Rug Glossary

Abrash is the gentle shift in tone you see across a rug where one batch of dyed yarn gives way to another. It shows as soft horizontal bands, most often in hand-knotted pieces where yarn is dyed in small lots. Stand at one end of the rug and look along it in daylight: true abrash reads as a slow change in depth of colour, not a stain or a fade. Many people value it as a sign of a hand at work.

Alpaca is the fleece of the alpaca, light, warm and smooth with a muted lustre. It sits in Rara, Grade III, which Rugberry offers only in Rugberry Reserve, made to measure.

Backing cloth is the secondary fabric glued to the underside of a hand-tufted rug. It covers the tufting cloth and the anchoring layer, giving the rug a neat, stable reverse. It is usually a cotton or synthetic canvas. Turn a corner over and press it with your thumb: a good backing lies flat, is fixed evenly to the edges and does not lift or bubble. On marble and vitrified floors, pair it with an underlay to stop slipping.

Bamboo silk is a trade name for a plant-based yarn spun from bamboo pulp into a smooth filament with a soft sheen. It is not silk from the silkworm. Rugberry calls its plant-based fibre Botanical Silk and names it on every piece. It brings a quiet lustre at a gentler price than real silk and suits low-traffic rooms. Blot spills at once, never rub, and leave deep cleaning to a professional.

Binding is the finish that wraps and protects the edge of a rug so it does not fray. On tufted rugs it is often a fabric tape stitched over the edge. On woven or knotted rugs the edge may be overcast with yarn instead. Run your hand along the side: the binding should feel firm and even, with no loose loops or gaps. A worn binding is easy to repair early, so check edges where chair legs and vacuums catch them.

A border is the band of design that frames the central field of a rug. It can be a single line, a series of narrow guard stripes or a wide decorated band. A border gives a rug a clear edge and helps it sit like a picture within a room. In small Indian living rooms a strong border can make a rug read smaller, while a borderless field lets the floor seem to run on.

Botanical Silk is a plant-based fibre spun into a smooth yarn with a silk-like sheen. It is not silk from the silkworm, so Rugberry names the two separately on every rug. Choose it for rooms that rest, and blot spills at once.

Carving is a cut pile texture in which lines are cut into the finished pile with a blade, so the pattern is drawn by shadow rather than colour. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and the basis of the Lamina collection.

A cashmere blend combines cashmere, the fine undercoat fibre of the cashmere goat, with wool. The cashmere brings softness, while the wool gives the yarn strength, spring and resilience for daily use. Rugberry's Cashmere Blend collection is handloom woven in a wool and cashmere blend, fine, dense and very soft underfoot. Press your palm flat on one and it should feel close and silky rather than fluffy. It suits bedrooms and quiet sitting rooms best.

A colour pom is a small ball or bundle of dyed yarn used to match and approve colour before a rug is made. Designers hold poms against paint, upholstery and floors to choose shades for a custom rug. Always view a pom in the room where the rug will live, in morning and evening light, since a warm LED and north light can change a colour noticeably. Many Rugberry designs offer custom colours on request.

A colourway is one specific combination of colours in which a design is offered. The same pattern may come in an ivory and sand colourway and a charcoal and rust colourway, each changing the mood of a room. When you compare colourways, look at the darkest and lightest tones rather than the average, since those decide how well the rug hides dust and wear. Many Rugberry designs come in several colourways and can be custom coloured on request.

Crimp is the natural wave along a wool fibre. The more crimp, the more the fibre springs back after it is pressed, and the more air it traps for warmth and bounce. Pull a single strand from a skein and stretch it gently: a well-crimped wool lengthens, then curls back when you let go. Good crimp helps a rug recover from footprints and furniture dents, which matters in busy Indian homes with daily foot traffic.

Cut pile is pile in which the yarn loops have been cut so that each tuft stands as two open ends. It gives a soft, even, velvety surface that shows the colour of the yarn clearly. Most of Rugberry's hand-tufted range is cut pile, typically around 14 to 16 mm. Brush your hand across a cut-pile rug and you will see the shade change slightly with direction, which is normal and called shading.

