The above is a picture of the American Viscose plant in Front Royal, Virginia A quality 5X7 hand-knotted silk area rug can cost $5000.00 or more, whereas a “faux silk” Viscose area rug can be had for a couple of hundred dollars. In upscale showrooms, we’ve seen retailers charge thousands of dollars for Viscose to an unsuspecting buyer. Basically, what the client just purchased was an overpriced, chemically treated fake silk rug. Viscose, to the untrained eye, is designed to look like silk for rock bottom pricing. Many people purchase rugs made of Viscose because of their “designer look,” believing that these rugs are just as good as the “real thing.” What is Viscose? Viscose is a form of rayon made from wood pulp and cellulose that goes through a [...]
One of the most important things you can do after having your cherished area rug cleaned is to have a professional-grade fiber protector applied. What Is Rug Protector, And How Does It Work? There are dozens of "fiber protectors" on the market, including the consumer-grade products you can buy at your local grocery or hardware store. These "over the counter" products can never match the quality of commercial-grade applications' strength or protection ability. At Oriental Rug Salon, we apply one of the industry's best commercial-grade wool and silk protectors. Unlike many fabric protectors that are diluted with water, our protector contains no water and is safe for all wool and silk fibers. Major carpet and textile mills use the same fluorochemical resins found in our protectors known for resisting all [...]
Hand-knotted area rugs can be an investment – and with good reason. Many have aesthetic, functional, historical, and investment potential, which means that time and care must be taken in selecting a rug for your home. In addition, the rug's durability needs to be taken into consideration (you wouldn't want a silk rug in a heavy traffic area). The rug will maintain its value and looks not only by the quality of the textile materials but by its location in the home and the number of people who will be walking across it. The key factors that determine the quality (and thus the price) of a handmade rug are: Size – Large rugs not only contain more material and require more labor but are more challenging to handle and transport, [...]
Oriental Rug Salon has an unrivaled reputation as the leading Oriental rug cleaning, restoration, and repair expert of Persian, Turkish, Navaho, wool, and silk rugs and carpets throughout SW Florida. We do everything by hand—no batch washing machines, and no harsh cleaning solutions, ever. Whether your cherished area rug requires a thorough hand washing, a small patch of frayed fringe, or a complete restoration, every repair and rug washing is undertaken with the same level of care and skill that has earned us over 15,000 clients throughout the United States. Oriental Rug Salon’s textile cleaning team consists of highly trained and certified traditional artisans with extensive experience cleaning, restoring, and repairing Oriental, Persian, and Turkish carpets, rugs, and runners worldwide. Our tradesman knowledge is part of a living tradition that [...]
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 [...]
