Red Rug: Burgundy and Crimson in Hand-Knotted Wool

Red advances. A red rug brings the floor closer and makes a room feel a little smaller, and also distinctly warmer and more enclosed. In a large, high or cool space that is a gain. In a small room, choose a dark shade or make sure plenty of floor stays visible around the rug.

The amount of red elsewhere decides the rest. A red rug works best as the only large red surface. Add red curtains, red cushions and a red painting, and it soon becomes too much. Repeat the tone once, in something small, and leave the stage to the rug.

A large red rug changes a room more than any other single object, so it pays to decide where the red should stop. The classic answer is a long rug in a long room: the colour runs the length of the space, and plain floor shows down both sides like a frame. Under a dining table, in a wide hall or along the foot of a sofa wall, a long burgundy rug gives direction as well as warmth. Keep the largest pieces of furniture neutral.

That is the shape most of our red rugs have. Five are long formats, 5 ft 8 in to 7 ft 3 in wide and 11 ft 2 in to 13 ft 9 in long: crimson and burgundy grounds with bands, a lattice of golden diamonds or stacked medallions. The two others are 6 ft × 8 ft 6 in and 6 ft 7 in × 9 ft 6 in. We have no red rug in a broad 9 × 12 or 10 × 13 at present; for a squarer living room, the 6 ft 7 in × 9 ft 6 in piece, with its bands of burgundy, mandarin and coral, is the widest.

The safest setting is natural tones: cream, linen, greige and timber of any shade. Navy is the classic partner of burgundy, a combination familiar from old carpets. Green as the opposite colour needs a light touch. Sage and olive are fine; a bright grass green beside clear red says Christmas.

Grey and black make red look current. A grey sofa on a wine-red rug is grown-up and calm, and a black steel frame gives it line. Pink and orange can go with red too, provided the tones come from the same warm family.

Say red rug and many people picture a Persian carpet: red field, navy border, a dense floral design. A Berber rug treats the same colour differently. A Beni Mguild usually shows red as a broad, calm field, divided by a few horizontal bands, a grid or scattered signs, in a deep, soft pile.

That makes it the choice for anyone who wants the warmth of a red rug without the busyness of a classical oriental one. It sits well with plain furniture and feels less formal. A Boujaad is different again: its reds, pinks and oranges run into one another in a livelier, less predictable drawing.

It is a small group. Nearly all are Beni Mguild rugs in burgundy and crimson, most with a calm field divided by cross-bands, a grid or the occasional sign, one with a richer ornament. Many are strikingly long, up to about 13 ft 9 in, at a width of 6 to 7 ft. The shorter ones measure around 6 × 8 ft 6 in and 6 ft 7 in × 9 ft 6 in. The single Boujaad, in burgundy with a dense ornament, is the longest of all.

Like any dyed textile, red softens under strong sun over the years, so turn the rug twice a year. Each piece is one of a kind, with exact measurements on its page. Delivery is free worldwide, duties and taxes included.