Anyway, as someone who works from home and spends many hours every day rolling around on a plastic mat, those also have their drawbacks. To stay in place they have little plastic spikes on the underside and those leave marks even though your casters don't. I had a rental apartment once where a previous tenant had had a chair mat in the bedroom and no amount of cleaning in the three years I lived there ever got the little dimples out of the rug (although I think they probably just bought the cheapest mat, not the one recommended for use on that kind of carpet).

I'm one of the people from the other thread that mentioned shedding with my hand tufted Safavieh. I have some small polypropylene and olefin rugs and they can stand abuse. I feel like I have to baby the wool/silk rug. Don't get me wrong, it's pretty and matches well but I'm thankful there's only one. They do make some very pretty synthetic rugs. Will yours be in an area with heavy traffic. I feel I should also mention I have three very furry cats and they think this rug is a new bed. Black rug with 3 cats = more vaccuming. I noticed I'm actually seeing in certains spots where it looks like there's a layer of fuzz that needs trimmed! Here's a photo because it's hard to explain! I do rotate the rug every three months. Again, it's only 6 months old. It seems to be just around the outside where it gets lots of traffic. It's not on the other outside edge. And no, that's not kitty hair. I also keep finding spots like this. Pretty huh? Notice you can also see the shedding fibers laying on top. I just vaccumed last night. Here's an overall shot. I have no idea what's up with that. Did I get a bad Safavieh rug? Does it have to do with the fact that I used my Dyson sweaper with the beater bar on for the first three months I had it? Maybe the hose attachment rubbing against it is making it funny now. This might not be the norm. I don't have the answer but really think about it first before buying anything.

I typed a response last night by DD borrowed my computer and I forgot to post.:( The rug you have looks good. It doesn't have to stand on its own; it's part of a whole. I am like you (I think). I don't like any one item in my home to stand out, or things to look too decorated and deliberate. I like the yellow rugs for your chairs, but they may be just a tad too much "on the nose." I liked wool sisal for your room, but I love texture. I like everything to meld together to create a calm, comfortable whole. I want people to say "I love this room", not "I love that rug". To me, the later speaks to the luck of a purchase, the former speaks to my ability to create an atmosphere. To me, the addition of the yellow tee-shirt pillow cinched it. But, I agree, the little shelf needs work to fit in. You have good instincts; trust them. Dee

Hi Lydia- I don't know where you live. Many cities have shops to purchase the real thing. But before you even think about buying anything, please educate yourself. You can do it online, or you can read it in books. Read about the carpets, how they are made, what they look like, what they should look like, and what are the signs of quality, what are the signs of a machine-made rug vs a hand made rug. Then after you have studies, then go into the shops, and don't bring any money or credit cards. For real!!! With everything in your brain, and your hands very clean, look at the rugs, and think about their quality, what is awesome, great, good, and what you wouldn't wrap a body in cause it's a cheap machine-made copy. When the salesman comes over to you, be very polite and say, Oh, I am not buying right now, I will at some time in the future. Right now, I need to educate myself all about these wonderful carpets. I suggest you do this at a time when the store isn't very busy. This way, the salesman can actually give you some time, and if you are lucky he is a nice person and will want to share some of his knowledge with you, and you can learn a lot that way. Do this at every carpet store in every city that is a reasonable driving distance from you. If this seems like a lot of work, well it is a bit of work. Think of it as learning how to buy a diamond and shopping for one Years ago, a Persian hand-knotted carpet often cost more than many people's engagement rings, too. No more, thanks to the vagaries of politics and import tariffs and embargos, etc. Don't think of it as work, think of it as an art lesson. Decorative arts, to be precise. Do you have any friends that are Persian or Turkish that can shop with you? They know rugs like Americans know baseball.