A dhurrie is a flat-woven rug with no pile, traditionally woven in cotton or wool on a loom by passing weft yarns over and under the warp. It is thin, light and reversible in many cases, so it is easy to lift, shake out and wash. Dhurries have long been used across Indian homes on floors and beds. They suit kitchens, verandas and summer rooms, and need an underlay on smooth floors.

A dye lot is a single batch of yarn dyed together in one bath. Yarn from different lots of the same colour can differ slightly in shade because water, temperature and fibre vary. For this reason a matching pair of rugs or a rug and its swatch may not be identical. If you need two rugs to match, say so when ordering so they can be made from the same lot. Rugberry sells swatches for most rugs.

The field is the main central area of a rug, inside any border. It may be plain, carry an all-over pattern or hold a central medallion. When you plan placement, the field is what shows between your furniture, so look at it rather than the border when choosing scale. A busy field hides crumbs and pet hair better than a plain one, which helps in dining rooms and family spaces.

Fina is Grade II of Rugberry's three fibre grades and holds merino and silk. Its character is softness, a fine hand and quiet sheen, best for bedrooms and formal sitting rooms.

A flatweave is any rug woven without a pile, where the surface is made by the weft passing over and under the warp. Kilims and dhurries are both flatweaves. The result is thin, often under 10 mm, light and easy to clean, with no tufts to trap dust. Lift a corner: a flatweave bends like heavy cloth. It suits high-traffic spots, dining areas and rooms where a chair must slide easily.

Fringe is the row of loose threads at the ends of a rug. On a hand-knotted or handwoven rug it is usually the warp ends, tied off so the weave cannot unravel, which means it is part of the structure. On a tufted rug any fringe is sewn on as decoration. To check, follow a fringe thread into the rug. Vacuum fringe gently from the rug outwards and never pull a loose strand.

Gabbeh Dyed is a cut pile texture in which the colour drifts and bands across the field, lighter in one place and deeper in another. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and gives a single colour gentle movement.

A gradient is a gradual change from one colour or tone to another across a rug. It can run from end to end, side to side or in soft clouds. In a hand-tufted rug it is built by changing yarn shades in small steps so the transition reads smoothly from a distance. Rugberry's ombre collection is built on this idea. Gradients help a long room feel calmer and can lead the eye towards a window or doorway.

A hand knotted rug is made by tying each knot of pile by hand around the warp threads, row by row, then beating the weft down. It is the slowest and most durable of Rugberry's four constructions, used for Savannah, the jute line.

Hand-spun yarn is yarn twisted from loose fibre by hand, on a wheel or a spindle, rather than by machine. It varies a little in thickness along its length, which gives the finished rug a lively, slightly irregular surface with natural tonal movement. Roll a strand between your fingers and you will feel thick and thin places. That variation is a feature, not a fault, and it hides footprints well.

A hand tufted rug is made by punching yarn through a stretched cloth with a hand-held tufting gun, then shearing the pile and fixing a backing to the reverse. It is one of Rugberry's four constructions, chosen for free pattern and colour, and used for many designs and for made to measure orders.

A hand woven rug is made by interlacing warp and weft by hand on a loom, as a flatweave or a textured weave, with no glued backing. It is one of Rugberry's four constructions, used for flat and reversible pieces and for made to measure orders.

A handloom rug is woven row by row on a loom worked by hand and foot, with the yarn locked into the structure rather than glued to a backing. It is the construction behind most of Rugberry's Studio Collection: Plush, Grain, Meraki, Insignia, Luma, Cashmere Blend and Cabra. Handloom rugs made to order take around 35 days.

Heathered yarn is yarn spun from fibres of two or more shades blended together before spinning, so the colour reads as a soft mix rather than a flat tone. Look closely and you will see flecks of lighter and darker fibre within one strand. Heathered rugs hide dust, lint and light stains better than solid colours, which makes them practical in Indian homes where floors pick up fine dust.

