The fringe on an oriental rug is an iconic trait. Occasionally, some people cut the fringe off their rug due to staining, yellowing, damage, or wearing down. Unfortunately, this DIY home remedy will cause more harm than good – their beloved rug will begin to unravel and fall apart right before their very eyes. If the rug is not properly sewn or overcast to lock in the ends, the pile will simply slip out – either from vacuuming or just from walking across it.
Why is the rug unraveling? Hand knotted rugs have an inner foundation comprised of horizontal & vertical yarns. The horizontal yarns are called WEFTS and the vertical yarns are called WARPS. These vertical warp yarns start as the fringe on one end and they run all the way through the rug and come out as the fringe on the opposite end. The knots, also known as the pile, creates the beautiful, plush surface area with thousands of wool knots tied to the warp yarns. The horizontal wefts lock in those individual rows of pile knots while the knotted fringes help to hold the whole rug together.
What should you do with your soiled, worn fringe? White fringe will easily show the dirty, grimy build-up of soil on your rug. The same soil that is on your fringe is also in the rest of your rug. However, the rug can hold pounds of dirt per square foot before appearing dirty. When you start seeing your fringe looking discolored and dingy, your rug and the fringe could use a good professional rug cleaning. You may feel like your fringe is past the point of no return with major soiling and staining – but you may be surprised how clean it will come with a good cleaning. For worn fringe, we may be able to give it a good trim to even up the edges. We also offer fringe repair services.
What if you really want those fringes gone? If you are determined to remove the fringes, please let a professional handle the task for you. The ends can be sewn by hand to lock in the pile prior to cutting the fringes off. Keep in mind that any repair that permanently alters the original rug, such as removing the fringes, will generally decrease the re-sale value.