Custom Rug: Wool Rugs Made by Hand to Your Size
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A custom rug is for the cases a shop has nothing for: the fifteen-foot hallway, the living room with a bay, the seating group that is exactly nine feet two inches wide. With machine-made rugs, custom usually means a piece cut from broadloom and bound at the edges. Something else is meant here: a rug made for you by hand in Morocco, at your dimensions, in your colours and with the design you choose. This guide explains when that is worth doing, what you can decide and how an order runs.
From the Atelier
Currently in our collection
When a custom rug is worth it
The most common reason is size. Hand-knotted rugs from stock have the dimensions they came off the loom with. There is usually a piece that fits. But when four inches decide the matter, between two built-in cupboards, in front of sliding doors or in an alcove, a commission is the tidy solution.
The second reason is shape. Round rugs, very long runners and unusual proportions are hardly ever available ready-made in hand work. The third is colour. Anyone who has to hit a particular shade, because the sofa, the curtains or the paint are already fixed, gets there faster with a rug made to order than with months of searching.
What you can decide
First the shape and the dimensions, to the centimetre. Rectangles and runners are possible, and so are round rugs. Then the design: heritage motifs such as the diamond lattice of the Beni Ourain, the free drawing of the Azilal or the forms of the Beni Mguild and Boujaad, alongside quiet contemporary designs, from a plain field through a checkerboard to a simple border line.
For the ground and for the motif you each pick a colour from the atelier's palette, or supply a shade of your own. To that you add the material, the pile height, from a flatter surface to a long, soft pile, and the finish of the edges: natural fringe or a clean bound edge. One motif, the Zanafi, is made as a flat weave with no pile.
How an order runs
You compose the rug online in our bespoke atelier and see a preview as you go. Photographs of the room, a sketch or a colour sample can be attached, with a note to the atelier. The price is shown throughout and includes delivery and duties. You also see an estimated making time, given in weeks.
After you order, the atelier confirms the design, the yarns and the schedule before any work begins. The rug is then made, finished by hand and prepared for shipping. If you would like to talk it through first, you can save your design and send it to the atelier with your questions.
What to know before commissioning
The preview on your screen is a visualisation, not a photograph. Hand-spun wool takes colour unevenly, and a line made by hand is never dead straight. The finished piece will look more alive than the design, which is exactly what sets it apart from factory work. If a shade has to be exact, give the atelier a reference image or a colour code.
Dimensions are hand work too. A variation of an inch or so is possible, so allow a little clearance in an alcove. And think in weeks, not days. A rug that is made specially takes time, and the schedule is only firm once the atelier has confirmed it.
Custom, or a rug from stock
Not everyone needs a commission. A rug from stock has two advantages: you can see it in photographs before you buy, and it can be sent straight away. These rugs also tend to have a freedom in their drawing that cannot be ordered, because it arose while the weaver was working.
So it makes sense to look at the stock first. The rugs further down this page are ready to ship, with their measured sizes. If none fits in size, shape or colour, made to order is the way. Either way the rug is delivered to your door, with shipping and duties included in the price.
What you can verify about us
- Origin
- Made in MoroccoHand-knotted Berber rugs from the Atlas regions. Every rug is one of a kind.
- Construction
- Hand-knotted woolVerified at every stage — never machine-tufted.
- Delivery
- Duties includedFree shipping; import duties and taxes are included in the price.
- Returns
- 14 daysIn condition received, full refund of the purchase price.
Frequently Asked
Questions
- What sizes can a custom rug be made in?
- Dimensions are entered to the centimetre, from a narrow runner to a very large living-room rug. Round rugs in the diameter of your choice are possible too.
- How long does a custom rug take?
- Several weeks, depending on size and design. An estimated making time is shown while you compose the rug, and the atelier confirms the schedule before starting.
- Will the rug look exactly like the preview?
- In its design, yes; in detail, not quite. The preview is a visualisation. Hand work and dyed wool always come out a little different, and livelier, in the finished piece.
- Can I order a custom runner?
- Yes. Long, narrow sizes are among the most frequent reasons for a commission, because hallways seldom match the lengths in which runners exist ready-made.
Sources & References
What this page rests on
- 1. Atlas Cooperative Commission Records
- 2. Custom Commission Buyer Survey
The person behind the piece
“Before you buy, I’ll send you a video of the actual rug in natural light — not a stock photo. I answer the messages myself.”
I’m Youssef. I started ARINID because this market is full of middlemen and machine-made imitations sold as the real thing — and I grew up close enough to the looms to know the difference.
Every piece we list is one of a kind, hand-knotted in Morocco. If you want to talk through sizing for your room, I’m on the other end of the message. A rug at this level is a thirty-year decision. You should be able to look the person selling it to you in the eye.
Youssef
Founder, ARINID
The next step
See every rug we currently offer
Each piece is hand-knotted in Morocco and delivered to your door, with shipping, duties and taxes included.