(A sneak peek of my new rug which has totally transformed my living room)
When we bought our first home nearly 10 years ago, we had to
fill it with ‘stuff’ of low quality on a tight budget, without taking much time
or putting much thought into what we were filling our house with. Now, moving
into the next stage of life I have wanted to be extra mindful of selecting
quality and timeless designs. The rugs I’ve lived with for years have had every
problem in the book - including constant shedding, falling apart at the seams,
and not standing up to proper cleaning processes. That’s why today I’m excited to
share a bit of insight with you on how to select a high quality rug that will
withstand wear and tear, and truthfully be special enough to maintain & repair
and pass down to your children as a family heirloom.
I turned to Pacific Rug Gallery, a local family-owned business (my favorite type of business to
support!) to help educated me. Before meeting them, I didn’t fully grasp the
important difference between hand-tufted versus hand-knotted rug, now I finally understand why the quality of my past rugs was so poor! Hossein Daliri, owner of PRG, is personally trained in Persian rug creation and reconstruction
and comes with a wealth of knowledge and experience.
Given the popularity of classic Persian rugs in design right now,
I thought it would be helpful to do a little interview with the owner Hossein, about these rugs and what the different styles are, how to care for
them and what to look for. If you are a designer, they have a enormous selection & a trade program
which you can sign up for to receive information and discounts, contact
them HERE and request info on the trade program!
Nancy Marcus: Where do
you source your rugs from?
Hossein Daliri: Our rugs are sourced from all over the world
including Persian rugs, Indian rugs, Nepalese rugs, Turkish rugs, Moroccan rugs
and ….. What is important is that we hand select every single rug before
bringing it into our Gallery.
(An example of a Classic Design pattern with the ever-popular blue coloration and center medallion)
NM: What are
the important characteristics of a high-quality rug that educated customers should be
looking for?
HD: There are many characteristics that need to
be taken into account when deciding on a rug. Quality is often dependent on the knot count
and quality, generally speaking, the smaller and more compact and dense the
knots are, the finer the rug and the higher the quality. Also, the materials
used such as wool, silk, cotton, or a combination of them are important in
determining the strength of the pile to withstand wear and tear.
NM: Can you
educate us on the superiority of the hand-knotted technique over lower-quality
hand-tufted rugs?
HD: Hand tufted rugs are woven using a special
tool that looks like a gun. The knots are manufactured in the gun and thus, the
time it takes to complete a hand tufted rug is by far less than the time
required to weave a similar sized hand woven rug. Hand tufted rugs are
completed by adding a fabric backing using special glue, which may wear off
over time and causes the release of fluff and dried glue into the air, it is
not very nice to breathe those materials which are generally synthetic viscose.
The hand-knotted rugs are of much higher
quality and require much longer time to complete as every single knot is
executed by the talented hands of the weavers. They last many many years and
grow in value over time like a priceless investment. The materials used are
wool, silk, and cotton in combinations or on their own.
NM: What seems
to be the hottest trend in rugs right now?
HD: The hottest trends include the Transitional Design which is a perfect modern recreation of classic and traditional patterns
usually with a combination of wool and silk or wool and cotton. The patterns
tend to use more subtle colors that are easy to fit with most decor making
them versatile and beautiful in various settings.
Another trendy style is the
Vintage Design made exclusively by Pacific Rug Gallery where some rugs are
distressed and overdyed to create a worn look with various colors. They are
also versatile and work well with both contemporary and classic home decors.
(Beautiful Vintage Design with the current popular distressed and washed-out appearance)
NM: What is
one rug design that a homeowner can select to keep a classic timeless look that
will never go out of style?
HD: The Heris Design is one of the most timeless
and classic designs that has been quite trendy and fashionable over many years. It is also still used in the transitional
rug patterns as well.
(Stunning classic Heris Design which is guaranteed to never go out of style!)
NM: How do you
care for and clean new and vintage rugs?
HD: For home care, the best thing to do is vacuum
regularly and expose the rug to air and light as much as possible to keep away
moths and ensure the rug stays in good shape. We also recommend that the rugs
be professionally cleaned once every 2-3 years (which is a service we
provide).
(If the traditional-look is not your personal style, these high-quality rugs also come in hundreds of contemporary designs as seen above)
I paid several visits to the bright gallery on the North Shore of
Vancouver where rugs are displayed like pieces of art along the white walls.
Truthfully there were so many beautiful design options for my own living room,
it was a tough decision to come to! I started by selecting my desired color
palette, then the size appropriate for my room (8x10 in my case - I'll talk more about gauging size of a rug for your space in a future post), and then
choosing a pile and material that would stand up to every day wear and tear.
Hand-knotted wool & cotton was the way to go, and the rug I chose has over
200 knots per square inch (the higher the density, the higher the quality!) on
a relatively thin pile which is easy to clean and very functional for everyday
use.
(A huge shout out to Hossein, Mina (pictured here), Shahab, Majid, and all the staff at PRG for their outstanding knowledge & service!)
If you follow me on Instagram you may have
noticed I shared my selections with you and even had the chance to have you
vote using a poll. On top of that, the staff at PRG helped make it easier on me
by allowing me to see my top 2 choices in the actual space before finalizing
such a big decision. In home trials is part of the service they offer, now that
is a true customer service experience I have rarely experienced!
A huge thank you to PacificRug Gallery for helping me in selecting such an investment piece that is truly
like art in my living space. I was so impressed with the exceptional selection
of rugs as well as rug repair and cleaning process services they provide. And I hope it gives all of you a chance to feel like you've learned something helpful about what makes a high-quality rug high-quality! I always assume, the more we know, the better decisions we can make. I
cannot wait to share the finished room with you all, I had the opportunity to
have the fabulous Tracey Ayton professionally photograph the finished living
room with my rug installed and I’ll have the final reveal for you next week,
stay tuned!
