The large overall patterns that appear in the photos don't really show up in-person.  The rug is very speckled (impressionistic).  I thought it might be a little cleaner look than it ended up being.  The really speckled pattern makes it look a tad cheaper than it does in the photo.  The background color is a dark creamy beige, not a lighter white cream like I thought it would be, but the blues are pretty.  Due to the hassle and expense of returning such a large item, I'm keeping it and will live with it - but if I had bought in a store I would have returned it.