Striped Outdoor Rugs

Awning stripes, ticking stripes, wide cabana bands, fine pinstripes. A striped outdoor rug does something no solid can: it stretches a space. Run the stripes along the long axis of a narrow balcony and it reads noticeably wider.

The most timeless outdoor pattern there is, and the hardest to get tired of.

7 products

Striped outdoor rugs and what a stripe does to a space

A stripe is the only pattern that changes how big a space feels, and it is worth choosing the direction deliberately rather than by accident.

  • Stripes running across the width pull the eye sideways and make a short, narrow stretch of decking read wider than it is. Best on balconies and along the back of a house.
  • Stripes running lengthways draw the eye down the rug and make a space read longer. Best in a corridor-shaped side return or a long terrace where you want the far end to feel further away.
  • Diagonal stripes do neither and both. Because they do not line up with the decking boards or the paving joints, the rug reads as a deliberate object rather than something trying to match the ground. They suit awkward corners and spaces where nothing is quite square.

Fine stripe or bold stripe

Fine stripes behave like texture. From standing height you stop reading lines and start reading a surface with a grain through it — closer to linen than to pattern. That makes them the easy choice when the furniture, cushions or umbrella are already doing the talking.

Bold stripes are the opposite. They are graphic enough to carry a plain terrace on their own, and high-contrast versions in black and white are the strongest statement in the range.

Awning, cabana, ticking

The stripe has a long outdoor history and the names are worth knowing, because they signal quite different moods. Awning stripe — narrow, evenly spaced, usually one color on white — is the pattern of cafe terraces and garden umbrellas, and it reads as fresh. Cabana stripe is wider and more relaxed. Ticking is the finest of the three, originally the cloth used for mattresses, and it reads as quiet and old-fashioned in the best sense.

Material and sizes

Soft polyester chenille with a short, dense nap — low-pile and flat, comfortable underfoot, with a no-skid polyester backing that grips decking, concrete and pavers. Water-resistant, mildew-resistant and quick-drying.

Four sizes from 24″ × 36″ to 60″ × 84″. Free US shipping on every order.