Tuesday, July 31, 2012

From Tents To Palaces

The rugs that now adorn countless homes, offices and even palaces trace their ancestry to nomadic tribes which wandered the desolate lands of Turkey, Iran, and the Caucasus. These nomadic tribesmen who herded sheep used the wool to create monochromatic flat-weave rugs.
As time passed, they began dying the wool with natural dyes and creating simple, geometric patterns. These same, centuries old techniques can still be found in kilims, grain sacks and saddlebags being woven today by people whose lifestyles remain the same as their ancestors.
No one knows when the first tufts of wool were woven in the threads of a carpet to create a raised surface, i.e. pile. Pile rugs have been discovered in tombs and burial sites which date back to the fifth century B.C.. The Pazyryk Carpet discovered by S.I. Redinko, in a frozen tomb in Siberia is now housed in the hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia. These early rugs demonstrate many of the same techniques and design in use today.
During the sixteenth and seventeenth century these pile rugs became coveted in Europe, where they were used at table coverings and wall hangings. By the eighteenth century Oriental Rugs had begun to be used as floor coverings. Their popularity has continued to grow, and they can now be found throughout the world.

Sourced from 'The Mystique of Oriental Rugs' by the Oriental Rug Retailers of America

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085

Monday, July 30, 2012

Handknotted Rug - Cleaning & Repair

A customer brought in his handknotted rug to our showroom a couple weeks ago with a few things in mind. He first wanted to have it deep cleaned as it had been 2 years since its last cleaning. He then showed us how the rug had started unraveling which the ends of the rug plainly showed. It also has a chunk that was missing that he hoped to have rewoven. Take a look at the before pics below:
This rug meant a lot to him, and he put it into the correct hands to have it cleaned and repaired. First we did our deep cleaning treatment to remove all dirt and debris before the repair started. After it was clean one of our master weavers started work on reweaving the chunk that was missing and then securing the ends so that the unraveling of the rug would stop. Take a look at the results below:
The cleaning brought back the color vibrancy, the reweaving brought its original condition back and the securing of the ends fortified the rugs structure so that it would not be susceptible to unraveling. It look absolutely beautiful and our customer while undoubtedly will have a huge smile on his face when his sees it during the pickup. If you have a rug that needs the ultimate in rug care maintenance/cleaning, bring it to Rug Ideas so we can take care of any rug care need you may have! 

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085

Sunday, July 29, 2012

History of Persian Carpets


 
The Nasir al-Mulk Mosque is a traditional mosque in Shiraz, Iran.

