Green Rugs

Green rugs: freshness and calm from nature

Hardly any colour unites two opposites as naturally as green. It is the colour of spring, of meadows and forests, and at the same time the colour of calm: the eye has to work least with green, which is why green rooms are experienced as relaxing. Green rugs bring exactly that effect to the floor. They draw a piece of nature indoors, give a living space freshness and create, throughout a home, an atmosphere in which you come to rest.

Green is astonishingly adaptable with it. A dark green reads as refined and almost classical, a light sage green as airy and Scandinavian, a rich emerald as glamorous. Green combines with warm woods as readily as with black, white and brass. It can be the basis of a whole colour world or stand as a single focal point in an otherwise neutral room. Choosing a green rug therefore means choosing not a loud colour but one with a quiet presence, which holds a room together in harmony and gives it an unmistakable note.

At Morgenland Rugs you will find green rugs in both great traditions: hand-knotted Oriental pieces, in which green traditionally plays a particular role, and modern rugs in the current nuances from mint to dark green, in many variants, sizes and materials. As a family business with a showroom in Hamburg's Speicherstadt, we put our selection together ourselves. On this page you will find which greens exist, which size and shape suit your room, and how to combine green rugs with walls, furniture and decoration.

Olive, sage, mint, dark green and sea green: the shades at a glance

Green runs from a delicate light green to an almost black fir green, and every shade changes the effect of a room. The most important nuances in our selection:

• Olive green: a muted, slightly yellow green with earthy warmth. Olive reads as natural and unexcited and suits leather, linen, terracotta and dark woods. It is the green for anyone who likes things warm and quiet.
• Sage green: the light, greyish green of sage leaves. Sage has shaped many interiors for some years now, because it is bright and friendly without reading as cool. A rug in sage makes small rooms appear larger, suits white, beige and pale wood, and gives any room a light note.
• Mint green: fresh, clear and slightly blue. Mint brings brightness and freshness to a bedroom, a children's room or a study, and harmonises with white, pink and light grey.
• Dark green: from moss green through bottle green to emerald. Dark green gives a room depth and elegance, reads as almost stately with velvet, brass and dark wood, and makes pale furniture glow.
• Sea green: the green with the greatest blue content, between green, turquoise and petrol. Sea green recalls water and reads as cool, clear and quietly elegant. It suits maritime interiors, white and sand, but also warm wood as a counterpoint.

Many green rugs show several of these nuances at once. Hand-knotted Oriental rugs have a lively gradation of colour from hand-spun wool and dyeing in small batches, known as abrash, which suits green particularly well. Modern designs work with melange yarns, with tone-on-tone patterns, or with gradations from light to dark green. Multi-toned variants like these often suit several furniture colours at once. Do compare your shortlist in daylight and under artificial light, because whether a rug reads green, olive or almost grey depends strongly on the light.

Green Oriental rugs or a modern rug in green?

Whether a green rug reads as classical or contemporary is decided less by the shade than by pattern and construction. Both directions have their advantages.

Green Oriental rugs usually place green in a muted role: as a border, as the ground behind a medallion, or as foliage in scrolling vines and garden motifs. Ziegler rugs show a soft, seemingly washed-out green beside beige, rust and grey; Gabbeh rugs large, quiet fields in olive or moss green; Kelims a strong green in stripes and diamonds. A hand-knotted Oriental rug is always a one-off that keeps its colour for decades and grows more beautiful with every layer of patina. It gives a room history, elegance and a warm atmosphere, and suits modern interiors surprisingly well when the rest stays quiet. Our overview of Oriental rugs shows the whole selection of origins, patterns and materials.

Modern rugs in green use the colour across the surface and with confidence, in numerous finishes: plain in sage or dark green, with geometric designs, with a soft texture, or in the popular vintage look, where a classical pattern appears faded; such vintage designs link old and new. They suit almost any style: bright Scandinavian homes, period buildings with cornicing, and clearly furnished new builds alike, and they combine easily with furniture you already own. A low-pile wool rug in sage is the most versatile variant of all. The overview of modern rugs offers a look at every design regardless of colour.

A simple guide: if the rug is to be the lead, choose a patterned piece, Oriental or modern. If it should only provide the room with a base of colour, a plain or discreetly textured green rug is the better choice. Both have advantages: the patterned piece tells a story, while the plain one is easier to combine with new furniture later.

Size and shape: rectangular, runner, round or square

Green rugs read more convincingly the better size and shape suit the room. With a colour of this much character the rule counts double: rather a size up than too small, otherwise the rug reads as a patch rather than a surface.

• Rectangular: the classic shape for living and dining rooms. Beneath the seating group, at least the front feet of the furniture should stand on the rug, and better the whole group. Beneath the dining table you need about 60 to 70 centimetres of overhang on each side, so that the chairs stay on the rug even when pulled out.
• Runner: long and narrow, for hallway, kitchen and bedroom. Runners in green draw a fresh band of colour through dark hallways and can be laid in pairs beside a bed. Watch the width: a strip of floor should stay visible on both sides.
• Round: soft and organic, ideal beneath round dining tables, in reading corners and in children's rooms. Round rugs in green recall a clearing and loosen up strict, angular floor plans.
• Square: for square rooms, seating groups with facing sofas, or beneath square tables. You will find suitable pieces under square rugs.

If you are unsure about size, mark the measurement you want on the floor with masking tape and live with it for a day. And if no standard size fits, a green rug can be made in the size you want; more on that in the section on advice.

