In this blog entry, the New Jersey oriental rug cleaning service team here at Carpetline will detail what types of materials are used to create luxury oriental rugs, and what these materials themselves are made out of.
What materials are used to create oriental rugs?
- Fleece- Made from wool, this natural fiber is highly durable, lasts very long, is very soft, and is stain and moisture resistant. Fleece has fantastic insulation properties, keeping heat in and making it an excellent rug material. Fleece quality is impacted by sheep breed, what area the sheep live in, and the local weather. The best wool comes from sheep in cold and mountainous regions of Central Asia. This wool is very shiny, very strong, and very durable. Oriental rugs are made from hand-spun wool, twisted together in strands with a spindle during a complicated and laborious process. The yarn created from this traditional process is thicker and much more long lasting than wool spun by machine.
- Silk – Silk Is an expensive and natural product made from the cocoon of the silkworm. silk is considered a luxury product due to its shininess, softness, and durability. silk also provides fantastic insulation value. silk is much more expensive than wool, and is often used only in the most luxurious Oriental rugs, or as a design feature combined with other materials. silk can be used to create special patterns and designs that are difficult to make with just wool. The sacs of the Bombyx mori silkworm are the main source of the silk used in Oriental carpets, which is cultivated in Asia. These silkworms eat mulberry leaves, which helps them create the best quality silk fiber possible. This fiber is hand spun into yarn to create the intricate designs often found in oriental rugs.
- Cotton – Cotton, a natural fiber that directly comes from the cotton plant, is a very popular material for Oriental Rugs due to its softness and durability. cotton can easily be dyed many different colors, and is highly affordable. Most Oriental Rugs have a cotton base. strands of cotton are intertwined and woven together to create a very sturdy Foundation that can hold up the rug’s pile. Often, the fringe that runs around the edges of the rug is also made of cotton.
- Additional Oriental Rug Materials– Sometimes, oriental rugs might be made out of coarse goat hair fiber, or even luxurious metallic gold or silver threads.
What is the importance of oriental rug materials?
The value and quality of an oriental rug is dictated by what material it is made out of. The best Oriental Rugs are made out of the best materials, like high quality wool and silk. These make these Oriental Rugs feel much more luxurious, but also increase their General lifespan. how complex and elegant and oriental rug is also dictated by the quality of the materials. silk is usually used to make special patterns and designs that are difficult to make with just wool. The form of wool used also dictates what kind of designs are possible for an oriental rug. The special wool from highland sheep creates shiny and durable yarn that can achieve small fine details, while coarser wool from lowland sheep create more rustic and traditional designs.
What are the special processes used to create oriental rugs?
Oriental rug Weavers use special traditional processes and techniques to make Oriental Rugs out of raw materials. A common technique is hand nodding. This process involves the use of a small and sharp knotting hook. The Weaver will tie special knots around the warp threads, and then tightly pack left threads together to create a pile. This process takes a very long time and allows for the creation of very detailed designs and patterns.
Rug weavers use a very complicated traditional process to dye rugs. The majority of high-end oriental rug dyes come from natural sources like minerals, plants, or even insects. The dying process is controlled according to incredibly specific rules for temperature and timing.