Which Hello Kitty rug to choose

For most rooms, the best Hello Kitty rug is her face on a round rug: white head, black eyes, yellow nose and the red bow over her left ear, on a soft pink or white background, 3.3 to 4.6 ft (100 to 140 cm) across. If you'd like the rug to be the shape of Kitty herself, a head-shaped rug cut to her outline is the most charming option. For a subtler, grown-up room, the red bow on its own or a pale pastel pattern of tiny Kitty faces says Hello Kitty without filling the floor. Every design is printed into soft velvet and goes in the washing machine, which matters in a child's room and a bathroom alike.

Fifty years of Kitty

Hello Kitty was created by the Japanese company Sanrio and designed by Yuko Shimizu in 1974, and she first appeared on a small vinyl coin purse in Japan in 1975. In her first illustration she sits between a bottle of milk and a goldfish bowl, wearing blue overalls. From that coin purse, she became one of the most recognized characters in the world, appearing on everything from stationery and lunch boxes to fashion collaborations, airline jets and theme parks, and she celebrated her fiftieth anniversary in 2024.

According to Sanrio, her full name is Kitty White, she lives in the suburbs of London with her parents and her twin sister, Mimmy, she is as tall as five apples and weighs as much as three, and her favorite food is her mother's apple pie. Sanrio has said she has no mouth so that people can project their own feelings onto her: she's happy when you're happy, and comforting when you need it. That quiet, open expression is part of why she looks so good on a rug: calm, sweet and never too loud.

A Hello Kitty bedroom

A Hello Kitty bedroom works at every age, from a toddler's first big-kid room to a teenager's pink Y2K space and an adult collector's cozy apartment. The rug anchors it. A few ideas:

• For a young child, a large round face rug in the middle of the floor, with pink bedding and a few plush toys.
• For a teen, a head-shaped rug by the bed, with fairy lights, a pink desk lamp and a mirror for photos.
• For an adult, the red bow on a white rug, or a pattern of small Kitty faces in blush and cream, which looks more like a print than a character rug.
• For two sisters, Kitty and Mimmy side by side: Kitty wears her red bow on the left ear, Mimmy her yellow bow on the right.

A bedside rug is the first thing your feet touch in the morning. For that, choose Premium, 7 mm plush velvet on a bamboo and cotton back, at about 700 g/m², the softest option we make. For sizes and layouts, our bedroom rugs page has more ideas.

Hello Kitty in the bathroom

Many people searching for Hello Kitty bathroom decor want a matching rug in front of the sink or the tub. Our rugs work well in a bathroom with one honest caveat: they're printed velvet rugs, not thick, quick-drying bath mats. Place one in front of the vanity or by the door, rather than right where you step out of the shower, and choose Standard, 5 mm crushed velvet on a non-slip faux leather back, which grips tiles and doesn't slide when you step on it.

A 2×3 ft rug suits most vanities; a 2.6×3.9 ft rug fills a larger bathroom floor. A red bow design or a small Kitty face in the center looks clean and cheerful against white tiles. When it needs freshening up, put it in the washing machine on a gentle, cold cycle and let it air dry flat.

A Hello Kitty nursery

Hello Kitty has been a nursery favorite for decades: gentle colors, a calm face and a character parents often remember from their own childhoods. For a nursery, choose a soft, pale design, Kitty's face on white or a pastel pattern, rather than bright red, so the room stays restful. Premium's plush velvet is soft for tummy time and first crawls, and Standard's non-slip back is the better choice on a slippery floor once your little one starts walking. Every rug goes in the washing machine, which, as any parent knows, will be needed. Our kids and nursery rugs have more ideas.

Shapes: round, head-shaped or rectangular

Shape	Best for	Sizes
Round face rug	The center of a bedroom or playroom	2.6 to 5.9 ft (80 to 180 cm) across
Head-shaped rug, cut to her outline	Beside a bed, in a reading corner	2.6×2.6 up to 5.2×5.9 ft (80×80 to 160×180 cm)
Rectangle with a pattern or scene	Under a desk, a bed or a play area	2×3, 2.6×3.9, 3.3×5, 4×6 and 5×7 ft
Small rectangle	A bathroom vanity or a doorway	2×3 or 2.6×3.9 ft

The head-shaped rug is the one people remember: it's Kitty herself on the floor, bow and all. Our round rugs page shows how round sizes look in a room.

