What is a Modern Rug?

Modern rugs started to be made in the 1920’s and 1930’s in response to direct needs of the western market. They have dynamic designs.

 

What is a Rug?

A rug is a decor element that came to being as a result of the search for a comfortable and warm floor textile.

 

What is a Handmade Rug?

Handmade rugs that use threads made of animal wool (such as goat, lamb) dyed with vegetable dyes woven are hand knotted following certain patterns to create motifs and designs on them.

 

How is a Handmade Rug made?

In the process of making handmade rugs vegetable dyed threads are used to knot strands of warp on a loom and then compressed by the weaving of the weft. The patterns that are followed while knotting the weft create traditional motifs and designs. The distinguishing factor in handmade rugs is the knot density, the quality of the dyes and the wool used. The quality of the overall design is also an important deciding factor when it comes to valuing the handmade rug.  

 

Why should i buy a Handmade Rug?

The most fundamental materials used in handmade rugs are wool, cotton and silk. In the dyeing of these materials vegetable dyes are used. All of the materials used are natural materials and they last for a very long time. Quality of materials and durability are two important reasons to purchase a handmade rug.

 

How is a Handmade Rug dyed?

Vegetable dyes produced in Turkey are considered the best in the world and they are crucial in the rug making process. The dye is mixed with water in a caldron in which the wool will be dyed. The water is heated to 70 degrees Celsius. The vegetable dye dissolves in water as water heats up and then it passes into the wool, dyeing it. For the dye to fully color the wool, it is kept in the caldron for 24 hours. After this procedure the wool is washed with soap and dried. The dyed wool is ready to be used in rug making.

 

What is the difference between Handmade and Machine Made Rugs? How do we distinguish a handmade rug?

The easiest method is to look at the back of the rug. Machine made rugs are not knotted. Wool is installed into the rug with the help of a machine and then the back side is reinforced with latex. When you look at the back of a machine made rug you can not see the motif in the front of the rug. Handmade rugs are made by knotting each knot by hand and if you look at the back of a handmade rug you can see the motif in the front also at the back. Another difference is materials used in machine made rugs are synthetic and dyes are chemical. In handmade rugs only natural materials are used.

 

What kind of Rugs are hygienic?

Thread is the building block of rugs. The type of thread used and the technique used in the making of rugs determine their quality. Wool is widely used as thread in handmade rugs and it is a durable, soft and colorful material. It is more expensive compared to threads made of nylon, polyester and acrylic. The most important distinguishing characteristic of wool is it sucks in humidity if the environment it is used in is humid and releases humidity if the environment it is used in is dry hence it helps keep the humidity in its environment at a desired level. Wool does not create odor and it does not get dusty easily. Another characteristic of wool rugs is they are a sound isolation material, they absorb sound. They are anti allergen and do not contain anything that hinders health. Handmade rugs are hygienic and an excellent piece of home decor.

 

What kind of materials are used in Handmade Rugs?

The type of thread and the technique used in the making of the rug determine the quality of a handmade rug. Wool is the predominant material used in handmade rugs.

 

Wool

It is the most expensive thread compared to others used in rug making. It is favored due to its soft touch. Wool is durable, it does not stain or wear easily. It is also easily cleaned.

 

Silk

Silk is another highly preferred material. Silkworms produce silk. Silk cocoon is processed and turned into silk thread.

 

Cotton

One of the other materials used in rug making is cotton. It stains easier compared to wool and it is not easily cleaned because it sucks in and keeps humidity. Cotton is more widely used in kilim weavings. Because cotton is washable it is preferred in the making of bathroom kilims.

 

Animal Hair

Goat hair is a material used in rug making. Lamb hair is softer than goat hair. Animal hair is usually used by mixing it with wool.

 

Jute

It is a dark brown plant and it is usually used under rugs to cover the floor.

 

How to choose a Handmade Rug?