Green rugs room by room

Green rugs work in every room, but not every green in every one. A tour through the home:

• Living room: here green may appear on a large scale. A wool rug in dark green gives a bright room depth and reads as particularly elegant with a velvet sofa and a brass lamp. Sage or olive are the quieter choice for rooms with plenty of wood and natural materials, and provide comfort and a calm atmosphere without heaviness.
• Bedroom: hardly any colour calms as reliably as green. A soft wool rug in sage or mint beneath the bed, or two runners at the sides, gives comfort when you get up and an atmosphere that supports sleep.
• Dining room: beneath the dining table, a low-pile rug in a mid or dark green proves itself. Crumbs and small marks barely show on moss or olive green, and chairs move easily.
• Hallway: a green runner greets guests with freshness and gives the entrance a friendly note. Dark greens and patterns are the pragmatic choice here, because they forgive dirt. Wool takes up moisture from wet shoes and releases it slowly.
• Kitchen: in front of the worktop and sink, a narrow runner dampens footsteps and makes standing more comfortable. Green suits herbs on the windowsill, wooden worktops and white kitchen fronts equally.
• Children's room: green is the colour of playing outdoors and a good basis for a room that grows with the child. A round rug in light or mint green is a soft play surface that suits any later wall colour.

Combining green: wall colours, furniture and decoration

Green is a natural colour in an interior, and nature shows how to combine it: with wood, stone, earth and sky. Three safe routes follow from that.

Wall colours: all warm whites and creams, sand, beige and grey-beige suit a green rug. If you are bolder, combine dark green with terracotta or rust red, sage with old rose, or sea green with sand and white. A green rug in front of a green wall works only if the shades differ clearly, moss green on the floor and a very light sage on the wall for instance.

Furniture: pale woods such as oak, ash or birch read as fresh and Scandinavian with green. Dark woods such as walnut or teak give dark green and olive a classical, almost British character. With cognac leather sofas, olive is the most harmonious choice; with grey sofas, sage or sea green; with black furniture, a rich emerald. Brass, copper and gold bring sheen and elegance into the palette.

Decoration and textiles: cushions and curtains in mustard, rust or old rose set accents, while white and natural linen keep the picture quiet. Plants are no contradiction to a green rug but a reinforcement: they pick the colour up and give the room life and still more nature. With patterned Oriental rugs, repeat two or three colours from the pattern in cushions and pictures.

Green can be used in many styles: in a country house with linen and basketwork, in a classical interior with an Oriental rug and dark woods, in Scandinavian rooms with pale wood and white, and in urban flats with black, concrete and glass, where a green rug is the warming counterpoint. In each of these styles green creates an atmosphere of calm and naturalness.

Material, pile height and care

Wool is the material in which green comes into its own most beautifully. It takes colour deeply and evenly, reads matt and natural, and holds its shade for decades. A green wool rug is also naturally dirt-repellent, elastic and slow to burn, and regulates the humidity of a room, an advantage for the climate of a living space. In fine Oriental rugs silk often joins it, either as outlines in the pattern or as the whole pile. Silk gives green a shifting sheen that moves between emerald and petrol with the fall of light. Which materials suit your situation best is something we are glad to discuss in a consultation.

Pile height: a low pile shows patterns clearly and is the easy-care choice for dining room, hallway and kitchen. A high-pile rug in green reads as soft as moss and makes living rooms and bedrooms more comfortable, but asks for a little more attention when vacuuming. Hand-knotted Oriental rugs usually sit in the middle and combine robustness with a pleasant handle. Flatwoven Kelims are the thinnest variant and suit routes and rooms where doors close close to the floor.

Care: regular vacuuming without a rotating brush is enough day to day. Dab fresh stains with a clean, slightly damp cloth from the outside inwards, without rubbing. Turn the rug once or twice a year so that light and traffic wear it evenly, because intense greens should age the same everywhere. Professional rug cleaning at longer intervals removes deep-seated dust, freshens the colour and extends the life of the rug markedly. A green wool rug then stays a piece of nature in a home for many years.

Advice, made-to-measure and showroom in the Speicherstadt

Green is hard to judge on a screen: depending on the monitor the same rug reads bluish or yellowish, and the shade in a living space depends on the light as well. So we advise in person. In our rug consultation we talk about your room, the light, the furniture you have and your ideas, and suggest suitable pieces, gladly from photographs of your room.

If a particular measurement, an unusual shape or one specific green is called for, made-to-measure is the answer: selected qualities can be produced for you in the size and colour you want, for very large rooms, open-plan kitchen-living rooms or stairwells for instance.

Green rugs are best seen in person. In our showroom in Hamburg's Speicherstadt you can lay greens side by side, touch wool and silk, compare designs, experience sizes directly against one another and get a feeling for the atmosphere each shade creates. As a family business we take the time such a decision deserves.

Common questions about green rugs

Which wall colour suits a green rug?

Warm whites, cream, sand and beige are the safest, because they let green glow without competing. If you want colour on the wall, choose a shade that complements green: terracotta and rust with dark green and olive, old rose with sage, sand with sea green. Green on the wall works if it is markedly lighter or darker than the rug.

Which rugs make rooms look larger?

Light shades such as sage, mint and light green, a short pile, and a size that takes in as much furniture as possible. Small islands of rug break a room up, while a large, quiet surface in a light green widens it. Runners emphasise the length of a room, and round rugs take the severity out of tight corners.

Which greens are in demand at the moment?

Muted natural shades such as sage and olive currently shape many interiors, alongside a growing interest in deep dark green as a refined alternative to grey. Among designs, vintage looks, quiet textures and hand-knotted Oriental rugs with a green ground are highly regarded. A wool rug in one of these shades is anything but short-lived, because green as a natural colour outlasts every wave of fashion.

Does a green rug suit wooden furniture?

Yes, green rugs suit almost every wood. Pale woods read as fresh with sage and mint, while dark woods give dark green and olive depth and elegance. Only strongly red-toned wood such as cherry or mahogany needs a green with a blue content, sea green for instance, so that the combination does not turn too warm.