Gentle giants of the deep

Whales are the biggest, calmest and most mysterious animals in the sea, and a whale rug brings a little of that deep-blue peace into a room. The sweetest design is a round, smiling whale cut to its own shape, a spout of water rising from its head; there are also a mother whale and her calf gliding through the blue, a humpback tail curving out of the waves on a round rug and a narwhal with its spiral tusk. Ours are printed edge to edge on soft velvet, so the ocean blues stay deep and clear, and every rug goes in the washing machine.

Whale designs

Design	The look	Best in
Spouting whale shape	A round, smiling whale with a water spout, cut to shape	Nurseries, beside a bed
Whale and calf	A mother whale and her baby swimming side by side	Nurseries, baby showers
Humpback tail	A fluke rising from the waves on a round rug	Reading corners, coastal living rooms
Orca	Bold black and white with a tall dorsal fin	Kids' rooms, modern rooms
Narwhal	A whale with a long spiral tusk	Kids' rooms, whimsical nurseries
Whale in the stars	A whale drifting through a night sky	Dreamy nurseries, bedrooms

The spouting whale

A chubby, smiling whale with a little fountain of water rising from its blowhole is the classic children's whale, and it makes one of the friendliest shaped rugs we print. Cut to its outline, in sizes from 2.6×2.6 up to 5.2×5.9 ft (80×80 to 160×180 cm), it seems to be swimming across the floor. It's sweet beside a crib, in front of a toy box or in a bathroom doorway. Our shaped rugs page shows how they work.

Remarkable whale facts

The blue whale is the largest animal known ever to have lived, bigger than any dinosaur, growing to around 100 feet long; its heart alone weighs roughly 400 pounds. Whales are mammals, not fish, so they breathe air through blowholes on top of their heads, and the spout you see is their warm breath meeting the cool air. Baleen whales, like blues and humpbacks, have two blowholes and filter tiny krill through bristly plates instead of teeth, while toothed whales, like sperm whales and orcas, have just one. A whale rug is a great starting point for sharing facts like these with a curious child.

The songs of the humpback

Male humpback whales sing long, haunting songs, made of moans, whoops and cries, that can last up to 20 minutes and be repeated for hours. Whales in the same region sing the same song, and it slowly changes from year to year. Humpbacks are also famous for breaching, launching their whole bodies out of the water, and for lifting their huge tails, each with its own pattern of black and white, as unique as a fingerprint. A humpback tail rising from the waves makes a calm, beautiful design for a round rug. Our round rugs come from 2.6 to 5.9 ft (80 to 180 cm) across.

An ocean nursery

Whales are a favorite for ocean nurseries: calm, gentle and suitable for any baby. Pair a whale rug with soft blues, sea-glass green, sandy beige and white, a few watercolor sea prints and a mobile of little fish, and the room feels like a quiet bay. Choose Premium, 7 mm plush velvet on a bamboo and cotton back, about 700 g/m², for tummy time; 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 sea designs, see our ocean rugs, and for nursery ideas, our kids and nursery rugs.

Mother and calf

Whale mothers and calves stay very close. A calf swims beside its mother, often just above her back, and in many species it drinks her rich milk for months while it grows. A design of a mother whale and her baby gliding together through the blue is one of the most meaningful nursery rugs there is, a quiet symbol of love and protection, and lovely in watercolor blues and blush.

Orcas

Despite their nickname, killer whales are actually the largest members of the dolphin family. They live in close family groups called pods, often led by an older female, and different pods even have their own calls. An orca's crisp black and white, with its tall dorsal fin and white eye patch, makes a bold, graphic rug that suits a kid's bedroom or a modern, monochrome room.

Narwhals, the unicorns of the sea

The narwhal lives in the icy Arctic, and its long, spiral "tusk" is actually a tooth that grows through its upper lip, mostly in males, sometimes reaching about 10 feet. Long ago, traders sold narwhal tusks in Europe as unicorn horns. A cartoon narwhal in pastel blue, pink and white is a whimsical, magical design for a child's bedroom, and a fun alternative to a unicorn rug.

