Oriental and Tibetan Rugs

Chinese Rug ( Peonies & Butterflies)

The long and fascinating history hand knotted rugs has its roots in five countries; China, Egypt, India and Persia (now Iran).  Known collectively as Oriental rugs, their interest and value has continued for several centuries.

 China has a long tradition of weaving rugs – the first Chinese rugs originated in the north-west of the country in the area around Xinjiang.  About the time of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC – 24 AD) the technique of rug making spread along the Silk Route extending from Qinghai, Gansu, Nigxia, Shenmu and Yulin to Inner Mongolia and Shanxi. Rug weaving later extended into other locations such as Peking (now Beijing), Tianjing, Hebei and Shandong, where their own distinctive styles evolved.

 However, the art of knotting rugs as we traditionally think of Oriental rugs was not introduced until around the 15th and 17th century – but once this technique was introduced, it became the new standard.

 Traditional Chinese hand knotted rugs were normally made from wool but northern nomads would also use goat and camel hair.  Early on, Chinese weavers found that silk had special qualities that gave nuances of color as the light source changed.

The patterns in classic Chinese rugs are often taken from the patterns of the porcelain painters and from silks, and the designs typically followed other established art forms.  These are typically Buddhist and Taoist symbols including the lotus flower, clouds, dragons, phoenix, elephants, horses, and bats.  (The bat shares its name with the Chinese word for luck and is a popular symbol of good fortune.)  These designs are largely symbolic rather than purely decorative and the traditional colors include black, blue, red, white, beige and yellow.

 In the 1980’s the Oriental market was in a state of decline in China as well as the rest of the world as aniline dyes, machine-spun wool, and poor quality dominated the market.  At that time, a group of men sparked a “renaissance” in the modern rug market by returning to the traditional labor intensive method of rug making using vegetable or high quality chrome dyes and superior hand spun wools and silks. 

 China was involved with this renaissance and several weaving centers were opened up in China dedicated to producing high quality hand knotted rugs.  The patterns on these rugs can vary with the weavers producing both traditional classic Chinese patterns in traditional colors, and also branching out in to new designs suited to modern tastes.

Please let me know your thoughts in the comment section above.

In the first blog in this series on Hand Knotted Rug Construction, we reviewed the foundation – the warp and the weft.  Today’s topic will cover the key visual element that makes hand-knotted rugs what they are – the knots themselves.

Knot Type

There are several different methods of creating knots, some particular to a region or tribe.  Different people have different preferences, we would not say that one particular knot is inherently “better” than another type of knot; it’s really a matter of preference and tradition!  The two predominant types of knots are Asymmetrical Knot and Symmetrical Knot. read more »

To help with all the different rug terms we have put together a glossary of terms.  Please feel free to add more terms by sending an e-mail to blogterms@1000sofrugs.com.

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The construction of hand-knotted rugs is one of the very few traditional manufacturing methods that hasn’t changed over the centuries as technology advanced.  It’s impossible to pinpoint when the first hand-knotted rugs were produced, but fragments of rugs have been found in Persian tombs dating from several centuries B.C.  Hand-knotted rugs have been consistently produced by much the same method ever since! 

 Why is it that essentially every other manufacturing method (including farming, writing, and printing, not to mention more recent developments with the industrial age) has evolved and improved over the centuries, while traditional rug making has been constant?  Could it be because it’s the one tradition that you can’t improve? 

 This article is a first in a series on the traditional construction of hand-knotted rugs.  Today’s topic will identify the basic elements of a rug, and discuss the foundation in detail.  Future topics in this series will discuss wool selection and preparation, dyes, types of knots, and weaving looms. read more »

Custom rug for Flair Tower-Lobby

This Modern Nature Designs  custom rug was created for the Flair Towers  lobby in Chicago.  The owners of the building wanted something different, with “flair”, so we designed this rug based on a classic motif that includes elegant looking dogs.  The rug is an 100 knots per square inch 100% Tibetan wool 8′ x 10′.  The design includes 11 colors.  The detail in the design came out perfect!

Please let me know your thoughts in the comment section above.

Custom Tibetan Rug (Pebbles)

When decorating a home, whether you are a professional interior designer or a self-sufficient home owner, you will have run across the question of what to do with the floor.  Wall to wall carpeting can be boring, stone and tile can be hard to live with (and hard on the feet), and hardwood floors can need something to break up the endless parallel lines.  An area custom rug is often the answer.

But, once you have decided you need an area rug, now what?  Well, you may have spent hours trolling through various shops, department stores, and home improvement stores.  Many people have found what they need in these places and often you can get a machine-made custom rug for an additional fee.  However those who are not interested in “disposable” rugs made with cheap materials (meant to be used for a couple years and then tossed out) are often frustrated by the selection.  And increasingly, people have discovered someone in their family has developed allergies to the synthetic nylons and glues that make up these mass produced rugs.

Hand-knotted rugs on the other hand, are desirable for their beauty, quality, warmth, natural organic materials, and investment properties.  They are often family heirlooms that have been passed down by generations.  If you are lucky enough to have one of these beautiful rugs, you may in fact, be starting with it as a base and decorating the room around it!  read more »

Rug Pads

This may seem like a silly question, but if you have just spent a load of money on a very expensive hand-knotted Oriental Rug, the last thing you want to do is drop a few hundred more on a rug pad that no-one will ever see!  But, ask yourself this, if you purchased a new car, would you skip the oil changes?  Of course not, as everyone knows, changing your oil prolongs the life of your engine and helps you get the most out of your car!  A rug pad can serve the same purpose for your rug. 

Believe it or not, a rug usually wears out faster on the bottom of your rug than on the top.  This is because the bottom of your rug is crushed against the hard floor.  A rug pad cushions your rug and acts as a buffer, keeping it from being constantly smashed. read more »

Children involved in the ‘Care and Fair’ organization were kind enough to make this beautiful Christmas card for 1000s of Rugs. 

Get more information on the Care and Fair organization – dedicated to helping educate children from rug-knotting families.

Please let me know your thoughts in the comment section above.