Babak Ahmadi
September 3, 2025

Custom Size Oriental Rugs: What’s Possible & What’s Not

Your rug is gorgeous. But your space? It changed.
Now it’s too big. Or the shape feels off. Or you need to make it fit a hallway or new layout.

Can you resize a handmade Oriental rug?
Yes — in many cases. But there are limits.

At Ahmadi Rug, we specialize in precision rug resizing for Persian, Oriental, and hand-knotted rugs — helping Chicago homeowners and designers rework treasured rugs without destroying them.

Why People Resize Oriental Rugs

We’ve helped clients who:

- Downsized from a house to a condo

- Renovated a room with new layout or built-ins

- Needed to split one large rug into two runners

- Wanted to remove damaged sections without discarding the entire piece

- Were staging a home and needed better visual proportions

Modern living doesn’t always match traditional rug sizing. Resizing solves that.

What Types of Oriental Rugs Can Be Resized?

Can Be Resized:

- Hand-knotted Persian, Turkish, or Afghan rugs

- Wool rugs with good edge strength

- Silk rugs (with extra care)

- Machine-made rugs

- Tufted and flatweave rugs

Risky or Not Resizable:

- Fragile antiques with dry rot or fiber breakage

- Tribal rugs with highly irregular wefts

- Rugs with symmetrical medallion patterns centered near edges

- Historical or museum-grade pieces (unless restoration is the goal)

We inspect each rug’s construction before cutting. The warp and weft structure must be secure.

What’s Possible, and What’s Not

Action	Is It Possible?	Notes
Trim length or width	✅ Yes	Most common request
Convert rectangle to runner	✅ Yes	Often done from one side
Cut into two rugs	✅ Yes	Requires edge binding on both
Add a new border	⚠️ Limited	Custom work; best for modern rugs
Remove fringe	✅ Yes	Easily done during rebinding
Convert to circle or octagon	⚠️ Sometimes	Depends on knot structure
Resize antique silk rug	⚠️ High risk	Only by hand, under approval
Use rug in staircase	⚠️ Rare	We can shape steps, but rug must be cut into riser pieces

Common Mistakes to Avoid

- Steam-cutting or machine-shearing edges (causes unraveling)

- Gluing edges (damages knots and traps odor)

- DIY trimming without securing weft/warp

- Cutting near borders without understanding tension

These lead to permanent distortion or unraveling — often requiring expensive reconstruction.

Our Precision Resizing Process

1. Assessment & Measurement
  We evaluate the pattern, knot density, and tension areas

1. Pre-Cleaning (Required)
  Dirty rugs cannot be resized properly — we deep clean first

1. Strategic Cut Mapping
  Cut line is chosen to preserve symmetry, design, and integrity

1. Surgical Cutting
  Using hand tools, the rug is carefully cut

1. Edge Finishing
  New edge is rewrapped, surged, or rebound using matched wool or silk

1. Final Grooming
  Rug is brushed, softened, and laid flat for quality control

Every rug is different. Every cut is calculated.

Real Example: Resizing a Persian Tabriz

Original Rug: 11×14 handmade wool
Issue: Too large for renovated living room
Client Goal: Keep rug, match width of new furniture layout
Solution:

- Reduced to 10×12

- Border preserved on 3 sides

- Rebound edge finished in hand-dyed wool

Visual match remained perfect. Client saved $6,500 on new rug.

Serving Homeowners & Designers Across Chicago

We offer:

- Free pickup and delivery

- Trade pricing for design professionals

- In-home measurements available on request

- Honest assessments — we’ll tell you when resizing is not recommended

Request Your Custom Rug Sizing Consultation

Internal Links

- Custom Rug Chicago

FAQ

Can I resize a handmade rug without losing the border?
Sometimes. It depends on how far the pattern is from the edge. We’ll recommend the best option.

Will it look “cut”?
No — our edge binding matches the rug material and color, blending the change.

How much does custom sizing cost?
Starts at $10–$65 per linear foot depending on fiber, size, and edge finish.

search the blog