Ruggable’s Washable Rugs Are Perfect for Messy People (With Good Taste)

If this is the first time you’re hearing about machine-washable rugs, please let me know if you’re living a much more fulfilling life without constantly checking Twitter and TikTok. Otherwise, odds are good you’ve seen a Ruggable ad come across at least one of your many social media feeds. Are these affordable, allegedly super-easy-to-care-for rugs worth all the buzz? Well, the answer…depends. 

My washable rug saga started out quite hectically after an abrupt move to a significantly smaller space. Simply put, I needed a new rug after bidding adieu to my grandparents’ giant heirloom Chinese silk rug that my new tiny one-bedroom apartment cannot accommodate. Considering I have a very large dog (at least for such a small abode), the logical replacement was something low-maintenance, durable, versatile, and, hopefully, aesthetically pleasing—thus, a machine-washable rug from Ruggable. Ironically, this move also meant abdicating an apartment with a washer and dryer to one with absolutely no amenities (and the closest laundromat six blocks away). 

All this to say: If you’ve been contemplating shelling out your hard-earned clams on a washable rug, ask yourself: 1) Do I live with mess-adjacent kids, pets, or people? (These factors are presumably what dictate the level of appeal of a machine-washable rug); and 2)  Do you live without the luxury of an in-home washing machine (and, if not, how much energy are you willing to exert for a clean rug)?

While these questions helped me realize that I’m chore-averse and lazy as hell, that might not be the case for everyone. If you find yourself looking at the above questions and thinking you’re ready to commit to a washable rug in your space, let me break down the decisions that went into my process to (and might help you) choose a Ruggable rug.  

With hundreds of style and size options—plus a dozen or so collaborations with designers, artists, and icons (like the newest Barbie-themed collection)—the most difficult part of the entire process was overcoming indecision over which rug(s) to order. After agonizing over what styles felt the most “me” (and, let’s be honest, the most dog-stain-forgiving), I decided to opt for one of Ruggable’s faux hide style rugs in zebra-print for the room that gets the most traffic, and a plush Moroccan style runner for the bedroom.

For what it’s worth, I honestly went back and forth for weeks on the final decision because there are so many excellent options—the Jonathan Adler collaboration, for one, is incredibly chic and understated. There are also plenty of whimsical designs like the “Dark Side Damask” rug which subtly integrates the helmets of Star Wars' greatest villains (Darth Vader, Boba Fett, and Stormtroopers) into a luxe design so you can display your fandom without screaming “We’re Disney adults”. There are also artist collaborations with The National Gallery, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Keith Haring which bring a lot of personality into a space if you don’t have the money for expensive art (just yet).

When my rugs arrived, they were compactly rolled in long cardboard boxes that were easy for me to carry up two flights of stairs by myself, and the setup could not have been easier. You just unfurl your new rug and corresponding pad, and then lay the rug down atop; the rug and pad stick together quite well—almost like Velcro. Truly the most difficult part of the process is moving the preexisting furniture around to accommodate your new rug and waiting for it to completely flatten. You should expect your new rug to take a few days to relax after being squished via delivery, but this is true of basically any rug you receive in the mail.  

For context, based on the images online, I assumed that the rug would have a fur-like texture, but when it arrived I discovered it was similar to the rest of the brand’s rugs, which feature photorealistic patterns and images printed on a polyester and polyurethane material, more akin to a roll of canvas or fabric than a traditionally loom-woven rug. 

When it first arrived, the colors were quite saturated, and it looked almost like a real hide from a distance. After the first wash, I was impressed by how clean it came out—all traces of dog hair dirt, and tiny spots were washed away, but the print had faded quite a bit, the pile no longer laid perfectly flat, and it is now much easier to tell it is a zebra-printed fabric as soon as you lay eyes upon it, as opposed to the faux-hide it is touted as. Don’t get me wrong, I am still in love with my faux hide zebra rug; I wouldn’t say I’m disappointed, but I would’ve been less bummed if I knew what to anticipate before choosing this style since I never saw it in person before committing.

The Moroccan Ornate Plush rug I chose for the bedroom, on the other hand, would be an absolute disaster in a playroom or near the kitchen, as it’s quite thick and would likely lose a battle to some caramel candy or slime [shudders in child-free horror]. That said, for me, a grown adult who doesn’t eat messy foods in bed, it has been an absolute dream to lay my feet upon first thing in the morning. Plus, the extra-plush rug pad makes it look and feel even more expensive.

I requested both the standard rug pad and the newer cushioned option, and while I love the thickness and coziness the cushioned option added to my furry Morrocan-style rug, it definitely would have made the thin, faux-hide zebra rug look out of place, and even less realistic. Make sure to really consider where your rug is going to lie when you’re deciding on which rug pad to pair with your Ruggable purchase. 

OK, let’s get into what you’ve all been waiting for… are they easy to wash? The answer is yes and no. Do you live in a home with ample space to hang dry a massive rug? Congratulations, you’re killing it (or have rich parents) and Ruggable was made for you, specifically. If, like most of us in major metropolitan areas, you happen to live in a tiny shoebox with the closest laundromat six blocks away, I’d maybe think twice about trying to wash your Ruggable rugs. 

Fortunately for me (shoutout to my best friend Ashley!) I have a good friend who was willing to lend me her washer on short notice (which was great at avoiding any possible awkward scenarios trying to shove two dirty rugs covered in dog hair into the machines at my local public laundromat). 

Drying these bad boys, however, is another story entirely. Ruggable tells you to “hang dry only,” but I’ve never been great at following rules. I, of course, tumbled my rugs on low heat for a while as part of the post-wash drying process. While I can attest that the dryer did not explode, and the rugs did not shrink to Polly Pocket size, I was still too afraid to go full-on XTREME mode and dry them on full blast. Needless to say, I returned home with damp rugs and hung them on my fire escape as the final phase of the drying process. 

Naturally, there was a flash thunderstorm while they were finishing up their time drying outside, and, inevitably, both rugs fell onto my downstairs neighbor’s fire escape. After sneakily crawling through a hall window and retrieving my (now sopping) rugs, I didn’t think the plush rug was going to make a full recovery. It looked like a wet goldendoodle and I thought there was no way it would return to its original fluffy state without a full heat trip in the dryer, but after weighing it down (duh) and allowing it to fully dry, it shockingly sprang back to life after a thorough pass with the vacuum. (Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for my dignity, which was permanently damaged when crawling on a stranger’s fire escape.) 

After talking to a few people that have tried Ruggable’s washable rugs, I discovered that they are pretty polarizing: You either love them or hate them, and I think much of that boils down to expectations. If you are used to having high-quality hand-woven or tufted rugs, a Ruggable rug may not be for you. If you hardly think about cleaning the existing rugs in your home, then go on living that mess-free life, kings.

That said, if you have thrown out every rug you’ve ever had because it gets to a point of no return (or you DGAF about a shoes-off-indoors household), then a Ruggable’s washability may just be the answer to all your problems. As someone whose kitchen and living room are the same room, it’s great to have the peace of mind that spilling a bowl of spaghetti is not the end of the world and that I can let my dog chew his gross bone on the carpet without having a conniption. It all comes down to how lazy you are, really, and for some people, the ability to throw a rug in the washer—instead of orchestrating an appointment with The Rug Doctor™—is worth the investment a million times over. 

Explore all of Ruggable’s rug styles here.

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