The gentle giant of the savanna

Tall, graceful and wonderfully gentle, the giraffe is one of the best-loved animals in children's decor, and a giraffe rug brings its calm, friendly presence into a room. The sweetest design is a mother and baby giraffe side by side under an acacia tree; there are also rugs cut to the shape of a giraffe, long neck and all, and the warm, natural patchwork of giraffe-print patterns. Ours are printed edge to edge on soft velvet, so every patch and eyelash comes out beautifully, and every rug goes in the washing machine.

Giraffe designs

Design	The look	Best in
Mother and baby	Two giraffes side by side on the savanna	Nurseries, kids' rooms
Cartoon giraffe	A friendly giraffe with big eyes and little horns	Nurseries, toddler rooms
Giraffe-shaped rug	A tall giraffe cut to its own outline	Beside a crib, playrooms
Giraffe print	Warm brown patches outlined in cream	Living rooms, bedrooms, neutral nurseries
Peeking giraffe	A giraffe face peering in from the edge of a round rug	Reading corners, kids' bedrooms
Watercolor safari	Soft, painterly giraffes and acacia trees	Calm nurseries, grown-up rooms

A giraffe-shaped rug beside a crib gives a nursery a tall, friendly character to look at, and Standard holds it in place on wooden floors.

Remarkable giraffe facts

Giraffes are full of fascinating surprises. They're the tallest land animals on Earth, with males reaching around 18 feet, yet their long necks have just seven vertebrae, the same number as ours, each one simply very long. Their dark tongues can stretch to about 18 inches, perfect for plucking leaves from thorny acacia trees. A newborn giraffe drops about six feet to the ground at birth and is usually standing within an hour. And no two giraffes have exactly the same pattern of patches, just like fingerprints. A giraffe rug is a wonderful starting point for sharing facts like these.

A giraffe nursery

Giraffes are a favorite for safari nurseries because they're gentle, gender-neutral and instantly lovable. A soft giraffe rug in sand, honey and cream, perhaps with a little elephant and lion nearby, makes a calm, warm room. Choose Premium, 7 mm plush velvet on a bamboo and cotton back, about 700 g/m², for tummy time and first crawls; once your child is walking on a smooth floor, switch to Standard: 5 mm crushed velvet on a non-slip faux leather back, about 500 g/m². For more safari friends, see our elephant rugs, lion rugs and zebra rugs, and our kids and nursery rugs.

Giraffe-shaped rugs

A rug cut to the outline of a giraffe, with its long neck, little ossicones on top and gangly legs, is a playful, eye-catching piece for a nursery or a playroom. Our shaped rugs come in sizes up to 5.2×5.9 ft (160×180 cm), so a tall giraffe fits nicely within that, perfect beside a crib or along a wall, where it seems to be reaching for the ceiling.

Giraffe print

Giraffe print, irregular brown patches separated by fine cream lines, is one of the softest and most natural animal prints. It's warmer and calmer than leopard or zebra, which makes it a lovely choice for a neutral nursery, a bedroom or a living room with linen, rattan and wood. For more animal patterns, see our animal print rugs.

The peeking giraffe

A giraffe face peeking in from the edge of a round rug, long neck stretching up into the circle, is a funny, sweet design that children absolutely love. It suits a reading corner, a toddler's bedroom or a playroom. Round rugs come from 2.6 to 5.9 ft (80 to 180 cm) across. Our round rugs page shows each size in a room.

Savanna scenes

A savanna at sunset, giraffes silhouetted against an orange sky beside a flat-topped acacia tree, is a beautiful, calm design for a living room or a grown-up bedroom. In soft watercolor tones, the same scene suits a nursery. It brings a lovely sense of space and quiet to any room.

A tall hallway giraffe

A giraffe is the perfect animal for a long, narrow space. A custom runner up to 10 ft long, with a giraffe stretching from hooves at one end to horns at the other, turns a child's hallway into a gentle surprise every morning. Choose Standard, which stays put as little feet hurry past.

Sleepy giraffes

Giraffes sleep remarkably little, often only a few hours a day in short naps, and they frequently doze standing up, since lying down and getting up again takes effort for such a tall animal. A bedtime giraffe rug, a giraffe curled up under the stars with its neck resting on its back, is a sweet, calming design for a nursery and a fun fact to share at bedtime.

Protecting giraffes

Giraffe numbers in the wild have fallen sharply in recent decades, a decline so quiet that conservationists have called it a silent extinction, and giraffes are now listed as vulnerable. A giraffe rug can be a gentle way to talk with children about wildlife and conservation, and our designs are always printed, never made from any part of an animal.

Pairing with furniture

Giraffe designs look lovely with natural wood cribs and dressers, woven baskets, rattan chairs and linen in sand and cream. A few framed safari prints and a soft green plant complete the look. For a brighter playroom, add a touch of sunset orange or sky blue.

