Live Christmas trees are beautiful. They look good, and they smell even better! However, where you place your live tree in the home should be a thoroughly thought-out process. And here is WHY? Most people like to place their Christmas tree in the living room where the family gathers.  Many of us who own wool or silk area rugs also want to put our cherished Oriental or Persian in the living room so that we can enjoy it year-round. Placing our Christmas tree and area rug in the same room are fantastic ideas; placing our live tree on top of the area rug is a disaster waiting to happen, and here is why.  It is hard to crawl under the tree, and it's even harder to see exactly how high [...]

Oriental Rug Salon performs hundreds of Oriental, Persian, Turkish, and every other kind of wool and silk area rug and textile online appraisals annually. There are many reasons why someone would request an appraisal, such as: For insurance purposes Our of curiosity or to learn the history, age, and approximate value of their area rug Perhaps they’re interested in selling or purchasing a rug and would like to know its value They may have inherited an area rug and want to learn its value and history The ending of a marriage or death may necessitate the division of property For estate planning purposes Or for the management of assets Our appraisals are performed by experts who specialize in Oriental, Persian, Turkish, and all other wool and silk textiles.  Our appraisal [...]

When presenting lectures to various professional organizations, we are often asked, "how does a rug owner know who to choose when caring for their cherished area rug?" First off, the rug owner needs to know the processes the rug cleaning company uses to clean area rugs. Many high production rug cleaning plants use mechanical equipment similar to a large washtub.  They dump up to a dozen rugs at a time into this tank and a large paddle agitates the rugs.  They use this process because they can wash many rugs at a time and it doesn't take much skill or salary to pay someone to hit the "start button."  Another problem with this process is that their client's rug is being washed with many others that could contain pet urine, [...]

There is nothing like the feeling of a plush rug under your feet or the beauty of an Oriental or Persian rug as the focal point in a room.  Your rug is where you or maybe even your children or grandchildren play videogames, enjoy your pets or watch TV. But without regular cleaning, your cherished area rug will quickly turn into an incubator for unwanted guests in your home. Dirty rugs are germ breeding farms, allowing bacteria, insects, and even viruses to find a place to multiply. And many of these can be very stubborn to remove. Due to the inherent nature of natural and synthetic fibers found in wall to wall and wool or silk area rugs, it can be hard to avoid exposure to germs. To protect those [...]

Area rugs can harbor a great deal of dirt, viruses, and germs, especially at times like these, when we are all stuck at home. From everyday household allergens to dirt, bacteria, and viruses, a dirty rug can impact the health of your household. An area rug can hold pounds of dirt, dust mites, and allergens before it starts to look dirty.  No matter how powerful your vacuum cleaner is, it will never remove contaminants that are stuck in the foundation of your cherished area rug.  As a result, it is essential to have your rug cleaned by a professional cleaner at least once a year to preserve the beauty of your Oriental, Persian, or Turkish rug while improving indoor air quality. If someone in your household is sick and your [...]

What is 100% Natural Viscose? In simple terms, Viscose is a manufactured textile made from the cellulose found in trees and plants.  The cellulose, or byproduct of these plants are then heavily processed using a cocktail of chemicals such as Caustic Soda and Sulphuric Acid to break down their fiber content. Viscose's source material is always plant-based (hence the term 'natural' often used by manufacturers and retailers to describe Viscose); however, due to the artificial manufacturing process, it is more accurately a semi-synthetic fiber. Do Viscose rugs have other names on the material tag I should be on the lookout for? Yes. Viscose is also referred to as Bamboo Silk, Banana Silk, Rayon, Plant Silk, Art (artificial) Silk, and countless brand names that are copyrighted. Why are viscose rugs so [...]

Oriental Rug Salon provides area rug appraisals and valuations throughout the United States.  We are an internationally certified WoolSafe Service Provider, certified by the prestigious Carpet & Rug Institute, A+ Rated by the Better Business Bureau, and a seven-year-in-a-row-winner of the coveted Angie's List Super Service Award. We are proud to lend our experience and certification to those rug owners seeking to obtain an appraisal of their cherished Persian, Oriental, Turkish, Tribal, or other wool or silk rug. Our appraisers are experts at area rug and textile valuations and we offer in-person and online appraisals with an average turn-around time of 4 days. Oriental, Persian, Turkish, and other wool, and silk rugs are a commodity, and their value is based on quality, availability, supply, demand, knot density, age, and the [...]

Oriental, Persian, Turkish, And  Wool and Silk Textile Online Appraisals Oriental Rug Salon is a respected and trusted source for many rug collectors, insurance companies, Oriental and Persian area rug retailers, interior designers, and rug owners.  With the right pictures and information, we are able to appraise a wide variety of Oriental, Persian, Turkish, Navajo, and all other wool and silk rugs, carpets, and textiles. Oriental Rug Salon is a Certified WoolSafe Service Provider, A+ Rated with the Better Business Bureau, an approved partner with the International Carpet & Rug Institute, and a Certified Partner with the prestigious Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification. Recently a client asked us to provide them with identification and information on a cherished area rug they'd always been curious about.  Our simple appraisal [...]

Would you take a bath in this water?  Why should your area rug? Imagine for a moment.  The time has come to clean your cherished wool or silk area rug, and you don't know who to call. You perform a quick internet search, find a company close by, give them a call, secure an estimate, and the next thing you know, your rug is off to be "cleaned." Did you ask the right questions to make sure your area rug was going to be returned in better condition than when it left your home?  Will it be fresh and clean?  What procedures will the company use to clean your rug?  Is the company a specialist in wool and silk rug cleaning?  Are they certified and experienced, or are they a [...]

We're often asked is there a difference between genuine hand-washing of an area rug versus cleaning it by using the automated batch washing method as found at many production rug cleaning plants. To answer this question, call the auto manufacturers Bentley, Porche, Mercedes, Rolls Royce, and many other high-end producers and ask them why they recommend hand washing of their cars. Contact any museum and ask them if they allow their janitorial staff to clean wool or silk area rugs or farm them out to mechanical batch-washing facilities. The truth of the matter is, hand-washing of Oriental, Persian, Turkish, and all other wool and silk rugs and textiles is best left to professionals who are certified, experienced, and who clean rugs one at a time. To emphasize our point, the [...]