Whales among the stars

A whale swimming through a starry night sky, as if the ocean and the heavens were one, is a dreamy, gentle design for a nursery or a bedroom. In navy, soft gold and twinkling white, it pairs beautifully with a starry night light and a moon mobile. For more night-sky designs, see our celestial rugs.

Whales in stories

Whales have swum through stories for centuries. Herman Melville's novel Moby-Dick, published in 1851, follows Captain Ahab's obsessive hunt for a great white sperm whale, and it's still counted among the great American novels. A whale design with an old sailing ship and a stormy sea makes a striking, literary rug for a study or a reading nook, while a cheerful cartoon whale suits a child's storytime corner.

Whale watching in America

The United States has some of the best whale watching in the world: humpbacks spend the winter in the warm waters off Maui, gray whales migrate along the Pacific coast between Alaska and Baja California, orcas swim around Washington's San Juan Islands, and humpbacks feed off Cape Cod every summer. A whale rug is a lovely souvenir of a trip to see them, especially as a custom design from your own photo.

Coastal homes

In a beach house, a lake cabin or any home with a coastal style, a whale rug in navy, sea blue and sandy cream fits right in with white walls, driftwood and striped linen. A humpback tail on a round rug or a vintage-style whale illustration feels relaxed and grown-up. Our coastal rugs page has more designs in the same spirit.

Kids' rooms and playrooms

For older children, an underwater scene with whales, fish, turtles and an octopus makes a great play rug for bath toys and sea creatures, and a cartoon whale makes a friendly bedroom rug. On a hard floor, choose Standard so the rug stays put. Our kids play rugs page has more ideas.

Bathrooms

A whale is a natural fit for a kids' bathroom, perhaps one spouting a fountain of bubbles. 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.

Hallways

A long, narrow hallway is the perfect place for a big whale. A custom runner up to 10 ft long, with a blue whale stretching from nose to tail, gives children a sense of just how enormous these animals are. Choose Standard, which stays put as little feet hurry past.

Twins, siblings and gifts

For twins or siblings, a pair of baby whales side by side is a sweet, matching design, or two spouting whale rugs, one beside each bed. A whale rug also makes a lovely baby shower gift, and a custom whale with the baby's name and birth date becomes a keepsake.

Colors

Whale designs look loveliest in ocean tones: navy, sea blue, aqua and sea-glass green, with sandy beige or white for contrast. For a softer nursery, choose pale blue and blush watercolors; for a bright playroom, a cheerful turquoise whale with a yellow sun.

Protecting whales

For centuries, whales were hunted for their oil and meat, and some species came close to disappearing. Since a worldwide moratorium on commercial whaling began in 1986, many populations have been recovering, and several humpback populations were taken off the US endangered species list in 2016. A whale rug can be a hopeful way to talk with children about protecting the ocean. For more animal designs, see our animal rugs.

Your own whale

Want a whale with your baby's name, a design in your nursery's exact blues or a rug from a photo of a humpback you saw on a whale-watching 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, bathroom doorways, hallways 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 blues stay deep and clear, 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 whale-shaped rugs from 2.6×2.6 up to 5.2×5.9 ft (80×80 to 160×180 cm). Custom sizes go up to 5′11″ × 10′, including long runners. 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 whale stays ocean-blue, wash after wash.

The blue whale

The blue whale is the largest animal known to have ever lived, larger than any dinosaur. Adults can grow to around 100 feet long and weigh as much as 30 elephants. Its heart is about the size of a golf cart, and its calls are among the loudest sounds made by any animal, traveling hundreds of miles through the ocean.

Despite their size, blue whales eat some of the smallest creatures in the sea: krill, tiny shrimp-like animals they filter through baleen plates by the ton. A rug that shows a blue whale gliding beside a tiny swarm of krill, with a small diver for scale, is a wonderful, educational design for a child who loves big animals.

For children who love facts, a blue whale rug next to a measuring tape makes size come alive.