Twins and siblings

For twins or siblings sharing a nursery, a mother giraffe with two babies is a sweet, meaningful design, or two smaller giraffe-shaped rugs, one beside each crib.

Baby showers and gifts

A giraffe rug makes a lovely baby shower gift, gentle, practical and sweet in nursery photos. A custom giraffe with the baby's name and birth date becomes a keepsake that lasts long after the nursery years. It's also a sweet first-birthday gift from grandparents.

Entryways

Just inside the front door, a small giraffe rug gives guests a friendly safari welcome. Keep it indoors, out of the weather, and choose Standard for its grip on tile and wood.

Kids' rooms and playrooms

For older children, a safari scene with giraffes, elephants and zebras makes a great play rug for toy animals, and a cartoon giraffe makes a friendly bedroom rug. On a hard floor, choose Standard so the rug stays put. Our kids play rugs page has more ideas.

Colors

Giraffe designs look loveliest in warm, natural tones: honey, caramel, sand and cream, with soft sage or olive for leaves and sky blue or sunset orange for the background. For a modern nursery, a giraffe in muted terracotta and oatmeal feels calm and grown-up.

Printed, never hide

Giraffes are a vulnerable species in the wild, and our giraffe rugs are printed on soft velvet, with no animal involved. For more animal designs, see our animal rugs.

Bedrooms and living rooms

Giraffes aren't only for nurseries. A realistic giraffe portrait, its long lashes and patterned coat in fine detail, or a calm savanna at sunset suits a grown-up bedroom or a living room with natural textures and warm wood. Giraffe print on a large rug, in soft caramel and cream, is an elegant, understated animal print that works almost anywhere. For the softest feel underfoot, choose Premium. Our bedroom rugs and living room rugs pages have more layouts.

Bathrooms

A little giraffe rug by a kids' bathroom vanity is a cheerful safari touch. It's a printed velvet rug, not a quick-drying bath mat, so keep it by the vanity or the door, out of the splash zone, and choose Standard for its grip on tiles.

Your own giraffe

Want a giraffe with your baby's name, a design in your nursery's exact colors or a rug from a photo of giraffes on your own safari trip? Our custom rugs can print it in any size up to 5′11″ × 10′, or cut it to shape. Custom rugs are made just for you and can't be returned, so please check names and spelling before ordering.

Standard or Premium

Standard is best for playrooms, entryways and anywhere with a hard or slippery floor, because its non-slip back stays put. Premium is softer and warmer, best in nurseries and bedrooms. Both are printed the same way, so the patches stay crisp and warm, and both go in the washing machine.

Sizes, shipping and returns

Rectangles come in 2×3, 2.6×3.9, 3.3×5, 4×6 and 5×7 ft. Round rugs come from 2.6 to 5.9 ft (80 to 180 cm) across, and giraffe-shaped rugs up to 5.2×5.9 ft (160×180 cm). Custom sizes go up to 5′11″ × 10′. Every rug is printed to order in 1–3 business days and ships from Turkey; US delivery usually takes 2–5 business days after that. Unused rugs can be returned within 30 days on US orders; custom rugs can't be returned.

Care

Machine wash on a gentle, cold cycle and let it air dry flat. Vacuum on a low setting between washes, and blot spills with cold water right away. The design is printed into the fibers, so your giraffe stays tall, bright and gentle, wash after wash, year after year.

Giraffe patterns, by subspecies

No two giraffes have the same pattern, but the shapes differ by region. Reticulated giraffes from northern Kenya have large, polygon-shaped patches separated by bright white lines, like a net laid over their bodies. Masai giraffes, from Kenya and Tanzania, have jagged, leaf-like or star-shaped patches with soft edges. Rothschild's giraffes, a type of Nubian giraffe, have lighter, creamier lines and legs that are plain white below the knees, as if they're wearing stockings.

Scientists have long debated whether these are separate species or subspecies, and recent genetic studies suggest there may be several distinct species of giraffe, each with its own range and pattern.

Those differences inspire more interesting giraffe-print rugs than a generic pattern. A reticulated print, with its crisp white grid, is graphic and modern, ideal for a living room or a teen's bedroom. A Masai print, with its organic, leafy patches, feels warmer and more natural for a boho space, and a Rothschild's print in pale cream and caramel suits a soft, neutral nursery.

Giraffes also have ossicones, the short, skin-covered horns on top of their heads, and long, dark tongues that wrap around acacia branches to strip the leaves. A rug of a giraffe's head peeking over a leafy branch, tongue reaching out, makes a funny, endearing design for a child who loves animal facts.

For a family that has seen giraffes on safari or at a conservation center, a rug in the pattern of the giraffes you met is a lasting souvenir of the trip.

For classrooms or children's rooms, a giraffe pattern rug can also start a fun activity: compare photos of real giraffes and try to identify the subspecies by their coat pattern. Kids learn that patterns aren't random but tell us where an animal comes from, and the rug becomes a reference they can check every time they see a giraffe on TV or at a zoo.