Archaeological discoveries show that mats woven by Roodan region of Iran straws have been frequently used since 4th and 5th millennium, and Kilim weaving has reached a high level of evolution since 1500 BC.
The most ancient handicraft, to which archaeologists have accessed, is a rug that due to its discovery in the frozen tomb of one of Sakai rulers has been named as Pazyryk rug. This rug, which was used as a saddle, is currently preserved in Leningrad Armitage Museum. Experts accredit it to be «Persian» regarding its designs resembling Achaemenian designs and believe that Pazyryk rug is from Madians and Parthians (ancient big Khorasan) handicrafts.
Colours applied in this rug are deep red, yellow, pale green and orange. The resemblance of Iranian cavalries and infantries, as well as winged creatures to Persepolis engravings amplifies expert opinions. Experts also believe that weaving a rug with such properties requires a cultural and artistic support of at least several centuries, indicating that for consecutive centuries – before weaving renowned Pazyryk carpet – this occupation was widely spread in Iranian plateau, decoded by Iranians.
Sayings of historians approve it. As Xenophon, a Greek historian, in his book Cyrus Conduct has written: “Iranians for their beds to be soft, spread rugs beneath them.” This statement indeed shows that carpet weaving was widespread at that time finding a way through daily life as one of necessities. Although no typical type is left from Sassanid era, as evidences show, Persian carpet had a worldwide reputation at that time.
The Chinese Suiy calendar has highlighted the woollen rugs of Iran in Sassanides as goods imported by China. In Farsi literature there is much more talk about the big carpet of “Baharestan” palace belonging to “King Khosrow” showing capabilities of Iranian craftsmen and their pioneering in carpet-weaving artisan.
Experts believe that weaving a rug requires a cultural and artistic support of at least several centuries.
By the appearance of Islam and the overthrow of magnificent Sassanides, this artisan previously supported by nobles, encountered with some stagnation followed by the rise of different governances and political instability which hindered weaving activities. In particular, Arabs cold-shouldered aristocratic way of life in palaces, which was demanding to them who got used to living in deserts under starry skies in tents of mat. The picture of human and animal was abominated and considered as indicator of polytheism and idolatry.
As artists were dispersed in near and far cities, carpet-weaving artisans with no outstanding manifestation continued to exist, but it was not long that following previous kings, Ommiad and Abbassid Caliphs made this artisan bloom by focusing on it. The “History of Beihaghi” description of repeated offers of beautiful rugs by Ali-ibn-Issa from Khorasan to Aaron-Arrasheed in Baghdad and evidences gathered by Islamic historians and geographers from here and there indicate indisputable reason of Iranian developed carpet-weaving culture.
The author of “Hodud-e-Alam” (812 AD) denotes Fars carpet, and a century later, Moghaddasi manifests Qaenat prayer rugs. Yaghut Hemavi (1179 AD, 6th century) informs of Azarbaijan carpet weaving, and Ibn-Batuta, a Maghrebian tourist, narrates that while visiting Izeh, a Bakhtiari region, on his way from Khur Mousa in Persian Gulf to Isfahan, a green carpet was spread in front of him. Farsi literature does not lack these indications either. Khaghani Shervani narrates the reputation of Marandi carpets in the 6th century.
The invasion by Mongolian tribes ruined what was the achievement of previous kings. They were fighters who had conquered the world on horseback, whose wives did not accompany them in war. Rugs, born by women’s hands, not only did not find a way to Iran by their attack, but also small workshops of them were destroyed and designers fled to far and remote places.
Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)

Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085

Friday, July 27, 2012

A Tibetan Rug For Repair From Florida

A couple of weeks ago, a reputable rug collector and cleaner from Miami, Florida referred one of his clients to us. This gentleman had a nice big Tibetan rug which had rotten borders caused by water damage. The extend of the damage was beyond repair. We consulted the owner and then removed all the damaged borders.
Then we did the bindings and selvages on the sides by hand. We also unraveled one inch of the rug from each end and secured the fringes. Since we secured the rug evenly from each side, the design of the  rug looks symmetrical now and not everybody can realize that this rug was repaired. The background of the rug was also very dirty and had so many nasty stains. Most of the stains were taken care of in our process of deep cleaning. Few of them were stain removed and the rug looks absolutely clean and fresh again.
We had received the rug by Fedex and shipped it back this afternoon. We're sure our client will be happy and will love his rug again. This is the message I received from this rug collector and cleaner after I sent him the before/after pictures:

"Looks amazing!!!!! Great work!!!!"

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Oriental Rugs From India

India, in recent years, has become one of the leading centers of Oriental Rug production due greatly to its large primarily rural population. The rug industry has boosted the standard of living for many Indians while allowing them to remain in a rural setting instead of travelling to a city to find industrial employment.
More rugs are currently imported by the United States from India than from any other country. As most of the rugs produced are destined for export, Indian craftsmen are very conscious of market demands, and rugs from India are available in a wide range of colors, sizes and designs.
Most of the patterns produced in India originated in other countries, and practically every popular carpet design is produced. As many of these carpets are called by the name of the places where the design originated, it is important to understand that only the design and not the carpet originated from these places.
The Uttar Pradesh (UP) providence which is also referred to as Varnassi district, in Central India is the most prolific rug weaving area in the world today. Almost every cottage in this vast area from Aallabad to the ancient city of Barnares (Varnasi), is involved in rug weaving. A trip to this area is like returning to the 16th century as everything is done by hand.

sourced from "The Mystique of Oriental Rugs" by Oriental Rug Retailers of America, Inc.