The red bow

Kitty's red bow is a design icon on its own, recognizable without her face at all. A bow design, one big red bow on white, or a scatter of small bows on pale pink, is a sweet, minimal rug that suits a grown-up bedroom, a dressing area or a closet. For more bow designs, including ribbon prints that aren't tied to any character, see our bow rugs.

Apples, strawberries and the vintage look

Some of the loveliest Hello Kitty designs are the vintage ones: Kitty in her original blue overalls, the goldfish bowl and milk bottle of her first portrait, red apples in honor of her height and her mother's pie, strawberries and gingham. A vintage-style design, in red, white and sky blue, has a warm, retro charm that suits a kitchen corner, a breakfast nook or a 1970s-inspired room.

Kitty and her friends

Hello Kitty is part of a big family of Sanrio characters, and many fans love the whole group:

• My Melody, the gentle rabbit in a pink hood.
• Kuromi, My Melody's mischievous rival, with a black jester hat and a pink skull.
• Cinnamoroll, the white puppy with long ears who can fly.
• Pompompurin, the golden retriever in a brown beret.
• Keroppi, Pochacco and Badtz-Maru, the frog, the dog and the grumpy penguin.

A friends design, Kitty with My Melody, Kuromi and Cinnamoroll, makes a lively rug for a playroom. Three of her best-known friends have a page of their own: My Melody, Kuromi and Cinnamoroll, and the whole family is on our Sanrio rugs page.

Kitty and Dear Daniel

Hello Kitty's best friend, Dear Daniel, has been at her side since the 1990s, and the pair often appear together holding hands or sharing a heart. A Kitty-and-Daniel design is a sweet, playful rug for a couple who both grew up with Sanrio, or for a shared room where one fan wants Kitty and the other wants someone a little different.

Colors that go with Hello Kitty

Hello Kitty's own colors are white, red and yellow, with black eyes and whiskers. Most rooms built around her use pink: pale blush for a calm nursery, bubblegum for a playful kid's room, and hot pink with black for a bolder, Y2K or Kuromi-inspired teen look. White furniture keeps a pink room bright; light wood warms it. For a mature room, pair a red bow rug with white bedding and a single red accent. For softer, all-pastel designs, see our cute rugs.

Standard or Premium

Standard is 5 mm crushed velvet on a non-slip faux leather back, about 500 g/m². It's the better choice on tiles, wood or laminate, in a bathroom, and anywhere children run, because it stays put. It also works under a desk chair, so wheels roll freely. Premium is 7 mm plush velvet on a bamboo and cotton back, about 700 g/m², softer and warmer underfoot, ideal by the bed or in a nursery where the floor is for sitting and playing. Both are printed the same way and both go in the washing machine.

For collectors

Hello Kitty has one of the largest adult fan communities of any character, with collectors who have been buying her plush, stationery and figures for decades. For a collector's room, a rug that matches a favorite era, the 1970s overalls, the 1990s pastels or the 50th-anniversary look, ties a display shelf and a room together. If you have a specific design in mind, our custom rugs can print it in any size up to 5′11″ × 10′. Please only send artwork you're allowed to use.

Gifts

A Hello Kitty rug is a lovely gift for a child redecorating a bedroom, a new parent preparing a nursery, a friend who has loved Kitty since childhood or a collector who has everything except a rug. If you aren't sure which design to choose, the round face rug on pale pink is the safest. 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, so order a little ahead of birthdays and holidays. Unused rugs can be returned within 30 days on US orders; custom rugs are made just for you and 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 the bow stays red and the white stays bright, wash after wash.

A note on the character

Padrift is an independent studio. Hello Kitty and her friends are named to describe what our designs are inspired by; we are not affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by Sanrio.