Cotton is a practical and hardwearing natural material. It comes from the seed capsule of the cotton plant, which forms small wads when it blooms. Cotton rugs are easy to care for, because you can wash them in an ordinary washing machine and they can stand high temperatures. Cotton is heavy when wet, so it's important to check that your machine has enough weight capacity. It's also good to know that cotton may shrink, so you may have to stretch the rug a bit after you've washed it.