• Area Rugs Guide

• Area Rugs Glossary

• Area Rugs FAQ

Area Rug Glossary

Abrash: This refers to variations in color, which is the result of inconsistencies in hand dyeing or the introduction of a new batch of wool.

Antique: A handmade rug that can be authenticated as at least 50 years old.

Caucasian: Rugs that originated in what are now Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. They are distinguished by repeating vase designs.

Chrome dyes: Chemical dyes widely used in modern rug weaving that do not fade with age (unlike traditional vegetable dyes).

Dhurrie: Cotton flat-weave rug from India.

Flat-weave: A pileless, often reversible rug (a kilim weave is a universal description of a flatwoven rug).

Full cut: A hand-tufted rug, usually from China, in which the face pile has been completely sheared to form a plush surface.

Indo-Persian: A rug made in India using a traditional Persian design and knotting technique. Because of government sanctions that make the sale of Iranian rugs illegal, Indo-Persian rugs are sold widely in the United States.

Knot count: The number of knots per square inch on a handmade rug. The higher the number, the higher the quality of the rug.

Line count: The number of horizontal lines of knots per linear foot in a handmade rug. The higher the number, the higher the quality of the rug.

Warp: The yarn that runs up and down a woven rug.

Weft: The yarn that rugs across a woven rug (kilim weaves are made of only warps and wefts with no knots).

Did you Know...

• All rugs can be divided into three major designs:
  All-over: motifs are spread throughout the area rug.
  Medallion: A large centerpiece is the focal point of the design.
  One-sided: The design is woven in one direction.
• In the 1990s, natural-fiber area rugs, those derived from vegetable fibers, such as sisal, coir, jute and rush, gained popularity. They're made of long fibers that are bound or braided together horizontally to create woven designs--the opposite of traditional wool or synthetic rugs, which consist of thousands of short, vertical piles.
• Rugs woven in villages and nomadic encampments usually are rougher, looser and often produced for the weaver's own home.
• Most authentic Oriental rugs take their name from the Persian city or province in which they were made. Names such as Baktiari and Heriz therefore are geographical references rather than descriptions of designs.