Guide · For the trade
Rug borders: widths, materials and how to specify one on a custom rug
Rug borders on a custom or cut-and-bound rug are a strip of leather, fabric or wool tape sewn around the edge of the field, usually 2 to 5 inches wide, mitered at the corners, with the rule of thumb that the border should be about 3 to 4 percent of the rug's shorter side: 3 inches on an 8x10, 4 inches on a 10x14, 2 inches on a 27-inch runner. A leather border rug is the classic on sisal and wool loop; a linen or cotton fabric border is the softer, less expensive version; a woven-in border is a feature of the rug's own design and is not applied at all. Applied borders add about a week to a 3 to 5 week cut-and-bound order.
This guide is for the designer or the junior writing the border line on a custom rug order, or deciding whether the rug needs one. It covers the types of border, widths and proportion, materials, corners and double borders, which fields take a border well, outdoor borders, what to put in the spec, and the questions clients ask. The edge finishes that are not borders, binding and serging, are in the binding and serging guide; this page is the border itself.
Three kinds of rug borders
An applied border is cut from leather or fabric, folded over the edge of the field and sewn, so it shows on the face and wraps the back; this is what a rug with border means on a custom order and it goes on anything cut from broadloom. A woven-in border is part of the rug's design, as on a Persian pattern or a bordered Wilton, and can be chosen but not changed. A field-and-border rug in a hand-made construction is drawn, rendered and woven to any width on the full custom timeline, strike-off in 4 to 6 weeks and production in 18 to 20. The applied border is the one with decisions to make.
Border widths and proportion
| Rug | Border width | Material that suits it | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runner, 27 to 36 in wide | 1 1/2 to 2 in | Leather, cotton tape, linen | Wider and the field becomes a stripe |
| 5x8 and 6x9 | 2 to 3 in | Leather, linen, cotton | 2 in reads as a frame; 3 in as a design element |
| 8x10 and 9x12 | 3 to 4 in | Leather, linen, wool tape | The most common spec; 3 1/2 in is the house standard on sisal |
| 10x14 and larger | 4 to 5 in | Leather, double border | Under 4 in disappears across a 14 ft rug |
| Round and oval | 2 to 3 in | Fabric; leather in short segments | Leather does not curve; fabric is cut on the bias |
The eye reads the border against the field, not in inches: a 2-inch border on a 12x15 looks like a mistake in the binding and a 5-inch border on a 5x8 like a picture frame. When in doubt, go up half an inch.
Border materials: leather, fabric, wool and canvas
Leather is the border for sisal, seagrass, jute and wool loop, 2 to 5 inches wide, in natural, chocolate, black, saddle and dyed colors; it wears for the life of the rug, darkens slightly with handling, and is the most expensive option per linear foot. Faux leather, a vinyl-faced fabric, is the answer for a mudroom, a kitchen or an outdoor rug where real leather would spot with water. Linen and cotton are the fabric borders for a softer scheme, and a 3 to 4 inch band of natural linen on a sisal is the lighter alternative to leather. Wool tape, a woven twill, is the traditional border on a wool rug and the one that looks woven in. Canvas and cotton webbing are the utility versions, often a 1 1/2 inch band on a runner. Any stable upholstery fabric can be made into a border; send a yard and we tell you.
Corners: mitered or butted, and the double border
A mitered corner is cut at 45 degrees so the border turns the corner as one continuous frame; it is the standard. A butted corner runs one side through and stops the other against it, the look of a canvas or utility runner, sometimes chosen for a tailored workroom feel. A double border is two bands, for example 1 inch of leather inside 3 inches of linen, with the inner band a quarter to a third of the outer; it is how a plain sisal becomes a designed piece. Hand-made rugs can carry a corner motif, drawn in the rendering.
Which fields take a border, and which do not
Sisal, seagrass, jute, wool loop, wool flatweave and most indoor-outdoor polypropylene take an applied border well, because the field is flat and the border sits flush. Cut pile takes a border, but a deep pile shows a step down at the border line and is usually serged instead; if the client wants a border on a plush, keep the pile under 1/2 inch and the border 4 inches or wider so the step reads as intended. Shag does not take a border. Hand-knotted and hand-tufted rugs have a finished edge and are not bordered after the fact. Our sisal with leather border collection is 114 styles that are ordered bordered as a matter of course, and any of the natural fibers in the natural fiber broadloom group can be cut and bordered the same way.
What to write in the border spec
- Field: style, color and finished size.
- Border: material, color, width on the face, and whether single or double with each band's width.
- Corners: mitered unless stated.
- Backing: whether the border wraps fully to the back (standard) or is faced only.
- Sample: ask for a bordered corner sample, about 12 by 12 inches, before the order on any job over 8x10; it ships from the finisher in about a week.
Lead time for a bordered cut-and-bound rug is 4 to 6 weeks; the border adds about a week to a bound order because it is sewn by hand at the corners.
Questions designers ask
How wide should a rug border be?
About 3 to 4 percent of the shorter side: 2 inches on a runner, 3 inches on an 8x10, 4 inches on a 10x14, 5 inches on a 12x18. Go wider rather than narrower when the field is plain.
What is the best border for a sisal rug?
Leather, 3 to 4 inches, mitered. It is the classic for a reason: it wears as long as the sisal, protects the edge where sisal is weakest, and comes in a dozen colors. Linen is the softer alternative; faux leather is the answer where the rug gets wet.
Can a border be added to an existing rug?
To a bound or serged broadloom rug, yes; the old edge is removed and the border applied, and the rug comes back 2 to 3 inches smaller per side. To a hand-knotted or a woven rug with a finished selvage, no; those edges are part of the weave.
Can a rug border be a fabric from the room?
Usually. Send a yard of the fabric to the finisher for a test; a stable upholstery weight folds and sews well, while a loose weave or a stretch fabric does not. The fabric is backed before it is applied so it holds its shape.
Browse: sisal with leather border rugs · sisal, jute and seagrass · custom rugs · binding and serging guide · custom size rugs guide