High-Low is a cut pile texture in which some areas of pile are left longer than others, so the pattern stands in relief. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and gives a single colour rug depth you can feel underfoot.

Jute is a long plant fibre from the stem of the jute plant: coarse, strong and softly golden. It sits in Terra, Grade I, and Savannah, Rugberry's hand knotted line, is made in jute. Keep it away from wet spots and blot spills dry.

KPSI stands for knots per square inch, the standard measure of how finely a hand-knotted rug is woven. A coarse rug may have 40 to 80 KPSI, a fine one 150 and above. Count the dots on the back along one inch across and one inch down, then multiply. Higher KPSI takes longer to knot, but texture, fibre and design matter as much as the number.

A kilim is a flat-woven rug made with the slit tapestry technique, in which coloured weft yarns are packed tightly so they hide the warp completely. Where two colours meet, small slits can form along vertical lines. Kilims are thin, light and often reversible, with bold geometric patterns. Hold one up to the light: you may see tiny gaps at colour changes, which are part of the weave.

Knot density is the number of knots in a given area of a hand-knotted rug, usually quoted as knots per square inch. Higher density allows finer detail and a smoother surface, but it is only one measure of quality alongside wool, dye and finish. To estimate it, turn the rug over and count the knots along one inch horizontally and vertically, then multiply the two numbers.

Lanolin is the natural wax that sheep secrete into their fleece. Some of it stays on wool after scouring, and it helps the fibre resist water and soil for a few seconds, giving you time to blot a spill. It also gives wool a slightly soft, waxy hand. Rub a new wool rug and smell your fingers: a faint, clean animal note is lanolin. Harsh cleaners strip it, so use mild wool-safe products.

Latex is the rubber adhesive used on the back of a hand-tufted rug. It locks the tufts into the tufting cloth and bonds the backing cloth to the reverse. A well-applied layer is even and flexible and keeps the rug flat. Fold a corner gently: the back should bend without cracking. Keep tufted rugs out of long direct sun and avoid soaking them, since heat and water age latex faster.

Lincoln wool comes from the Lincoln longwool sheep and is a long, strong fibre with a natural lustre. It sits in Terra, Grade I of Rugberry's fibre grades, beside New Zealand wool and jute.

Llama is the fleece of the llama, warm and light like alpaca but with a sturdier hand that suits a floor. It sits in Rara, Grade III, and Rugberry offers it only in Rugberry Reserve, made to measure.

Loop pile is pile in which the yarn is left as uncut loops rather than cut tufts. It gives a nubby, textured surface that hides footprints and wears well. Because the loops are continuous, a snag from a pet claw or a sandal buckle can pull a loop, so trim a pulled loop level with scissors rather than tugging it. Loop pile is often combined with cut pile to make a pattern.

Lustre is the way a fibre reflects light. Silk and some fine wools have high lustre, while jute and coarse wools reflect less. Lustre makes colour look richer and changes as you walk around a rug. To judge it, view the rug from both ends in daylight. A rug that looks lighter from one end and deeper from the other has good lustre. Rugberry's botanical silk rugs, and its wool and botanical silk rugs, show this clearly.

Made to measure means a rug built to your size, shape or colour rather than chosen from standard sizes, on a Rugberry design or your own. At Rugberry this is the Rugberry Custom line, and handloom pieces made to order take around 35 days.

Melange is a yarn or fabric effect made by blending fibres of different colours before spinning, so the yarn shows small flecks of each. It gives a soft, speckled surface with depth. A melange rug in grey, for example, may contain white, charcoal and taupe fibres. It is practical in Indian homes because it disguises fine dust and everyday marks.

Merino is fine, soft wool from the merino sheep, often under 24 microns, with good spring. It sits in Fina, Grade II of Rugberry's fibre grades, and suits bedrooms and quiet rooms.

Micro Loop is a loop pile texture of very short, tightly packed uncut loops, giving a flat, firm and finely beaded surface. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and suits desks and dining tables where chairs move.

