Carpets can be a major investment for your home, and it's infuriating when a tiny scorch mark caused by a dropped match or lighter ruins the look of the whole room. Fortunately, it is possible to restore small areas of burned carpet. You could carry out the project yourself, or use a professional carpet restoration service to do the job for you. Read on to find out more.

What you'll need

• Carpet remnant—you only need a tiny piece for the repair, so if you don't have any offcuts, take some carpet from somewhere that won't be seen
• Carpet knife and spare blades
• One-sided, heavy-duty carpet tape
• Flathead screwdriver
• Sharp scissors

How to do it

1. Use a flathead screwdriver to part the carpet fibres around the damaged area, allowing a couple of centimetres outside it. This will give you a cutting line.  
2. Cut along the line using a carpet knife and remove the damaged area.  
3. Now cut out a 'plug' from your carpet remnant to replace the damaged piece using the cut-out as a template.  
4. Lay the cut-out onto the damaged area of carpet and ensure that the nap is running in the same direction. To check this, rub your fingers over the carpeting and look at the way the fibres fall or stand up.  
5. Trim the plug using sharp scissors so that it fits snugly into the hole, and place it to one side. You can do this by placing one side of the plug against one side of the hole and trimming around the rest of the plug until it fits.  
6. Next, cut pieces of carpet tape diagonally so that the pieces frame the hole in the carpet but don't overlap. Remove the backing from the tape. Lift the carpet carefully and place the tape, sticky side up, into the hole. It's easier to carry out this task if you have someone to help you.  
7. Push the carpet fibres surrounding the hole back away from the edges. Place one side of the new plug very lightly onto the tape on one side of the hole to ensure it's in exactly the right place. Once you're happy with the plug's position, press the plug firmly into place onto the sticky tape.  
8. Use your fingers to mesh the carpet fibres together between the plug and the existing carpet. Place a heavy book on top of the repair overnight to make sure it's stuck down firmly.  
9. Using sharp scissors, trim any stray fibres from around the repair. Finish off by vacuuming the carpet to lay the pile evenly.

You can restore small areas of scorched carpet by following the guidelines above. For larger areas of damage, always seek advice from carpet restoration services.