Oriental Rug Salon explains what a "tufted" area rug is, and if it stinks, why it stinks. If you look at the back of an area rug and you cannot see the pattern that appears on the front, chances are you have a "tufted rug." Unlike hand-knotted area rugs where you can see the same design on the back as the front, tufted rugs have a cloth backing on the backside, and there is an excellent reason for this.  To view our video on tufted rugs, click here. A machine can make tufted rugs in a factory or a person using a handheld tufting gun. When a tufted rug is made, the face yarns (yarns appearing on the front of the rug) are poked through a backing material. To hold [...]

One aspect of pile rugs that often gets overlooked but has a significant impact on their appearance is the direction of the nap.  Oriental Rug Salon regularly receives calls from interior designers and rug owners advising that their area rug "looks different" when viewed from different angles. When you run your hand back and forth across the surface of a rug, you'll notice that the rug feels smooth in one direction, while in the other direction, it has a rough feel. The reason for this is because the rug pile doesn't stand straight up but slants toward one end of the rug. This slant doesn't just give the textile a tactile quality, but it has a noticeable impact on the rug's colors because of how the pile reflects light. If [...]

Oriental, Persian, Wool, And Silk Area Rugs Are Made To Last Walk All Over That Rug – It’s essential to understand that even though a hand-woven rug is valuable, it’s made to be used.  Please don’t keep it in a room by itself for fear of walking on it.  With usage, most hand-knotted rugs gain a certain patina that enhances their beauty.  If you’re not going to enjoy it, why have it? Vacuuming Is Good – You should sweep AND vacuum your area rug regularly.  Sweeping helps to dislodge contaminants such as pollen, soils, and dust mites, making vacuuming more thorough.  Watch out for the fringes.  We’ve repaired many area rugs with fringe that were involved in a fight with a vacuum cleaner. Hand-woven area rugs can benefit from being [...]

Oriental Rug Salon is SW Florida's trusted source for Oriental and Persian area rug cleaning, repair, and appraisals. We are a WoolSafe Approved Service Provider, certified by the International Carpet & Rug Institute (CRI) and a Certified Partner with the prestigious Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC).  Our knowledgeable, certified staff has the experience and resources to deliver a phenomenal cleaning for any wool, silk, blend, cotton, or synthetic area rug experience in oriental rug cleaning and repair. How Often Should Area Rugs Be Washed Area rugs should be professionally washed every 3-5 years. In high traffic areas, such as foyers and family rooms, and for homes with pets, we recommend having the area rug cleaned every 1-3 years. Dry cleaning and steam cleaning your hand-knotted area rug [...]

Many rugs marketed today as “silk” are in fact, artificial silk rugs made of Viscose fibers.  Rugs made of Viscose are technically Viscose rayon and can present problems for those who own and have them cleaned. If you own a Viscose rug, it’s important to know the advantages and disadvantages of owning this type of fiber.  Viscose is made of wood pulp and cotton byproducts.  Viscose is also called faux silk, art silk, man-made silk, fake silk, Rayon, banana silk, bamboo silk, lyocell, and raime. Many “inexpensive” designers’ rugs found today labeled as any of the above, are designed to make consumers think they’re purchasing “real silk” rugs.  Viscose is shiny and soft, often mimicking silk fibers.  Viscose fibers are weak and break easily when walked on and can be [...]

Your Oriental, Persian, Turkish and other wool and silk area rugs are not just home decor. They are also valuable textiles or cherished family heirlooms. At Oriental Rug Salon, our expertise in this industry can help you make the right decisions when cleaning and repairing your investment. We deliver a customized cleaning and treatment process for each rug trusted to us by utilizing old-world handwashing practices, coupled with experienced-certified technicians and leading-edge technology.  We provide a thorough and effective yet gentle cleaning process that removes years of dirt, oils, pollen, spills, and pet dander. In addition to stains and spots, we take special care to remove pet urine and odors. When evaluating a rug for cleaning, we consider a variety of factors to develop a customized treatment and cleaning plan [...]

Oriental Rug Salon is SW Florida’s leading Oriental and Persian rug washing company serving clients nationwide. Oriental Rug Salon focuses on hand-washing techniques and effective treatments and guarantees the highest cleaning standards.  Every rug that enters our facility receives the utmost care and attention to detail, and all cleaning efforts are supervised under the watchful eye of a certified rug master.  Our cleaning solutions are GOLD Certified by the Carpet & Rug Institute, are allergen-free, and do not contain any hazardous or harsh agents. We specialize in various rug types, including Oriental, Persian, Turkish, Kilim’s, Hides, hand-knotted, Tufted and machine-made, and all other wool and silk textiles. Each rug accepted is inspected with Xenon and high-intensity lighting to help us determine the best method for cleaning your carpet.  Our specialized [...]

How long does it take to weave a quality wool area rug? A 4X6 area rug with 400 knots per square inch (KPSI) takes about 230 days. A 6X9 at 400 KPSI 518 days. 8X10 at 400 KPSI 768 days and a 9X12 at 400 KPSI approximately 1036 days.  Conversely, machine-made rugs of the same size can be made in a matter of hours. Due to the hand-woven nature of these area rugs coupled with their unique cleaning needs, here is why you should NEVER let a carpet cleaning company "clean" your area rug:  For Video Click Here Persian, Turkish, Oriental, and other wool and silk carpets are considered luxury items that add warmth, texture, color, and character to any room they occupy.  A hand-knotted area rug can last for [...]

Thoroughly Exhaustive Hand Washing of Oriental, Persian, and Turkish Rugs You may have owned your cherished area rug for many years now, but have you ever had it washed? Depending on the type of rug you have and the amount of traffic it receives, your rug should be cleaned every one to three years, depending on traffic, to help preserve its natural beauty, character, and longevity.  Click here to video our video. Natural fibers such as wool or silk in most hand-knotted rugs are as soft and beautiful as they are absorbent. Odors, dust, dander, dust mites, and spills all love to stick to these fibers.  A thorough vacuuming weekly will help remove most loose soils but is ineffective in eliminating oils and embedded sand and spills such as coffee, [...]

Annually the technicians at Oriental Rug Salon see dozens of cherished area rugs brought to our shop showing signs of moth or other insect damage. Sometimes the damage is confined to a small area, and corrective action can result in a seamless repair.  In other instances, the damage is extensive, leaving the area rug unsalvageable.  We’ve seen $50,000 rugs reduced to zero in a matter of weeks due to moth or other insect invasions. Facts About Moth Damage Adult clothes moths do not cause damage; they produce larvae that cause devastation to wool area rugs due to larvae feeding on wool.  Of the various type of moths, there are only two kinds to be concerned with: the webbing moth and the casemaking moth. Both moths’ spin a silken tube that [...]