Colours & Designs – Limitations & What to Expect

At Rug Love, we want to give you as much useful information as possible so you can choose your rug with confidence and know what to expect when shopping online.

Purchasing textiles such as rugs online has some unavoidable limitations that are not unique to Rug Love. Colours, patterns, textures and designs are viewed through a screen rather than seen and touched in person, so purchasing online can never completely replace seeing a physical rug in person and in your own surroundings.

Rugs are textile products and there are inherent limitations when displaying colours, textures and designs online. Individual rugs can also show normal variations resulting from their materials, construction, production batch and manufacturing method.

Rug Love goes further than other rug retailers in the product information we provide before purchase. We use descriptive product titles and descriptions, provide superior, more detailed product specifications covering important details often overlooked elsewhere, and we are the only rug retailer to provide a full colour breakdown for most of our rugs rather than relying only on broad or generic manufacturer colour labels.

We also provide more real-life imagery than most rug retailers, including additional photographs taken by Rug Love where available, to show the true shades, texture and appearance of a rug as clearly as possible beyond standard manufacturer photography.

This is intended to give customers as much practical information as possible to help them choose the right rug before ordering. Even with these additional steps, some customers may still find that a rug looks different in their own home or does not appear exactly as they expected.

• Full colour breakdowns – Rug Love is the only rug retailer to provide a full colour breakdown for most rugs, explaining dominant, secondary and accent colours rather than relying only on a generic colour label.
• Superior product specifications – more detailed specifications than other rug retailers, including material, pile height, construction, backing and other important product-specific details often overlooked elsewhere, where available.
• Real-life imagery – more real-life imagery than most rug retailers, including additional photographs taken by Rug Love where available, to help show the true shades and appearance beyond standard manufacturer photography.
• AR Rug Visualiser – allowing you to preview many rugs within your own space before purchasing.

The main product images supplied for a rug are manufacturer images and are generally the same core images used by UK retailers selling the same product.

Manufacturer product names and colour classifications can sometimes use broad terms such as Grey, Beige, Cream or Blue, even where a rug contains several different shades or accent colours.

Rug Love therefore supplements the manufacturer's core information with more detailed colour descriptions and product information where possible.

Colour appearance can vary considerably depending on the environment in which a rug is viewed.

• Screen brightness, colour calibration and display settings.
• Different phones, tablets, monitors and televisions.
• Natural daylight compared with artificial lighting.
• Warm or cool light bulbs.
• Surrounding wall, flooring, furniture and décor colours.
• Pile direction, texture and viewing angle.
• The size of the rug and the amount of colour visible within the room.
• Natural-fibre and handmade variation.
• Production and dye-batch variation.
• The subjective nature of colour names and individual colour perception.

Rugs are manufactured in production batches. Two rugs with the same product name, design, colour and stated size are therefore not necessarily guaranteed to be visually identical if they originate from different production or dye batches.

Small shade or tonal differences can occur between batches even where the same design, colour name and product specification are used.

If you are purchasing two or more matching rugs and consistency between them is particularly important, please contact us before ordering so we can check whether relevant batch information is available.

Batch matching cannot always be guaranteed, particularly where rugs are ordered at different times.

Handmade, hand-woven, hand-tufted, hand-knotted and natural-fibre rugs should not be expected to have the same uniformity as a completely machine-manufactured product.

Depending on the rug, normal characteristics can include:

• Abrash or natural tonal variation.
• Small differences in weave or weaving tension.
• Slight variation in finished dimensions or shape.
• Variations in texture or pile direction.
• Minor differences in pattern placement.
• Mixed yarns or natural-fibre variation.
• Occasional loose or sprouting fibres.
• Natural differences in colour or shading.

These characteristics do not automatically indicate a manufacturing defect. Whether an individual issue represents normal variation or a manufacturing fault depends on its nature, extent, construction and the specific circumstances.

Not every variation or change in a rug indicates a manufacturing defect. Rugs are textile products, and their construction, materials, pile and manufacturing method can result in normal characteristics that vary between rug types.

• Wool rugs: natural shedding, particularly when new.
• Sheepskin rugs: natural fibre, texture, colour and appearance variation and shedding.
• Shaggy and high-pile rugs: pile movement, compression, flattening and some shedding.
• Handmade rugs: natural variations in weave, dimensions, pattern placement, texture and finish.
• Handmade and natural-fibre rugs: abrash, tonal differences and natural colour variation.
• Handmade rugs: mixed yarns, slight weaving inconsistencies or occasional loose or sprouting fibres.
• Different production or dye batches: small shade or tonal differences can occur between two rugs of the same design and colour.
• Rolled rugs: temporary creases, curling or pile compression after being tightly rolled for storage and transport.

If you believe what you are experiencing goes beyond the normal characteristics of the rug, please submit a manufacturing defect claim with photographs and an explanation of the specific concern.

Rug sizes are generally stated as nominal dimensions. Small variations in finished length, width and shape can occur during manufacture and do not automatically indicate a manufacturing defect.

