Are you looking for a traditional style area rug? Why not treat yourself to a fine hand-knotted rug?  The making of hand-knotted rugs is a “technology” that’s over 2500 years old.  The ancient art of hand knotting “Oriental rugs” was born in the mountainous regions of modern day Turkey, Iran, Pakistan and China by nomadic sheep-herding tribes. Whereas minor changes have occurred over time, the weaving techniques have remained virtually unchanged. The region is blessed with the finest wool in the world for rug weaving. Skills passed from generation to generation are employed as weavers painstakingly tie the Turkish or Persian knot over and over again. Skilled weavers will tie between 10,000 and 14,000 knots a day and it takes several weavers working as a team to complete only one or two inches of a carpet per day. The finishing process after the rug is removed from the loom requires nearly as much intensive labor.

Silver Gray & Gold French Medallion Oushak Rug

Surely our modern machine made rugs are better, right?  Well, not really. Aesthetics aside (and yes, I know that I am dismissing perhaps the greatest strength of these beautiful hand-knotted rugs) and truth be told, today’s modern technology has not enabled us to make a better-quality rug. The tightness of the weave on hand-knotted rugs gives them a “weight” and feeling of plushness that simply isn’t duplicated with machine rugs. Hand-knotted rugs simply lay better on the floor.  Inherently flame retardant, hand knotted rugs are naturally both difficult to ignite as well as self-extinguishing. Wool absorbs dyes more deeply, uniformly and directly without the use of chemicals.

Coral and Golden Sand Traditional Oushak Rug

Wool is more crush resistant than synthetic fibers, giving them superior durability. Hand-knotted rugs simply do not show the wear and tear of everyday use as quickly as their machine-made counterparts.  In fact, rather than deteriorating, hand-knotted rugs actually appreciate in value.  As time passes, the dyed natural fibers of a handmade oriental rug will age gracefully to a wonderful patina. This sheen, caused by use over time, is highly prized by collectors, and actually increases the value of these rugs.

Katrina Oushak Rug in Aqua, Sand & Butter Cream

Want a real treat?  Visit our antique rug category to view great examples of fine hand-knotted rugs. Interested in learning about a hot new trend? Take a look at our Reclaimed Vintage Patchwork Over-Dyed Rugs. These vintage Turkish Oushak hand-knot wool rugs are salvaged and then restyled into exciting new organic and charismatic floor fashion. These reclaimed patchwork rugs are over-dyed in current fashion colors for a fresh contemporary flair.

Reclaimed Vintage Patchwork Over-Dyed Rug

Tags: Antique Rugs, hand knotted area rugs, traditional rugs

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 31st, 2012 at 5:14 pm and is filed under Inspired Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.