Resources
Trade glossary: the words on a rug or carpet order
The vocabulary that shows up on this site, on a mill spec sheet and in a showroom conversation, in plain words.
- Memo
- A sample of a style in one colorway, usually a corner of broadloom or a cut of the rug quality. On this site we call them samples; they are complimentary and yours to keep.
- Pom
- A small tuft of dyed yarn used to choose or match a color for custom work. A mill's pom book holds its standard colors; a custom pom is dyed to your fabric.
- Strike-off
- A small piece of the custom design, woven or tufted by the mill in your colors before production, for approval. Four to six weeks; what arrives depends on the construction. See the strike-off guide.
- Rendering
- The drawing of the custom piece, to scale, with colors, that we send with the net quote in about two weeks.
- Net
- The trade price to your account, before freight and tax. Quoted by the showroom, by email; never shown to the public.
- Sidemark
- The name you give an order so the carton and the paperwork can be matched to a client, room or project.
- Tear sheet
- A one-page image and spec for a client board. Ours carry your firm name and no price.
- Cut and bound
- A rug cut from broadloom to your size and finished with binding, serging or a fabric or leather border. Three to five weeks.
- Binding, serging, border
- The three ways to finish a cut edge: a cloth tape folded over the edge, a dense yarn wrap, or a wider fabric, linen or leather frame.
- Broadloom
- Carpet woven or tufted in a wide roll, usually 12, 13 ft 2 in or 15 ft, cut by the linear foot.
- Roll width
- The width the broadloom comes off the loom. It sets the largest seamless rug and where the seams fall in a room.
- Pattern repeat
- The distance before a pattern repeats across and along the roll. It decides how much extra to order so the pattern matches at the seams.
- Face weight
- Ounces of pile yarn per square yard. Higher is denser and usually wears longer in the same construction.
- Pile height
- The height of the yarn above the backing, in inches. Low pile is under about 0.30 in; most doors clear 0.50 in with a pad.
- Lead time
- Weeks from order acknowledgment to the goods leaving the mill. Freight is added on top.
- Running line
- A mill's standard, catalogued styles and colorways, as opposed to custom.
- Class I
- The highest flammability rating for carpet under ASTM E648 (radiant panel), required in corridors and most commercial spaces. See the fire rating guide.
- Green Label Plus
- The CRI's low-emission certification for carpet, cushion and adhesive, named by LEED and WELL.
- Hand-knotted, hand-tufted, hand-loomed
- Three ways a rug is made by hand, from the slowest and longest-lived to the fastest. See hand-tufted versus hand-knotted.
- Wilton and Axminster
- Two woven broadloom constructions; Wilton for texture and tailored pattern, Axminster for many colors in a pattern, both common on stairs and in hospitality.
- Dye lot
- One batch of dyed yarn. Order a whole job from one dye lot so the color matches room to room.
- Seam diagram
- The drawing that shows where the roll widths fall in a room and how many linear feet to order.
- Pad or cushion
- The underlay beneath carpet or a rug; its thickness changes the feel, the door clearance and the warranty.