This is particularly relevant to hand-woven, hand-tufted, hand-knotted and other handmade rugs. Differences in yarn, weaving tension, stretching, washing, drying and finishing can influence the final dimensions of an individual rug.

Manufacturer size tolerances can vary depending on the brand, construction and manufacturing method. Rug Love therefore does not apply one universal percentage tolerance to every rug.

If you believe your rug differs significantly from the advertised nominal dimensions, please provide photographs together with measurements of the rug. Where appropriate, the difference can then be assessed against the relevant product specification and any applicable manufacturer tolerance.

Product photography will normally show one representative size of a rug. Where a design is available in several dimensions, the precise layout or amount of the pattern visible can vary between sizes.

Depending on how the particular design is manufactured, a larger or smaller version may show a different number of repeating motifs, medallions, diamonds, borders or other design elements.

Handmade rugs can also show small differences in pattern placement because individual pieces are not manufactured with the same mechanical uniformity as a printed image.

If you believe the rug supplied does not materially match the product description, specification, imagery or other product information provided at the time of purchase, please submit the appropriate claim and explain the specific difference you believe exists.

We will review the product supplied, the product information applicable when the order was placed, and the photographs, details and other relevant evidence provided. Where appropriate, information may also be obtained from the manufacturer as part of that assessment.

There is an important distinction between goods that materially do not conform to their description and a product that has been correctly supplied but is unsuitable or different from a customer's personal expectation.

For example, deciding that a correctly supplied rug appears warmer, cooler, lighter or darker than expected, or that it does not complement your room as hoped, does not automatically establish that the product information was inaccurate.

If the correct rug has been supplied but you decide that its colour, shade, design or appearance is unsuitable for your room or personal preference, this would normally be treated as an unwanted or unsuitable return.

This is different from alleging that the rug materially does not correspond with the description or other product information provided when you purchased it.

If the correct item has been supplied and, following assessment, the manufacturer confirms that the rug is not defective and there is no material non-conformity, the return is treated as a standard unwanted or unsuitable / “I do not like it” return. In that situation, the customer is responsible for arranging and paying for their own return.

This distinction is necessary because it is not practical for Rug Love to cover the return cost for every correctly supplied, non-defective rug simply because a customer does not like its colour, design or appearance, or because it looks different in their home from how they personally expected it to look online.

If you believe there is a material difference between the rug received and the product information provided, please submit the appropriate claim through our self-service Returns Portal.

Please provide:

• Your Rug Love order details.
• A clear explanation of the specific difference you are reporting.
• Clear photographs showing the overall rug.
• Additional photographs showing the particular colour, design, pattern or construction concern.
• For a size concern, the rug measurements and photographs showing those measurements where possible.

Where appropriate, the information may be referred to the relevant manufacturer for product-specific information or assessment.

If the rug is correctly supplied but its colour or design is simply unsuitable for your requirements, you can use our Returns Portal to register an unwanted or unsuitable return within the applicable return period.

If you believe there is a manufacturing defect, incorrect item, courier damage or a material discrepancy between the rug received and the product information, select the appropriate claim reason and provide the requested information and photographs.

If an exact colour match to existing furniture, flooring, curtains, paintwork or other décor is essential, we recommend considering whether purchasing from a physical retailer where you can inspect the rug in person would be more suitable for your requirements.

This is not because online imagery is necessarily inaccurate; it reflects the unavoidable limitations of comparing a physical textile product with an image displayed on a screen under different lighting conditions.

If purchasing multiple matching rugs, please also remember that separate units can originate from different production or dye batches and may therefore show small shade or tonal differences.

• Online images cannot guarantee an exact colour match in every room or on every screen.
• Pile direction, texture, lighting and viewing angle can materially affect appearance.
• Different production or dye batches can show small shade or tonal differences.
• Handmade and natural-fibre rugs can naturally vary between individual pieces.
• Handmade does not mean identical.
• Rug dimensions are generally nominal and small manufacturing variations can occur.
• Manufacturer size tolerances vary, so one universal percentage tolerance does not apply to every rug.
• Pattern placement and the number of repeated motifs can vary between different rug sizes.
• Personal colour dissatisfaction does not automatically establish a defect or non-conformity.
• Selecting “Not As Described” or stating “not as advertised” records the basis of a claim; it does not by itself establish that allegation as fact.
• A genuine material difference from the applicable product description can be submitted for assessment.

Colour and design are only part of understanding how a rug may look and behave in your home. Please also review the relevant product information and guidance for the construction you are purchasing.

• Handmade Rugs Disclaimer
• Wool & Shaggy Rugs – Shedding
• Rug Warranty & Defects

If you would like further information about how manufacturing defects, product conformity and your statutory rights are assessed, please read our dedicated Manufacturing Defects & Consumer Rights guidance.

If anything above is unclear, you need help before purchasing, or you believe there is a material discrepancy with a rug you have received, please submit a Support Request through our chatbot.

• Select “Submit Support Request” if you need a member of our team.
• We aim to respond within 3 business hours during Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm.
• Please include your name, Rug Love order number where applicable, and a clear explanation of what you need help with.
• For an existing colour, design or size concern, please include clear photographs and measurements where relevant.