A micron is one thousandth of a millimetre, and it is the unit used to measure the diameter of a wool fibre. Lower microns mean finer, softer wool. Fine apparel wool may be under 20 microns, while rug wools often sit between 28 and 38 microns, which is coarser but more hard-wearing. The right number depends on the room: finer for bedrooms, stronger for hallways.

Mohair is the fleece of the angora goat: smooth, strong and very lustrous, with a soft glow in the pile. It sits in Rara, Grade III, which Rugberry offers only in Rugberry Reserve.

New Zealand wool is a long, strong, bright white wool that takes dye evenly and springs back under weight. It sits in Terra, Grade I of Rugberry's fibre grades, and is the standard fibre for rugs that see daily life.

Ombré is a cut pile texture in which one shade fades gradually into another across the rug. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and the signature of the Solaris collection.

Overtuft Scattered is a loop pile texture with small raised tufts added at random across a low loop ground. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and the most tactile of the five loop pile surfaces.

The Persian knot, also called the asymmetrical knot, is tied around two warp threads with one end coming up between them and the other outside. This allows very fine knotting and crisp curves in a design. To tell it from other knots, part the pile and look at the base: one strand wraps a warp completely, the other sits loose beside it. It is one of the main knots in hand-knotted rugs.

Pile is the raised surface of a rug made from cut tufts or loops of yarn standing up from the base. It is what you feel underfoot and see as colour. Pile can be cut, looped, carved or left long, and its height is measured in millimetres from the base to the tips. Brush your hand across a rug and the direction in which the pile lies will show as a change of shade.

Pile direction is the way the tufts of a rug lean after making. Brush against it and the rug looks darker and feels rougher. Brush with it and it looks lighter and smoother. To find it, run your hand from one end to the other. When placing a rug, turn the pile direction away from a main window or your usual viewing point for the richest colour, and vacuum with the pile.

Pile height is the length of the pile from the base of the rug to the tips of the tufts, measured in millimetres. Low pile under about 6 mm suits dining rooms and entries. Medium pile of around 10 to 16 mm suits living rooms and bedrooms. Much of Rugberry's hand-tufted range sits around 14 to 16 mm. Measure it by pressing a ruler into the pile until it touches the backing.

Plant silk is a broad term for silk-like yarns made from plant fibre. At Rugberry this fibre is called Botanical Silk: a plant-based yarn with a soft, quiet sheen, lighter on price than real silk. It works best in living rooms and bedrooms with gentle footfall, often woven with New Zealand wool for structure. Blot spills at once and use professional cleaning, never wet washing.

Plush pile is a dense, deep cut pile with a soft, velvety surface. Tufts are packed closely and sheared level, so the rug feels thick underfoot and shows colour richly. Plush pile shows footprints and shading more than textured rugs, which some people enjoy. Press your hand into it: it should feel full and spring back. Rugberry's Plush rugs are handloom woven in New Zealand wool with a deep, quiet pile.

A provenance card is the set of eight facts Rugberry gives for every rug: fibre, grade, origin, character, construction, technique, made and care. It lets you compare rugs the way you would compare cloth.

Rara is Grade III, the rarest of Rugberry's three fibre grades: mohair, alpaca, cashmere and llama. Rara fibres are offered only in Rugberry Reserve, made to measure with prices on request.

Recycled fibre is yarn made from reclaimed material, such as textile waste or plastic, which is cleaned, broken down and spun again. It reduces demand for new raw material. Rugs with recycled fibre are usually flat or low and easy to clean. Some of Rugberry's handwoven reversible rugs are made in recycled and natural fibres, flat and light with two usable faces.

A reversible rug is woven so that both faces can be used. It is usually a flatweave or handwoven rug without a glued backing. You can turn it over to spread wear, hide a stain or change the look of a room. Rugberry's reversible rugs are handwoven in recycled and natural fibres, flat and light, with two usable faces. Flip it every few months for even wear.

Rotation means turning a rug 180 degrees at regular intervals so wear and sunlight fade spread evenly across it. Traffic paths and sunlight from one window can otherwise leave one side paler or flatter than the other. A good rule is to rotate every six months, or every three in a sunny room or a busy hallway. Vacuum the floor beneath it before you lay it back down.

