At Luv-A-Rug we do a lot of rug repairs, most of them are re-edging or fringe removal or replacement. When fringes get too dirty, old or frayed they can make a rug look older and dirtier than it is. The easiest thing for us to do is to remove the fringes and do a serged edge or a binding edge. Both look great, but it depends on the thickness, colour and your personal preference as to which one we do.
It isn't easy to picture your rug with no fringes, they have always been part of the rug. We try our best to explain, but it really comes down to trusting our judgment.
When it comes to fringe replacement we actually try to discourage it. Why you may ask? It is a matter of the fact that the fringes are cotton and in a few years they will get dirty and the vacuum will eat them away. Then you're back in the same boat as before having to re-do the fringes. Of course we will replace the fringes if that is what you want. We understand that not everyone likes the look of rugs without fringes.
Here is a video of what machine sewn on fringes look like.
Note: Even though most area rugs can have the fringes removed it doesn't mean that they all should. Some rugs are valuable and should have the fringes taken care of by hand. We have refused to removing fringes from older rugs due to the age and value of them. The value I refer to is not the value you paid for the rug, but the value that age, type of rug and collectors have put on your rug.
You may be thinking that the customer is always right, but not always when it comes to area rug repairs. Not everyone knows a lot about their rugs. If we did a machine repair to your antique rug it makes it worth nothing, now who is responsible? Not you, but us because we should have known that your rug was an antique and we ruined it. Just watch that Antiques Road Show. Pretty much every show you hear, " If this item hadn't had this "insert repair" it would be worth thousands, but it is worth nothing"
That is why you should always have only knowledgeable professionals take care of your area rugs. Not just to make sure they don't ruin a possible antique, but to make sure they know what they are doing and talking about.
Thanks for reading, RugloverMary
