How can you recognise that a rug is hand-woven?

Rugs and kilims are among the most important decorations and accessories in any living space. This is because the absence of rugs results in an almost bare appearance. The rugs help the room look better as a whole.

Nowadays, carpets are produced both by hand and by machine. The possibilities are very diverse. However, hand-woven carpets are both more natural and more elegant than factory-made carpets. For this reason, they are favoured by many people, especially in recent times.

However, it is not always easy to distinguish between a factory-made rug and a real one. If you want to buy a real product and not make a mistake, it is very important to recognise the hand-woven carpet.

Check the underside of the rug.

The best way to recognise a hand-woven rug is to check the back or underside of the rug, as this will tell you whether it is a handmade or machine-made product. If the knots and weaving technique are not exactly the same, you can assume that it is a handmade rug. As it is woven by hand, there are of course differences, symmetry problems and some imperfections.

With a handmade kilim, you can see the individual knots if you look at the back of the rug, because the weavers tie the knots by hand on the underside of the rug and then start tying each knot by hand.

Also, the machines give you professional rugs that are even on all sides. As they work symmetrically compared to humans, mistakes are less likely.

Colour deviations

In general, handmade carpets tend to have slight colour variations. This is because when the colour is exhausted, the nearest colour is usually preferred. Even if it is the same colour, a layer added later may be lighter/darker.

Therefore, those wondering how to tell if the rug is handwoven should also check this. In this way, the original rugs can be easily recognised. This applies not only to different batches, but also to rugs made in the same batch. This usually manifests itself in a slight change in colour.

However, the materials used for machine-made carpets are usually dyed in a single batch. As a certain amount of dye is added, there is no bleeding or over- or under-colouring. The colours are therefore uniform throughout the carpet.

White grid lines and fringes

If you want to know whether a carpet is hand-woven, you should also look out for the white grid lines and fringes.

The machine-made rugs usually have a lot of white lines on the back, which is due to the fact that they were made by computers. However, a handmade rug will not have the same pronounced white grid lines as it is woven by humans.

If your rug has a tassel, in most cases you can tell by the position of the tassel if it looks stitched. Hand-woven rugs always have fringed ends as part of the rug yarn. The fringes of a hand-knotted rug are not an addition to the rug, but an extension of the base of the rug.

If you take all this into account, you can draw more accurate conclusions about how to recognise a hand-knotted rug. However, all of this should be scrutinised closely and carefully. Because they may not be immediately obvious. A cursory glance may not help you.

What are the advantages of handmade rugs?

Handmade rugs not only give your room a unique style, they also have other advantages. The products are comfortable and extremely soft. The natural materials used in the weaving process give the rugs a feeling of extreme softness and comfort.

When you walk barefoot, you feel warm and silky and have luxurious comfort. They also have the following effects:

1. Long service life: the hand-woven rugs are more durable than the factory-made ones. It is the best choice, especially if you have children and pets. It is also naturally stain resistant, which is a plus. Additionally, these rugs come in a variety of colours and patterns.

2. Decorative appearance: The imperfect knotting of handmade rugs looks extremely elegant and classy. Their charm will not fade over generations and their uniqueness will remain forever.

3. Brings colour to the floor: Hand-woven rugs bring colour and warmth to the floor. Whether it's a wooden or tiled floor, handmade rugs suit any type of floor. They are also perfect for adding colour to any room, from classic to modern, depending on the decor. They can also be hung on bare walls for a dramatic change.

Hand-woven rugs have many advantages in this respect.