These terms describe how the studio sells, ships, repairs, and stands behind the rugs it makes. They are written to be read by you, not by a lawyer — though both should find them equally clear.
In two paragraphs.
When you place an order, the studio confirms it within two working days and the weaving begins. Every rug is hand-knotted, so lead times run from four to fourteen months. You can change your mind at any point before the warp is strung. After that, the rug is yours.
Every rug ships insured, on a sixty-night home trial. If it isn't right, we'll take it back, re-bind it, or refund you in full. We stand behind every piece for twenty-five years against any defect of craft.
How the order works.
An order can be placed in three ways. Whichever you choose, the studio will confirm in writing before any thread is dyed.
- From the shop — choose a piece, a size, and a colourway. The studio writes back within two working days with a confirmed start date.
- A bespoke commission — send a sketch, a photograph, or a description. Two rounds of design revisions are included.
- By appointment — at the studio in Bhadohi, or at one of our European viewing rooms.
An order is only legally binding once you have confirmed the studio's written quotation and paid the deposit (typically 30%). Until that moment, either side can walk away without obligation.
What you pay, and when.
Prices on the site are in Euros and include the cost of materials, weaving, finishing, and a fair wage for every hand that touches the rug.
- Deposit — 30% of the agreed price, on confirmation of the order. Begins the weaving.
- Mid-payment — 40% at the half-way point of weaving, with photographs from the loom.
- Balance — 30% before the rug leaves the studio, after final wash and inspection.
- Currency — Euros (EUR) by default. GBP, USD, INR on request.
- Taxes & duties — EU and UK orders are duty-paid. Other countries — duties may apply on import.
We accept bank transfer, Stripe, and (for larger pieces) part-payment in three to six instalments at no interest. Full card details never reach the studio.
The slow part of slow trade.
A hand-knotted rug takes time. Typical lead times, from confirmed order to delivery:
- Small (2.6 × 8) — 4 to 5 months
- Medium (8 × 10) — 6 to 8 months
- Large (9 × 12) — 9 to 11 months
- Oversized (10 × 14) — 12 to 14 months
- Bespoke / fine archive — case by case, up to 18 months
All shipping is fully insured and uses specialist hand-knotted-rug handlers. EU and UK delivery is door-to-door, white-glove, climate-controlled. We do not ship by air — wool and the sea have always agreed.
Faster than the slowest hand at the loom is what looms are not for.
05 — The home trialSixty nights at home.
Every rug arrives with a sixty-night home trial. Walk on it, sit on it, live with it. If it isn't right:
- Within 30 days — full refund, return shipping at our cost.
- Within 60 days — full refund, return shipping shared.
- After 60 days — re-binding, re-dyeing, or studio credit at face value.
The trial does not apply to bespoke commissions designed for your room — though we will always work with you to make it right.
When the loom is blank for you.
A bespoke rug is a particular thing — designed for one floor, one room, one set of windows. The terms are slightly different.
- Design fee — €450, deductible from the final price if you proceed.
- Revisions — two rounds of design adjustments are included; further rounds at €120 each.
- Approval — once you sign off on the 1:1 cartoon and dye lot, the rug is committed to the loom.
- Cancellation — free until cartoon approval. After that, the deposit is non-refundable.
- Trial — bespoke pieces are not eligible for the 60-night trial; we work with you on adjustments instead.
The twenty-five-year promise.
The studio stands behind every rug for twenty-five years against any defect of craft — including the knot, the warp, the dye, and the finish. Normal wear, sun-fade, and the patina of footfall are not defects; they are how a hand-knotted rug ages well.
- Cleaning — Send the rug back to the studio for a professional wet wash every 3–5 years. We cover wash; you cover shipping.
- Re-binding — Free for the first 25 years against any binding or corner failure.
- Re-dyeing — At cost. Vegetable dye does not run, but we can match a faded section if asked.
- Loss / damage — Use the insurance from your shipping carrier or home policy. The studio can advise on assessment.
Whose design is it.
The studio's patterns, cartoons, photography, and writing are protected by copyright — registered in India and the European Union.
- You may photograph your own rug, post it to social media, and reference TRC as the maker.
- You may not reproduce the patterns commercially, screen-print them, or sell derivative works.
- Bespoke designs — the rights to a bespoke cartoon are shared. You hold the rights to that piece for your room; the studio retains the right to weave it again, with your written consent.
The unfortunate small print.
The studio's total liability for any one piece is capped at the price you paid for it. We do not exclude liability for death, personal injury, or fraud — none of which a rug should ever cause.
Hand-knotted rugs depend on the natural world — monsoons, dye crops, the health of a weaver, the river. If something genuinely beyond our control delays a piece, we will tell you within seven days, share photographs, and offer the choice to wait, switch piece, or cancel with a full refund of your deposit.
If we ever disagree.
These terms are governed by the law of India for orders placed from outside the European Union, and by the law of the customer's EU member state for orders placed within. Either party may bring proceedings in the courts of either jurisdiction.
Before that, we much prefer a phone call. Write to studio@therugchalet.com and we will pick up.
