What is a Frieze Carpet?

Are you planning to install a frieze carpet before winter? As you enjoy your carpet shopping experience, it helps to know the different types of carpets in the market. Carpets have a timeless beauty and are the coziest flooring type in comparison to hard floors. They are also warm underfoot, good in noise reduction and insulation.

Furthermore, carpets are versatile and come in a variety of weaving styles, colors, pile constructions. The most common types of carpets are plush, textured, and frieze.

So, what is a frieze carpet? Frieze carpets are also known as twist or twisted carpets. They are similar in appearance to the 1960s and 1970s shag carpets. It is essential to understand the difference between loop-pile and cut-pile carpets first.

Carpet Weaving: Loop-pile Vs. Cut-pile Carpets

A regular carpet has two parts: the backing and the pile. The backing is usually hard and serves as the foundation of the carpet because it supports the fiber. On the other hand, Piles are the lengths of fiber attached to the backing of the carpet.

During the weaving process, fibers (piles) are woven into the carpet’s backing to create many loops. After that, different styles are used to finish the carpet. There are three carpet style finishing methods: loop-pile, cut-pile, and a blend of both. In a loop-pile carpet, the loops are not cut but left in woven form. Whereas in cut-piles, the loops are cut, while some carpets have both finishing.

What is a Frieze Carpet?

A frieze carpet is a cut-pile carpet, but it is unique because it is made with long fibers that undergo a high twist-level process. It has high pile lengths of between ½ to ¾ inch. The twisting of the carpet’s long fiber makes it unique (kinky and curly).

Usually, about seven or nine piles are twisted tightly to form a fluffy look. Because the piles are long, they create a thick pile. The long piles prevent them from standing upright. However, they create an informal look and may not be suitable for office use or formal spaces.

Frieze Carpets vs. Textured Carpet

Frieze carpets have extremely twisted fibers, while textured carpets have regular fibers, which have uneven lengths. Textured carpets may also combine both twisted fibers and non-twisted fibers. Noteworthy, frieze carpets are more durable than textured carpets.

Frieze Carpets vs. Plush Carpets

A plush carpet is a cut-pile type of carpet, but the piles are cut uniformly. The piles have smooth and dense weaves that look like a freshly cut lawn. They are lower and denser than regular carpets. Unlike frieze carpets, plush carpet piles are not twisted.

The Difference Between Frieze and Shag Carpets

The two are similar because they have long piles which are more than ½ an inch. However, shag carpets have thinner piles that are not twisted, creating a shaggy appearance. Also, shag carpets have thick and bulky piles.

Different Types of Frieze Carpets

There are different frieze carpets made from synthetic and natural fiber: nylon, wool, and olefin. The nature of the flooring makes it great for bedrooms, family rooms, hallways, and staircases.

Nylon is the most common material for making synthetic carpets. A nylon frieze carpet is more affordable than a wool frieze carpet. It is also easier to maintain in comparison to wool.

Wool frieze carpets are woven from wool harvested from sheep. Therefore, it is a natural product. Wool frieze carpets are soft and warm. However, they are a bit expensive and require a different maintenance regimen from other materials.

If you are on a budget, you can opt for an olefin frieze carpet, which is cheap. However, the carpet is not as durable as wool and nylon. It also snags and rigs easily.

Frieze Carpet Care and Maintenance

Frieze carpet care requires a regimen of cleaning like regular carpets. You should spot-clean spills as soon as they occur. You can do this with a wet rag. However, spills are harder to clean on a frieze because they spread to a large area. Also, how often you clean your frieze carpet will depend on where it is located in your house. If it is in a high traffic area, then it will need more regular maintenance. For a guideline, vacuum clean it thoroughly once a week. Then once every six to twelve months you can get professional cleaning services to clean it thoroughly.

How to Clean Frieze Carpet

The cleaning is different from the conventional cleaning of regular carpets because it has long, thick and twisted piles. As such, regular vacuums may not clean frieze carpets well enough. Actually, regular vacuums usually ruin frieze carpets because the piles get torn by beater bars, a component in a standard vacuum cleaner.

What is the Best Vacuum for Frieze Carpet Cleaning?

The best vacuum for frieze a carpet should have a beater bar that you can easily turn off. Alternatively, you can get a special frieze carpet vacuum cleaner that has no beater bar. You also need a vacuum cleaner with adjustable cleaning head heights to prevent the piles from getting stuck in the vacuum cleaner.

What is the Average Cost of a Frieze Carpet?

Costs of frieze carpets vary depending on the brand and other factors. Like other regular carpets, the main determining factor of the cost of a frieze carpet is the material. As a guiding factor, frieze carpet cost per square foot is usually between $2.50 and $5.00.

Frieze Carpet Pros and Cons

To sum up our discussion on frieze carpets, here is a summary of the pros and cons.

Frieze Carpet Pros

1. Durability: The main factor that makes frieze carpets stand out from other carpets is their durability. Frieze carpets are durable because the twisted fiber does not snag or fray easily.
2. Frieze carpets are soft. They are also warmer than other less thick carpets and are perfect for the cold winter months. They come in contemporary colors, are inviting and irresistible.
3. The thick nature of frieze carpets gives them more sound insulation properties.
4. Frieze carpets are stain and dirt resistant. They make a great flooring option for high traffic areas or high activity areas such as homes with pets and children.

Frieze Carpet Cons

1. Frieze carpets have an informal look which may restrict their use in some spaces.
2. The long fiber on frieze carpets makes cleaning difficult.

Conclusion

There are various frieze carpet colors and styles, including multicolored to suit different tastes and interior décor styles. There are frieze carpets to suit your particular interior decoration. Manufacturers may use the terms shag, textured, and frieze interchangeably.