A rug is one of the most difficult decisions when decorating a home. The main reason for this is we try to find a rug that will be in harmony with our furniture, curtains and other design elements.

Rugs are the primary element when it comes to adding character and personality to our spaces. Things to take into consideration when choosing a rug is our furniture, curtains, colors of our walls and colors of remaining accessories. You should first decide on which room you are looking a rug for and how big.

Then while deciding on the color of the rug the harmony of the color with the color of the floor should be taken into consideration. If you want the floor to be more visible a neutral rug with no distinct design should be preferred. If you want to attract attention to your furniture pastel colors should be preferred. .

Try warm colors such as orange, yellow and red if you want to create a warm atmosphere in your room. Choosing cool colors such as blue and grey will make your room feel larger. Also leaving some empty floor space on the sides will make the room the rug is used in seem larger. This way you create a feeling of spaciousness.

If you have armchairs and sofas with patterns we recommend a more neutral rug. Another thing to think about is the lighting in the room; depending on the lighting colors on a rug seem differently. Therefore a rug may look different in a showroom and different when it finds its place in your home.

Remember to ask for a photo of the rug taken in sunlight if your home takes a lot of sunlight and a photo taken in spot light if your home uses a lot of lighting and takes less sunlight when shopping for rugs online.

When buying a handmade rug you may be spending more up front; but in the long term this investment will help you spend less.

 

What is a Turkish Rug?

Turkish rugs have a long history. Those who support the idea that the rug making culture started with Turkic tribes build their argument on the fact that the oldest known rug, Pazyryk rug, was made using the double knot technique also known as the Turkish rug. Turkish rug history goes back as far as 2500 years judging from the age of the Pazyryk rug. Archeologists think that Pazyryk rug may have been made in 2nd - 5th century BC. The reason that this rug lived to see our present day was because the burial chamber it was found in was flooded and the water that came in froze, with the Pazyryk rug in it. The other findings in the burial chamber are written documents in ancient Turkish and from here we can deduct that rug making can be tied to ancient Turkic tribes. Pazyryk rug is currently being displayed in the Hermitage Museum in Russia.

Weaving tradition was brought to the land of Anatolia with Turks migrating to these lands and the tradition of Turkish rugs continued here. Henceforth Turkish rugs are also known as ‘Anatolian rugs’. Flat weaving types known as kilim, soumak, jijim, zili are the oldest weaving techniques known. As a result we call all the rugs made in Anatolia Turkish Rugs.

16th century was the golden age of Turkish rugs. Many rugs were commissioned for palaces and masques. These rugs carry design elements from Ottoman architecture. Two main types of rugs were made during this time.

The first type is Palace Rugs. Palace rugs were made in Ottoman palaces by rug artists. On these rugs the single knot also known as Persian rugs were used. When weaving of these rugs started a clear Persian influence was present. With time rugs that were made gained their unique Anatolian character. In this period main themes in Ottoman art, tulips, hyacinth and cloves were widely used on rugs.

Second type of rugs that were made in this period was Oushak rugs. Oushak rugs were made to be used in Ottoman palaces and to be sent as gifts to other countries. The motifs on Oushak rugs were designed by palace artists and they were sent to Oushak to be woven into rugs. The name Oushak comes from the Anatolian region Oushak. Oushak rugs have two subcategories as medallion and flower Oushak rugs.

In the 17th century other famous types of Turkish rugs emerged. They were named after the regions they were made in and they are Ghiordes, Kula, Bergama, Milas, Konya-Ladik and Mudjur rugs. These rugs were favored exports to all over Europe in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries.

 

Turkish Rugs and their motifs

Motifs on Turkish rugs is the material manifestation of their weavers’ inner world. As it is in many other art forms, motifs on rugs have the function of expressing the feelings of their weavers.

The most widely used symbols in Turkish weaving culture are;

Scorpion, hook, hand, fingers, hands on hips, bird and tree of life.