You will want to think about the wear your rug will need to endure. Is the traffic through that room coming from outdoors? Does this room connect other rooms? Will people bring food into or through this room? Are there children or pets to consider? Does this room have large windows or sliding doors that can let the elements in?
You will want to consider wear when thinking about materials and construction. To some degree the question of the best wearing rug is simple:
- Hand knotted rugs wear and clean better than any other style.
- Wool contains lanolin, which repels liquids, inhibiting stains from saturating the fibers. Hand tufted rugs, while having the stain repellent quality of the wool, lack the strength of hand knotting.
- Synthetic rugs have no real advantage in terms of wear, but are typically lower in cost and value.
