Picture a long, narrow kitchen with a worktop down one side and a gap of bare floor in front of it. The Kelim Mia runner in grey fills that gap quietly, with a soft, matt look that doesn't compete with your cabinets or tiles. It works just as well in a hall or beside a bed, and a cotton rug like this is easy to move about.

The surface is flat woven, so the pattern is the weave itself, a mix of structure and classic kelim lines in a calm grey. Crumbs and hair come away easily, which matters in a kitchen. A flat weave also makes it easier to shift chairs on.

The yarn is 100% cotton, and the backing is cotton too. Each piece is handwoven in India on a loom. Because every runner is woven by hand, the size can differ slightly from the stated measurements, and you may spot tiny irregularities in the weave. They come with the technique, as they do in any handwoven cotton rug.

Mia comes in beige, blue, brown, green and orange as well as grey, so you can pick a bolder colour for the kids' room and grey for the hall. Down a hall, the grey runner frames the walkway. Keep a strip of bare floor by the wall and at each door so the doors can swing. The grey Mia has the slim format of our runner rugs, and the size guide explains which size to pick. The Mia is suitable for underfloor heating, which is good news over cold kitchen tiles.

Cotton is easy to look after. Vacuum lightly or shake it out, and blot small spills with cold water and a mild cleaner, as our rug care guide describes. On smooth floors, a non-slip pad cut a little smaller than the runner stops it creeping.