Our rugs are infused with a rich history of ancient craftsmanship. To preserve their beauty and prolong their life, follow these suggestions for rug care.

Every six months, rotate rugs from end to end or place them in different parts of the house to share the wear.

Direct sunlight and heat sources, such as gas heaters and fireplaces, can cause the natural fibres to dry out and fade. Position your rug away from both.

Reduce bacteria build-up with sunlight. Every few months, turn your rug over and place it in the sun for an hour. Vacuum the back of your rug before repositioning.

Keep rugs dry and out of dark places, such as tucked tightly under lounge suites or furniture.

Clean hard floors regularly with microfibre mops and water only (no detergents), or use a steam mop if appropriate. Detergent and soap residues can become sticky and collect other dirt, which is then walked onto your rug. By keeping your hard floors clean, your rug will stay cleaner for longer.

Move rugs a few centimetres every month to soften any fading on carpet or timber floors underneath. When the rugs are eventually moved from the room, the fading on the floor will be graduated and less noticeable.

To ensure the longevity of your Rugsea rug, please vacuum your rug regularly. Shedding of loose fibres will occur with a new rug. We do not recommend using rotating or brush head vacuum cleaners on our rugs if possible.

Even with regular vacuuming and careful use, you may find dirt and debris will build up on your rug. It is possible to refresh your rug with gentle treatment or professional rug cleaning.

Use caution if you use a robotic vacuum in your home. Longer length pile and tassels can become entangled in the vacuum and may cause damage to your rug or device. We recommend keeping this in mind when programming your device.

Carefully scrape up as much of the spill as possible with a spoon or dustpan, and blot any liquid residue with damp chamois or other colourfast absorbent material. Do not rub.

Take a clean piece of the absorbent material and fold it into a thick wad. Cover the spill with this and add a weight (such as a heavy book) on top to help draw the liquid upward. Leave it for ten minutes.

If the spill has left a stain, decide if it is water-based or oil-based and treat it as below.

Water-based spills include beer, wine, soft drink, cordial, fruit juice, tea, coffee and urine. They are treated with lukewarm water. Oil-based spills contain some type of oil, fat or greasy substance and include ice cream, gravy, mayonnaise, cream, makeup and lotions. They are treated with detergent in lukewarm water. We recommend using soft cleaner, which is safe for natural fibres.

For both types of spills, the process is the same: Blot – Dilute – Blot…

• Water-based spills: Blot the spill as described previously. If some stain remains, dilute it with water. Blot this using absorbent material. Repeat this step until no more stain can be removed.
• Oil-based spills: Blot the spill as described previously. If some stain remains, dilute it with the detergent solution. Blot this using absorbent material. Now dilute the stain with clean water and blot again. Repeat these steps until no more stain can be removed.

For stubborn stains, seek professional rug cleaning services.

Soak a clean white cloth in warm water and rub in one direction only, following the pile. Where possible, attend to any spillages before they dry. Once dry, stains can be difficult to remove.

Place several sheets of paper towel underneath the stained area and then carefully pour a small amount of warm water on top to dilute the stain until it has disappeared. Replace the paper towel underneath the rug and then place a few sheets of paper towel on the top side of the rug and gently step to dry the stained area. Make sure to properly dry with a hairdryer or if possible in the sun.

We recommend that no detergent be used as it can be very hard to completely remove detergent from the rug.

Highly-coloured products, such as paint, nail polish, shoe polish, lipstick and glue, will not respond to these simple treatments. We advise you not to treat these spills yourself, as doing so may create a larger or permanent stain.

Red cordial and other coloured drinks contain food colouring. Food colouring is an acid dye that is also used to dye wool and nylon fibres. Putting detergent on this will simply carry it into the fibres of your rug faster and set the stain. If after treating with water the dye stains persist, contact a professional.

Sand, grit, dust, clothing fibres and hair are examples of dry particle soils. Most of these will be removed with regular vacuuming. For those that remain deep within the fibres, a thorough vacuuming should remove them and restore the original beauty of your rug.

Vacuum the front of the rug, then turn it over and vacuum the reverse side. You may find some dirt loosens from the weave as the rug bends. Turn the rug over and vacuum the front again. To ensure even wear and minimise the natural fading that occurs from sunlight, rotate your rug end-to-end when repositioning.

A build-up of oily soils can result in your rug looking dull and grey, despite regular vacuuming. Pollution, cooking fumes and road grime are examples of this soiling, which is resistant to cleaning with water alone.

Some spills that are left untreated over time can affect the natural fibres of your rug. These include those that contain natural and synthetic dyes (like cordial and other coloured drinks) and those that change the chemistry in the fibre (fruit juice, urine, bi-carb soda, bleach and other cleaning products). This chemistry-changing group can adversely affect the natural proteins in wool and the cellulose in natural fibres such as cotton, jute and other plant-based fibres.

For this reason, any treatment needs to be extremely gentle. Wet the stain with lukewarm water. Then treat for water-based spills, stopping at the final blotting stage.

It is important not to use any other treatments, as these may cause physical damage or carry the stain deeper into the fibre.

Professional cleaning is recommended on occasion to ensure the long life of your rug.

'Pop-ups' are a very natural part of the settling period of a hand-knotted rug, more common in the first 2 months. Due to the hand-crafted nature of our products, sometimes tightly spun yarn is hiding beneath the surface of the pile. With vacuuming, foot traction and general use, these strands of yarn can begin to unfurl and lengthen themselves, causing them to ‘pop-up’ above the usual pile height. These pop ups can be carefully trimmed to be level with the rest of the pile, or pushed back through without affecting the integrity of the rug.

Our handmade rugs are made from all-natural fibres. Natural fibre rugs will initially shed loose fibres; this is a normal process and will subside within a few months of use. The removal of any loose fibres will be hastened by regular vacuuming using a good quality upright vacuum cleaner.