Rugs

Reading a Weave: Flatweave, Knotted and Machine Made

Construction is the single most useful thing to know about a rug. A flatweave such as a kilim has no pile, which makes it thin, reversible and light enough to wash. A hand knotted rug has individual knots tied into a foundation, which is why it survives decades and why it costs what it does. A machine made rug is woven at speed onto a backing, giving consistency at a lower price with a shorter life. Only a flatweave is genuinely machine washable, so a washable label on a thick pile rug usually means the surface can be cleaned rather than the rug submerged. Shedding in the first weeks is normal on wool and stops; shedding that continues past a couple of months is a backing problem.

Pile Height Changes Where a Rug Works

Pile is comfort in one room and an obstacle in another. A low pile takes furniture weight without crushing, lets a door swing over it and does not trap dirt in a hallway. A high pile is warm underfoot and holds every mark a chair leg makes. Under a dining table the pile has to be low enough for a chair to be pushed back without lifting, which rules out anything deep regardless of how it looks. In a bedroom the reverse applies, since nothing is dragged across it and the first step of the day is the point.

Why a Rug Needs an Underlay

An underlay is treated as optional and rarely is. It stops the rug creeping across a hard floor, which is a safety point on any smooth surface. It also lifts the rug fractionally so that dirt falls through rather than grinding into the fibres, which is what actually extends its life. On a hard floor an underlay is a safety item rather than a comfort one, since a rug that slides is the most common cause of a fall on it. Rotating a rug twice a year evens out both sun fading and foot traffic, and it is the cheapest thing that keeps one looking new.

For entrances and porches rather than rooms, the non slip felt options are in Door Mats, and the furniture a rug is sized around is in Seating.