Rug Techniques You May Not Have Heard Of...
At Holmes Bespoke, the handmade process informs everything we do, from the way we start to design our bespoke rugs to the way we work with our materials.
Scarsdale, New York Living Room Interior by Monica Fried Design, Styling by Katja Greeff & Photography by Nicole Franzen
When I started at Holmes Bespoke, don’t get me wrong, I wholeheartedly believed a rug was essentially a thicker piece of fabric that went on the floor… I quickly realised I was very (very) wrong. Rugs by Holmes Bespoke are completely made by hand; hand-knotted, handwoven and hand-tufted, using a variety of different weaving or knotting techniques that each produce a completely different rug with unique properties. Here are a few, that you may not have heard of, that will make you seem like an expert.
Hand-tufting
Produced by punching individual yarns through fabric backing using a handheld tufting gun. The design options are limitless due to the precision and versatility of the gun.
Loop Pile
A type of pile produced when the yarn is left uncut on the rod which causes loops to be formed. Loop pile rugs are hardwearing and trackless, meaning footprints or vacuum lines won’t show. The pattern here is created by a combination of both cut and loop pile.
Cut Pile
A type of pile produced by shearing the yarn loops, leaving the pile cut and soft to the touch. Cut pile rugs are typically much more formal, luxurious and softer underfoot.
Carving
The pile can be hand-carved into different patterns adding dimension and interest. Sometimes a rug may be carved around the boundary of different fibres or colours to show off more detail.
Soumak
Wrapping each yarn over the other creating a plaited look . What’s interesting is that no knots are actually tied in this process creating a rug that is strong and very durable.
Binding
When the rug is complete, the edges are bound to finish off the rug and prevent fraying. This can seamlessly blend with the design of the rug (like here) or be a statement in itself.
What sets Holmes Bespoke apart, is that every aspect of each of our rugs can be entirely customised; choose from thousands of combinations of colour, texture and fibres. Our rugs can be redesigned into different sizes, scales or shapes and can be fitted as wall-to-wall carpet or as a stair runner by our specialist team. The possibilities are endless - get in touch!
Written by Brooke Tilston