A strip of fabric sewn along the edge of a carpet or rug to prevent fraying and give a finished look, as on area rugs and stair runners. A hand-knotted rug is normally finished differently: the weaver wraps the weft several times around the outermost warp to form the overcast, or selvage, usually a rounded, corded edge (sometimes flat, or in a contrasting wool) whose regional style helps experts tell where the rug was made.
Specialist work that mends damaged rugs, including re-knotting or reweaving worn areas, patching, overcasting (rebinding the edge), stretching, fringe replacement and color restoration. Small, skilled repairs that are hard to see are generally acceptable on an older rug, and an unrepaired rug commands the highest price. Visible patches, seams or stitching, easiest to spot from the back, and replaced fringes (the fringe being the rug's own warp ends, not a trim) count as major repairs that shorten a rug's life and lower its value considerably. Very old rugs often carry some repair, so a supposedly antique rug with none may be a newer recreation, though that clue alone is not conclusive.