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Part 2 - Tufted Rug Cleaning - Rug Ideas Treatment

Two days ago we did a post of the cleaning of a customer's tufted rug which was heavily stained, went through our deep cleaning & came out fantastic. Well we have a repeat story as the second piece he brought in has just finishing going through the same deep cleaning treatment. Take a look at the before pics of his second tufted rug below:
Many spills marred the surface of this tufted rug but it was no match for the Rug Ideas deep cleaning. Take a look at how the results look after our treatment:

Our customer is going to be double wowed with how his rugs turned out and we couldn't be happier. Brings us your old, tired & stained rugs so we can give it the Rug Ideas deep cleaning treatment!

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
Tel. 310-770-9085

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Afghanistan - History & Rugs

Afghanistan is an arid and desolate land whose people have lived in turmoil for centuries, was ruled by the British from the seventeenth century through the mid twentieth century. The British rule was replaced by King Mohammed Zaher who rules until the Russian invasion forced his exile. Meeting with great resistance the Russians left, leaving Afghanistan with further turmoil caused by the Taliban. The Afghan people come from a tribal background where they learned to be prolific rug weavers; the art of weaving being passed down from mother to daughter.
Rugs from Afghanistan tend to be quite stylized with a limited number of colors. The Afghan guls and the Ersari are similar to the "Bokhara" in pattern and color and are the basis for most Afghanistan rugs. Another popular type is the Belouch, which are primarily made by nomadic tribesmen. The Belouch weavers are particularly fond of prayer rugs in dark colors and primarily utilize geometric patterns.
Many rugs are made by Afghan refugees living in Pakistan, on the "New Frontier" along the Afghanistan border around Pesharar. Some of these rugs contain traditionally Afghan designs. However the Caucasian and Persian designs woven there are very popular with today's decorating trends.

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085

Monday, July 23, 2012

Tufted Rug Cleaning -Rug Ideas Treatment

A tufted rug was brought in by one of customers recently that really needed the Rug Ideas treatment. It had been severely stained from years used in his living room. Take a look at some pics of the rug below:
This tufted was absolutely in need of our deep cleaning and we started the process right away. It first went through dusting to get all loose debris out of it, then it was massaged with our special blend of rug shampoo enzymes that help break apart the stains, and was thoroughly wet washed/rinsed and naturally dried in the sun. Take a look at the results below:
The final results came out great and this tufted rug is now ready to be placed down and enjoyed again. We can't wait for our customer to pick up his rug so we can see the smile on his face. If you have a rug that has been stained from years of use, bring it in to Rug Ideas so we can give it the treatment it deserves... the Rug Ideas treatment!

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
Tel. 310-770-9085

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Weaving My Way Through Morocco: A Talk at the Textile Museum Associates of Southern California

We had a very interesting lecture today delivered by Lynn Dines at the Textile Museum 
Associates of Southern California here in Los Angeles today. Linda Mansouri the president of the society welcomed the guests and made few announcements. The Cheri Hunter, the program chair introduced the speaker. Lynn Dines  has worked in Morocco as a volunteer and served in the Peace Corps from 2008 to 2010. She worked with a cooperative of women weavers to promote their rugs, kilims and textiles.

The Cooperative, Taeawniya Adwal was formed in 2006 to preserve the traditional weaving designs of the Eastern Middle Atlas Region (Beni Ouarain) and to provide needed income to women of Ribat El Kheir. In addition Taeawniya Adwal provides training to weaving apprentices. 

Historically Moroccan carpets were made by Berber tribes, most of which were semi-nomadic. The carpets were typically used as bedding or blankets and were made by the women for their own families. The weaving techniques and designs were passed on thru generations of women. The weaver would draw from the vocabulary of designs particular to her tribe and work at her loom without a diagram or pattern to guide her. As a result, each rug is unique-a combination of both her tribal identity and her artistry. The main design concept of Middle Atlas carpets is based on a diamond grid. These carpets are woven to be adaptable to mountain climates. They typically have a high pile and are loosely knotted to mimic sheepskin to protect against the cold. In warmer climates a lower pile and finer weave is used where such insulation is not necessary. Weaving in Morocco has a very practical function, yet it is also a source of cultural pride for Moroccans.



















This well attended program ended with questions and answers. There was also a show and tell section at the end of the talk. I enjoyed the program very much. Our next program will be on five centuries of Kerman carpets. Dr. Taher Sabahi will be the speaker and will present his new book on Kerman rugs. To learn about this by-reservation for the members-only event, please visit http://tmasc.org/

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085