apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Or buy a Persian rug.

The tradition for making these is passed on from one family member to another over centuries.

They can last a very long time, and cost a lot less that the prices quoted above.

If you get a tribal rug made by nomadic peoples, you're getting something truly unique. Some rugs made in the better city workshops are signed by the master weaver, also a touch of uniqueness.

Persian rugs don;t come with brand names, and don't carry the name of trendy designers. They're made with timeless elegance.

Many of them are kept in vaults for decades unused.

I have a 10x13 and a 1710 rug that are over 30 years old that are absolutely mint condition and super plush. It's not uncommon.

Before you blow big money on some trendy "designer" rug that won;t be so trendy in 10 years, look at a 50 year old Qashqai, Bakhtiari, Heriz, etc. Or a new (if you can find one) vegetable dyed Caucasian Kazak rug. Or for true elegance, a Chobi rug made in Peshawar. A chobi will set you back a couple of grand for an 8x10 or bigger, but they're well worth it, being made from hand spun lambs wool and vegetable dyes, and having taken over a year each for a single weaver to make.

One knot at a time. Making rugs this way is like drawing an image in Photoshop, one pixel at a time.

Tufted rugs, described in the post, are cheaply made, and glued together. Look at a knotted and tugted rug side by side in a gallery and you'll like knotted rugs better.

Persian rugs are hand knotted, never tufted. I've had rugs with knot counts in the 200-250 KPSI (knots per square inch) range
Some importers can certify rugs as being child labor free. I work with one such importer...

This is a picture of the back of a 35 year old Mahal Persian rug (named for the city of Mahallat, Iran). You can see the warps and wefts (foundation) that make up the grid. Each intersection is one knot. This is a pristine rug that was most likely never used, judging by the lack of wear.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7878321@N03/698057163/



And this is the front side of that same 35 year old rug.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7878321@N03/698057183/



This is the signature of a master weaver woven into a rug, made from hand spun lambs wool.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7878321@N03/698057287/



But hey, if you want to pay big bucks for a glued tufted rug, go for it. :->