Rug Types

Different rug types can be identified by different weaves, materials, styles, patterns, designs, colours, manufacturing techniques, shapes & sizes. Different designs have originated from different regions of the world, including the area known as "The Rug Belt", which spans from Morocco across North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and northern India.

Rug Material:

• Natural fibres – wool, cotton, jute, leather, bamboo, sisal, silk, hemp
• Man-made or synthetic fibres – polypropylene, polyester, rayon, acrylic, chenille, viscose, microfibre, PET or nylon

Carlos Felted Wool Rug Grey Natural

Rug Weave:  

• Height and length of the rug's pile
• Thickness
• Warp & Weft

Cross section identifying the warp and weft features of the rug:

Rug Style:

• Modern
• Traditional
• Transitional
• Bohemian
• Abstract
• Solid
• Outdoor
• Persian
• Moroccan
• Vintage overdyed
• Art deco
• Scandinavian

Rug Pattern or Design:

• Medallion
• Floral
• Geometric
• Trellis
• Chevron
• Lattice

Rug Colour:

• Bold
• Monochrome
• Neutral
• Natural
• Multi

Rug Manufacturing Technique:

• Hand-knotted rugs
• Power loomed rugs
• Hand-loomed rugs
• Flat woven rugs
• Braided rugs
• Tufted rugs

Rug Size:

• Small, medium, large, and extra large.

Rug Shape:

• Round, Runner, Area and Oval.

Power Loomed Rugs:

• made by large, computerised looms
• run continuously ensuring maximum efficiency
• cost-effective
• latex backing to secure and to prevent unravelling
• pattern and style generated by computer-controlled looms

 Hand-loomed Rugs:

• constructed on a loom
• the process takes 1-4 people, depending on the size of the rug
• originates from an ancient method of weaving
• weaving and knots will have inconsistencies
• generally are reversible

 Hand-knotted Rugs:

• a method that dates back two thousand years
• intricate, laborious, and intense work that requires skilled artisans
• one of a kind, each rug is unique
• can take up to a year to weave one rug
• woven on a specialized vertical loom
• thousands of individual knots are hand tied, one by one, one row at a time. 

Braided rugs:

• woven in a variety of techniques
• banded braid construction
• cloth braid construction
• flat braid construction
• yarn braid construction.

Flatweave rugs:

• no pile – flat, minimal thickness
• often reversible
• can be machine-made, hand-loomed or hand-knotted

Hand-knotted rugs:

• combination of the ancient craft of weaving with modern-day technology
• using a hand-operated tool or a tufting gun, strands of yarn eg wool, are punched or injected into a canvas that is stretched on a frame
• not as labour-intensive and time-consuming as weaving hand-knotted rugs