Rug Fringe and Fringe Repair
The fringe is the most delicate part of a rug. Fringe is the name for the threads that hang off each vertical end of the rug. Fringe can be damaged by foot traffic, pets, and vacuuming. Vacuuming is the biggest enemy of fine rugs. The beater brush tears and pulls on the fringe, causing breakage and tangling the fibers into knots that don’t disengage easily and eventually break. Robotic vacuum cleaners have a tendency to “eat” the fringe and edges of your rug- ripping and tearing indiscriminately. The beater brush and robotic vacuums cause destruction that almost always results in the need for costly repairs.
Fringe Repair
Fringe repair can rectify a variety of issues. Long, tangled fringe can be groomed and straightened, as well as trimmed, or even removed. Fringe becomes darker and stained through its lifetime. Rug repair centers can lighten the fringe back to its original color, as well as remove stains. In some cases, the best course of action is to remove the fringe and install a new fringe.
No matter what issue your fringe is suffering from, it is recommended that you trust rug repairs to the professionals. Behnam Rugs often receives repair jobs that require additional work that would not have been needed if the clients had left the rug alone.
For example, cutting the fringe off yourself is a risky move. If you do not like the way your fringe looks and want to remove it, we highly advise you to take your rug to us or call us for advice. We carefully remove the fringe and sew a new binding in its place, which prevents the rug from unraveling. If you remove the fringe yourself and cut into the body of the rug, it will unravel.
If you simply want a shorter fringe, trim it cautiously, making sure not to cut past the fringe and into the body of the rug. Fringe alterations are another service rugs may need for aesthetic reasons. Fringe can be added to and removed from almost any rug by trained professionals. You will want to work with a company that is capable of hand-sewing a new fringe into the body of the rug.
What to Avoid
Do not work with a company that glues on the fringe. The glue can damage the rug and the fact that the edges are not sewn up means that the rug will likely unravel. In addition, “repairs” like these do not survive washing. If your rug has glued on fringe and needs to be cleaned, the fringe will likely come off and the rug will fall apart.
Adding Fringe
To add fringe, the weaver or rug master will carefully remove the binding from the vertical sides of the rug. They will only remove the minimum amount of thread necessary to attach the fringe. Next, they will overcast the edges to prevent unraveling and sew in the fringe. Overcasting is a kind of stitch that encloses raw edges.
The weaver will evaluate the rug’s overall “look” to determine which kind of fringe will complement it best, taking into account the rug’s country of origin, age, colors, and material(s). A finely woven, thin, antique rug, will not look good with a heavy, chunky fringe that is made of off-white thread. The fringe should be dyed to match the age of the rug. The owner should specify the length they would like for the fringes, or they can trust the weaver to decide for them.
What Not to Do
If you do not like the way your rug’s fringe looks, please DO NOT tape it down with DUCT TAPE! Duct tape is very hard to remove and always leaves a residue that oftentimes will not wash out. We recently cleaned a rug with fringe that was covered in duct tape. The duct tape did not come off during washing and took hours to remove by hand. After it was removed, a residue remained.
Proper care and maintenance will keep your rug’s fringe in good condition. However, if anything should happen to it, or you feel the need to change something about it, call the experts at Behnam Rugs- we are here to help. 972-733-0400. We have been repairing and altering rugs and their fringe since 1978. When it comes to Persian rugs, experience matters.
This rug had its fringe removed and was resized as well.
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