This Under $200 Machine-Washable Rug Packs Some Serious Style In My Home

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My son Luke loves bath time. And after bath, he loves to streak from the tub to his bedroom — with or without his Prince George-inspired bathrobe. This nightly cuteness turned my hallway into a Slip and Slide, and not in a good way. I worried a splinter or loose nail could come up from our old hardwood floor and cut his tender toddler foot.

Enter our Ruggable runner. My 2.5’ x 10’ runner in the Linear Diamond pattern prevents Luke from slipping on his nightly race down the hall to put his pajamas on. The black and white runner also adds some texture and energy to the narrow space while protecting the finish on the floor. The Linear Diamond was one of Ruggable’s first patterns and, to my eye, it’s one of their best. The large pattern is bold and kid-friendly but still reads modern to me. The particular black and white colors they chose are warm and a bit of variation makes the rug seem like a vintage collected piece — if you don’t look too closely. 

My husband and I worked on adding style to this tight spot for the ten years we’ve lived in this apartment. We wanted the hallway to feel separated from the rest of the apartment, a striking but spare space to welcome our guests. We painted, hacked IKEA kitchen cabinets to create a storage console, and splurged on a Mooi Random pendant light. When we renovated our kitchen, we added transom windows to make the hallway feel like a separate space. All of these efforts paid off, but still the hall never felt done to me. Adding this runner truly grounded our hallway and now the project feels complete. 

A runner never even made the mood board for this space. We assumed a rug would slide over our hardwood floor and be impossible to keep clean. This hallway is the Grand Central of our Brooklyn home — serving the entrance, the primary bedroom, the bathroom, and ending right in front of the refrigerator. 

Ruggable rugs are washable and don’t slip. The rugs are made of two separate pieces — a rubbery non-slip base and a machine washable top layer. When the rug gets dirty (mine had a run-in with some iced coffee and then ketchup), the top layer can be cleaned in the washing machine and then reattached to the base. 

When it came time for our Ruggable runner’s first “bath,” we were worried. Would our favorite new decor item hold up as well as promised? It totally did, and, bonus, it fit in our small stackable front-load machine too. One small negative; it takes a bit of effort to snap the two layers together, almost like buttoning a duvet cover over a quilt. But taking the extra minutes to carefully align the two layers is well worth it. This prevents the top layer from wrinkling or curling up. The premium price for Ruggable products makes sense when you see how long they last and how easy they clean up. If you want to change the look of your space, you can replace the top layer and re-use the same base.

I’ll admit that the feel of my runner did take some adjusting. The rug is thin and quite flat, feeling more like a plush outdoor rug. Over time, I got used to the texture and even grew to like it. The flat style is easy to sweep when dragging out the vacuum feels like too much effort. For those looking for a more plush feeling, Ruggable now offers a cushioned rug pad. 

Ruggable’s line has expanded since I bought my runner a year and a half ago. They recently launched a new Re-Jute line — a great option for families looking to bring some beachy vibes home. Made partly from recycled plastic bottles, this line has the earthy patterns associated with jute rugs without the scratchy feel. And if a pet or a red wine bottle has an accident, they are also machine washable. Post-bathtime Lambrusco dance party, anyone?