A round rug is a rug cut or woven in a circle. It softens rooms full of straight lines, suits round dining tables and works in entrances and reading corners. Under a dining table, choose a diameter at least 60 cm larger than the table so chairs stay on the rug when pulled out. Rugberry offers round sizes in 6, 8 and 10 ft diameters for some designs.

Rugberry Custom is the made to measure line: any size, shape or colour, built on a Rugberry design or the client's own. Handloom pieces made to order take around 35 days, and the Design Lab is a good place to start.

Rugberry Me is the online tool on rugberry.in for recolouring a Rugberry rug or uploading your own design. It is the starting point for a made to measure order. Open Rugberry Me.

Rugberry Reserve is Rugberry's halo line, made only in the Rara fibres: mohair, alpaca, cashmere and llama. Every piece is made to measure and priced on request. See Rugberry Reserve.

A runner is a long, narrow rug made for corridors, entrances and the sides of beds or kitchen counters. Leave about 10 to 15 cm of floor visible on each side in a passage so it does not look cramped. In Indian apartments with long passages, a runner reduces footfall noise and protects marble from grit. Choose a low pile or flatweave so doors clear it easily.

The selvedge is the finished long side of a woven rug, where the weft turns back at the edge of the warp. It is woven as part of the structure, often reinforced with extra warp threads or overcast with yarn, so the side cannot fray. Run your hand along it: a good selvedge is straight, firm and slightly thicker than the body of the rug.

Serging is a way of finishing the sides of a rug by wrapping them tightly with yarn using a stitching machine or by hand. The yarn covers the edge completely and holds the pile and backing together. It is common on tufted and machine-cut rugs. Check serging by running a finger along the edge: the stitches should be even and close, with no gaps showing the backing.

Shading is the apparent change in colour seen when pile lies in different directions. A patch where the tufts have been pressed one way looks lighter or darker than the area around it. It is a property of cut pile and silk, not a defect. You can see it most on plush pile and on silk or wool and silk rugs. Brushing the pile in one direction evens it out.

Shag is a rug with a long, loose pile, often 30 mm or more, which gives a deep, informal surface. It is soft and warm underfoot and suits bedrooms and low-traffic sitting areas. Shag holds dust and crumbs deeper in the pile, so shake it outdoors or use a vacuum with the beater bar off. Rugberry has a shag rugs collection for those who want that depth.

Shearing is the step in which the pile of a finished rug is trimmed to an even height with electric shears. It removes loose fibre ends, sets the final pile height and makes the colour read cleanly. A well-sheared rug looks level when you view it at floor height from the side. Sheared hand-tufted rugs may shed a little loose fibre in the first weeks, which is normal.

Shedding is the release of loose fibres from a new rug, especially a wool one. These are short fibre ends left from spinning and shearing, not the pile coming apart. It usually slows within a few months of regular vacuuming. Use a suction-only vacuum or a gentle brush head, and avoid pulling tufts. Wool rugs with longer staple fibres generally shed less over time.

Sheen is the soft gloss of a rug's surface, caused by fibres reflecting light. Silk and plant silk have strong sheen, while wool has a gentle glow. Sheen changes with the angle of light and the direction of the pile, so a rug may look lighter from one side of the room. Rugberry describes several botanical silk rugs as having a sheen that deepens and softens as the light turns.

Silk is the protein fibre spun by the silkworm: fine, strong and highly lustrous, with a cool, smooth hand. It sits in Fina, Grade II, and Rugberry names it separately from Botanical Silk, a plant-based fibre with a similar sheen.

Sisal is a stiff plant fibre taken from the leaves of the agave sisalana plant. It is one of the hardest-wearing natural rug fibres and has a crisp, slightly rough texture. Sisal resists crushing well but stains easily with water, so it is best in dry, busy areas such as hallways. Walk on it barefoot and you will feel firmer ridges than jute.

