DIY makeover for my IKEA rugs

I am currently researching rug patterns. I have two white Ikea rugs, the cheap one, Erslev. I intend to paint them, as many have done before me, just by running a search on Erslev I got lots of projects done by others previously...so I am not a pioneer. One is for Chupi's room (*update* this rug has been painted and can be found here) and I have already figured out the pattern, and have bought the paint, that one was very easy. The other one is for the living room and I have researched patterns for 3 weeks now and can still not decide what to do.

Some days I am thinking to make it easy for myself and do a white and brown African mudcloth inspired pattern similar to the inspiration pictures below.

I see ethnic patterns everywhere currently, on catwalks, in peoples homes, on the street and there is the risk that I will get sick of it very very soon

...but maybe not. 

Maybe the trend will pass and I will still love it and be happy with it in my home and 3 years later when the trend has passed and everyone has forgotten and is chasing another trend I will hold on to my dear ethnic patterns and love them and be unique and cooool... "in my mind" as Eddie Izzard might say (if you don't know who Eddie is then allow me to introduce you, this is he )

Other days I am completely mad and believe that I can do something as advanced as below...well I could BUT it would take forever and I have learnt to leave forever taking projects alone as I tend to leave them uncompleted and they end up in the ever growing pile of other forever projects in the closet.

The Kilim rugs are reeeaally nice though and I would love love love one. They don't come cheap however and I am in a saving mode as I in the midst of starting my own business, but more on that later. 

Just look at those lovely Kilim patterns below. I already have a few pillows so no need for that, but I love the colours (my boyfriend thinks they're a bit rough to lean against).

But if I just look at parts of Kilim rugs and forget all the 100 other patterns in it it seems quite doable again

...still, there is quite a bit of masking tape involved in something like that. Then I came across another rug on this great blog about handmade carpets and rugs.

...how cool is this. This would actually be really great for Chupi's room as well, but I have to draw the line somewhere and Chupi's carpet design has been decided so if this is to go anywhere it is in the living-room (I wish I had more rooms). Instead of painting zig zags I could sew yarn into it like above. Chevron is also very trendy and I worry I might actually get sick of that pattern for real. I have some ikat chevron fabric that I love. I love it so much that I cannot decide what to do with it, because if I use it for one thing I cannot use it for another. Anyone ever have that problem?

I could use the same concept of colourful threads though and change the pattern...hmm.

This is where the rug will be (see the white one under the coffee table? that's the one getting a remake. It used to be larger but I washed it and it shrank, which really annoys me every time I look at it. 

If only I had someone reading this who could give me advice.

Oh, and if anyone could help me in regards to what to do with the weird stone wall on the right... I cannot hang anything on the actual wall, it is huge and not very nice looking.

Going back to rugs and carpets, I also love the look in the picture I fount at apartment therapy below, lots of different carpets stitched together to help cover up an ugly floor. 

*Update* See the finished results for Chupi's nursery rug here