This 3x5 area rug from Natco is well made and an extremely good value at less than $10. 3x5 is no...This 3x5 area rug from Natco is well made and an extremely good value at less than $10. 3x5 is not a common size for area rugs (when you do find them, they are usually more expensive than other average-sized rugs), but works well if your space falls between the 5x7 and 2x4, which are the most common sizes. I purchased one of these rugs while at one of the stores 3 weeks ago, and was so happy with it when I put it down, that I ordered another one online for store pick-up. When I got to the store to pick up the rug, I saw that it was a completely different style, color and texture than one I previously purchased, so I returned it.
The rug I originally bought was a tan loop berber (picture attached). The color, texture, style, and weight was perfect for my use; which was to overlay the nasty master bathroom carpet in the home I rent, and be able to easily remove it if/when I move. I wanted an area rug that would hold up in indoor moist environments, be fairly stain/wear resistant, and look like it belongs there and not just some random bath mat (since I rent my home, I can't replace the bathroom rug with something more sensible, like tile). The first rug worked so well that I thought that I could get a second one, lay them end-to-end, and it would almost completely cover the existing bathroom rug and almost look like it was professionally installed.
I asked the associates in the rug department why they gave me a different style rug then what I ordered, and they told me that this particular company doesn't differentiate their colors, styles, etc., for this rug. These particular rugs from Natco, the manufacturer are labeled and sold as "assorted"; this means that they are shipped to stores in random styles, textures and colors, but are all considered the same item. Unfortunately, they didn't have another rug in the same style as the original one I bought, and none of the other rugs matched each other either. I believe that Natco "makes" these 3x5 rugs from leftover remnants of large carpets after they are cut for wall-to-wall carpeting. If so, then available stock would depend on what carpets remnants were available at any given time. While I think this is a good idea, I wish I would have known this prior to buying the first one.
The staff at Home Depot really worked to help me though, providing advice on several workable alternatives that could suit my needs for a reasonable cost. I ended up getting a carpet (the kind on big rollers meant for wall-to-wall carpet, the type that the original area rug probably came from!) of similar style and color that I wanted, cut to the size I needed for a total of $24. So ironically, my problem was solved for around the price of what I would have paid for 2 of the Natco area rugs originally.
As for the 3-star rating, if rating only the quality of the rug, I would give it 5 stars. However, I gave 3 stars because there is no mention about the random styles and colors, and how there is no specific style or color, you just get what you get. Neither the web site nor the store, warns you about that. In conclusion, if you are shopping for this rug, understand that what you see online may not be what you get in instore. Also, if you see more than one of the same style, and think that you may want a second one, buy it immediately and return it later if you change your mind.
by AJ