Spot cleaning means treating a stain on one part of a rug rather than washing it all. Act quickly, blot with a white cloth from the edge inwards and never rub. For turmeric, oil or curry stains, blot, then dab with a mild wool-safe detergent mixed in cool water, and rinse by blotting with plain water. Test any cleaner on a hidden corner first.

Sprouting is when a tuft or yarn end rises above the surface of the pile. It usually happens where a loop has been caught by a vacuum, a pet claw or a sandal. Do not pull it, since that can unravel neighbouring tufts. Trim the raised end level with the rest of the pile using sharp scissors. Sprouting is common in new rugs and does not mean the rug is coming apart.

Staple length is the natural length of a single fibre before spinning. In wool it can range from a few centimetres to over 15 cm. Longer staple fibres twist into stronger, smoother yarn that sheds less and pills less. Pull a few fibres from a loose strand and measure them against a ruler. Good rug wool usually has a medium to long staple.

Straight Line loop is a loop pile texture with loops set in parallel rows, so the pile forms fine ribs along the rug. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and gives a plain colour the calm order of corduroy.

The Studio Collection is Rugberry's line of designed rugs held in stock in six standard sizes, ready to ship. It includes Plush, Grain, Luma, Solaris, Meraki, Insignia, Cabra, Cashmere Blend and Savannah.

A swatch is a small sample of a rug's fibre, colour and construction. It lets you see the true colour in your own light, test feel underfoot and check the pile with your hand before committing to a full rug. Lay it on your floor next to your sofa and curtains, and look at it in morning and evening light. Rugberry sells swatches for most of its rugs.

Terra is Grade I of Rugberry's three fibre grades and holds New Zealand wool, Lincoln wool and jute. Its character is strength and natural texture, so Terra rugs suit living rooms, dining rooms and family spaces.

The Tibetan knot is a looped knotting method in which yarn is wrapped around a temporary rod laid across the warps, then the loops are cut to form pile. It produces a dense, slightly textured surface and is usually counted in knots per square inch like other knots. The back of a Tibetan-knotted rug shows a distinctive, slightly ribbed grid rather than tiny individual dots.

Tip Shear is a loop pile texture in which the tops of the tallest loops are sheared off, so cut tips and closed loops sit side by side. It is one of Rugberry's ten textures and makes a quiet pattern from two surfaces rather than two colours.

A tufting gun is the hand-held tool used to make hand-tufted rugs. It pushes yarn through a stretched tufting cloth from the back, following a design drawn on the cloth, and can be set to make cut or loop pile at chosen heights. The skill lies in steady hands and even spacing. The tufts are later locked in place with latex and covered with a backing cloth.

Two Colour Mottling (2 Colour Mottling) mixes two shades of yarn in the same pile, so the surface reads as a fine speckle rather than a flat colour. It is the only one of Rugberry's ten textures made in both cut pile and loop pile, and the most forgiving of daily marks.

The warp is the set of threads stretched lengthwise on a loom, which forms the foundation of a woven or hand-knotted rug. Pile knots are tied around the warps, and the weft passes across them. In many rugs the warp ends become the fringe. Look at the ends of the rug: the threads running the full length are warps, usually cotton or wool.

The weft is the set of threads woven across the warp, from side to side, on a loom. In a flatweave the weft forms the visible pattern. In a hand-knotted rug the weft runs between each row of knots and is beaten down to lock them in. Turn the rug over and you will see weft as fine horizontal lines between the knot rows.

Wool and silk describes a rug that combines both fibres, usually wool for the body and silk for highlights or certain areas. The wool brings warmth and resilience, while the silk adds sheen and definition. Touch both areas: the wool feels soft and springy, the silk cool and smooth. Some Rugberry rugs, such as Terraform, are hand-tufted in New Zealand wool and botanical silk, with a low sheen that shifts as you cross the room.

Yarn dyeing means dyeing the yarn before it is woven, knotted or tufted into a rug, so the colour runs through every fibre. It gives deep, even colour and allows precise placement of shades in a design. Dyes may be natural or synthetic. To see if a rug is yarn-dyed, part the pile: the colour should be the same from tip to base. Small differences between dye lots are normal.