavily on their hip. They were taken to EMERG for X-Rays. There was no sign of a break. The resident was Dx with a 'deep bone bruise' and sent home to rest. The Home's director stated that previous falls of that nature usually have resulted in broken bones. This was the first time the home had seen a serious fall that did not result in broken bones. The cork was the difference maker. Cork is finicky but can be made super tough without compromising on aesthetics. It can be used INSTEAD OF carpet. In fact it is a 'carpet replacement' product. When done properly it can last 130+ years (Library of Congress received their cork floor in 1890's....it is STILL THERE...in it's original state).