Contemporary Rug Shapes and Sizes

Contemporary rugs are those that feature sleek lines and bold colors. They're rugs that display today's modern styles - often hovering between splashy and traditional designs - making them very popular in today's market. Contemporary rugs come in all shapes and sizes, but you'll mainly find them in the shape of a rectangle, circle, square, or an oval.

Rectangular Rugs or "regular rugs" are more common than any other type of rug. Rectangular rugs come with a standard sizing system in place, giving buyers a good idea of the size of rug they're getting. However, the sizing system is not exact. For example - a rug that measures 4 feet 6 inches x 6 feet 6 inches is still considered a 4x6 rug. This information is necessary when looking to fit an exact space or set of dimensions in your room. There are two different sizing systems in place when talking about rectangular rugs - the British Imperial System, which measures width by length in feet, and the Metric System, which measures width by length in meters. An oversize rug is defined as any rug over approximately 14x24 ft. or 4x7 m.

Round rugs have equal length and width, which is also the diameter of the rug. The sizes will reflect those measurements, so you'll see round rugs with sizes of 6x6, for example. The design on most round rugs tends to be a medallion. Round rugs have been around since at least the sixteenth century, popular first in Egypt. The French and Chinese industries also had round rug styles in the 18th and 19th centuries, and round rugs are gaining popularity today in Iran.

Square rugs are rare and unique in today's market. They, like round rugs, have equal width and length and will be labeled as 4x4 or 8x8 as well. Square rugs can lend an unusual design element to your space, but look best in square-shaped areas like an entryway or under a square coffee table.

Oval rugs are more unique than rectangular rugs, so no standard sizing system has been established for them. However, they are measured in the same way - with the larger diameter representing the width and the smaller diameter representing length. Their history is similar to that of round rugs, and their designs typically center around medallions.