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Rug designer Luke Irwin says laying old Financial Times pages on the floor can help homeowners picture a rug’s size before choosing one. In an interview with Livingetc, he also advised placing all furniture on a rug in large open-plan spaces and at least the front legs on it in other rooms.
Rug designer Luke Irwin has shared a simple way to test rug dimensions at home: lay old copies of the Financial Times on the floor to approximate the area a rug would cover. In an interview with Livingetc, Irwin said the paper’s color helps people visualize scale, addressing a common decorating challenge he sees in rooms where rugs are too small for the furniture.
Irwin said rug selection involves three main elements: pattern or design, color and size. He described pattern as relatively easy to judge, while color can prompt prolonged comparisons between similar shades. In his experience, he said, the first combination people choose is often the one that works, despite further deliberation.
He considers size the most critical decision. For a large open-plan room, Irwin recommends having all the furniture sit on the rug, so the seating area reads as a defined space. In other arrangements, he advises placing at least the front legs of the furniture on the rug rather than leaving a piece awkwardly half on and half off.
Irwin told Livingetc that he notices rugs that appear undersized or mismatched with a room’s style when looking at home interiors. His paper test is intended to make scale easier to judge before committing to a purchase or custom order. It is a visualization aid, not a substitute for measuring the room and planned rug area.
A Simple Test for Rug Scale
Rug size can affect how furniture relates to one another and whether a seating area feels visually connected. Irwin’s suggestion offers homeowners a low-cost way to mark out a possible footprint before buying a rug, moving furniture or commissioning a made-to-order design.
The advice also gives shoppers a practical starting point when comparing options. A paper layout can show whether a proposed rug reaches beneath furniture legs and how much floor remains visible, although the final decision still depends on the room’s measurements, furniture arrangement and personal preferences.
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Irwin’s Bespoke Rug Practice
Irwin’s namesake studio was established in 2003 and designs and makes hand-knotted, made-to-order rugs. According to the Livingetc report, the studio offers customization across size, color, weave, textile and design, with support from its in-house team.
The report describes the rugs as designed by Irwin in London and hand-knotted by artisans in workshops in Jaipur and New Delhi, India, and Nepal. It says his clientele has included U2, The Rolling Stones, Barack Obama and members of the British royal family. Those details provide context for his design experience; the practical floor-layout advice was the central point of the interview.
“A great hack for being able to visualize the perfect size is to lay out an old copy of the Financial Times on the floor, as the color of the paper is perfect for visualizing scale.”
— Luke Irwin, speaking to Livingetc
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Limits of the Paper Layout
The interview does not give a precise conversion between a newspaper page and rug area, or specify how many pages to use for a particular room. The Financial Times paper method is presented as a way to visualize scale, not as an exact measuring system.
Irwin’s placement rules are design guidance rather than requirements that will suit every layout. The source does not address every room shape, furniture type or individual preference, and it does not report testing that compares the paper method with other ways to plan rug dimensions.
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Measure Before You Order
Homeowners can use paper to sketch the intended rug boundary, then confirm the dimensions with a tape measure before buying or commissioning a rug. Irwin’s studio offers customization and in-house help with size and other design choices, according to the report, but Livingetc did not announce a new product or service tied to the tip.
The interview’s advice remains a practical planning suggestion: test the footprint with paper, check how furniture will sit, and use exact measurements when comparing rug options.
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Key Questions
What is Luke Irwin’s rug-sizing trick?
He suggests laying old Financial Times pages on the floor to help visualize the size and placement of a possible rug.
How should furniture sit on a rug?
Irwin recommends placing all furniture on the rug in a large open-plan space. In other settings, he says at least the front legs should sit on it.
What are the three elements Irwin considers when choosing a rug?
He names pattern or design, color and size, and describes size as the most critical element.
Does the newspaper method give exact rug measurements?
No. Irwin describes it as a way to visualize scale. The interview does not provide a page-to-area conversion, so homeowners should confirm dimensions with a tape measure.
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