Do my eyes deceive me, or are these two rugs -- the one on the left from Pottery Barn, the one on the right from IKEA -- actually one in the same? (And if so, who's ripping off whom here?)
Pottery Barn's Pieced Awning Stripe Mat (shown here in blue, though it also comes in black like IKEA's) is 100 percent cotton, and runs $109 for a 5-by-8 and $179 for an 8-by-10.
IKEA's Stockholm Rand Rug (shown here in Nicole Balch of Making It Lovely's dining room) is made from 100 percent wool, and costs $179 for the 5.5-by-(almost)8-foot size and $299 for the 8-by-11.5-foot size.
I can't believe I'm about to write this, but not only is the IKEA version pricier, it sounds like it may actually be the better quality of the two. (God, how often can you say that about an IKEA product versus practically anything else? It's like we're in Bizarro World or something ... )
Anyone seen both of these in person and care to weigh in on their relative appearance and quality?
Friday, May 23, 2008
Double Take: Pottery Barn and IKEA Rugs
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
11 comments:
I've been in love with that Ikea rug forever and I check out PB sometimes but never saw that. So PB is ripping off Ikea.
Wow.
But is Ikea ripping off someone?
I'm not sure how long Ikea has had that rug but Pottery Barn has had it for a while now. I'm pretty sure Ikea is ripping off Pottery Barn. Lots of companies have striped rugs though. I have seen both and I like Pottery Barn's better. It's softer - Ikea's feels really stiff. I don't think there's a longer durability on either one though. Wool will breakdown just as fast (if not sometimes faster) than cotton.
Hey all,
That last comment came from a Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (Pottery Barn's parent company) ISP address, so infer from that what you will.
Leah
Wow, I'm glad you're on top of the IP address stuff. I wonder how often that happens. I totally quit going to Whole Foods because of their top exec posting on blogs anonymously. Disgusting behavior. I'd respect their opinions more if they were upfront about who they were.
Anyways, both those rugs make me kind of dizzy. Maybe they wouldn't in real life . . .
I loved the IKEA rug, even though I did end up returning it. It just didn't work in my dining room all that well. It was really nice though – soft, thick, good quality. I'd definitely recommend it! I haven't seen the PB version, but isn't it flat cotton? I'm not sure how that's supposed to be 'softer'.
holy crap, i've never heard of such a thing! pretty shady. thanks for opening my eyes.
Wow.. I'm still gonna stick to my gut because when I was looking to furnish my new apartment, I looked ALL THROUGH Pottery Barn and Ikea, I saw the Ikea rug and I loved it and I haven't seen the PB rug till now.
pb put there's out more recently as part of their summer collection (in five colors). but the pattern is a traditional moroccan one. see the domino mag with Amanda Peet on the cover. She's sitting on an antique version which is three runners sewn together with the middle patch off by one stripe.
the pattern is fair game.
in terms of durability, both flatwoven wool and cotton are supposed to be extremely tough. i think cotton is softer to the touch. i mean wool is inherently coarse.
Actually, both rugs are a rip off of Madeline Weinrib's much pricer design (approk 3K) available at ABC carpet and home. In fact I think she is in litigation with Pottery Barn about this . . .
http://www.madelineweinrib.com/mw/woolflatweaves/index.html
For what it is worth, I would avoid PB rugs all together. I have had 2 wool rugs in my house for 2 1/2 years (both wool), and they have recently starting smelling like burnt rubber. After we had them cleaned, the smell returned. I contacted a PB retailer who told me it was the latex used in the rug to adhere the backing, but PB was offering no returns/refunds given the products' ages. I then did some internet research, and found dozens and dozens of postings about the same issues with PB and PB kids' rugs. We spent several hundred dollars on both rugs with the idea that they would last. We are now forced to throw them out (the smell is so strong, it has become over-powereing. Guests have inquired regarding whether something is burning, and we have a baby who has been crawling on the rugs since birth. I fear the health effects from breathing it in for so long.) We will certainly look at Ikea for replacements. Best of luck.
Yes, the IKEA rug is great, but its impossible to get hold of! Ikea features it very prominently on their catalog and website but it cant be ordered online and isnt available in any of their stores. So I went to PB to see theirs and it looked and felt alot like a 4 dollar rug I ordered off amazon once.
Post a Comment