Archive for category Wool
Iranian Carpets
Posted by Ian Harper in Rugs, Wool on February 13, 2012
Iranian carpets
Speaking in modern time about Iranian carpets, actually former Persian carpets are foreseen. Everything concerning way of manufacturing, design, materials used and woven techniques come form ancient times and the culture and traditions of Persia. Therefore the Iranian carpet, called Gelim, is truly considered as the oldest flow covering in the world. Not only because of the fairy-tales stories Iran is synonym of carpets and rugs. Traditionally, the Iranian rugs are made from wool, with cotton warp threads. They are plane or with pile. The wefts and the pile are made from wool yarns, preliminary dyed in order to create the colored pattern. Both vertical and horizontal looms are used for weaving. There could be modifications of the Persian gelim with pile, called as well Persian knotted gelim: both warp and weft threads could be made from cotton fibers and only the pile threads to be woolen or silk ones. Patterns are very different and depend mainly on the particular place of origin or the traditions of the particular nomad tribe.
The most productive period in the history of carpets and rugs craft in Perisa was between 15th and 17th centuries. A capital of the country was the city of Isfahan, situated in the western parts of Central Iran. Even today Isfahan carpets are famous by their quality. The typical design includes deep red and blue colors among total number of 15 colors per carpet. The background is in light ivory. Usually a centrally placed medallion is surrounded by floral motifs. Typical for the very old Isfahan carpets is the use of cotton yarns as warp and weft thread. Later silk yarns replace the cotton warp while the weft is made by both wool and silk fibers (rarely cotton fibers). The knot rugs use soft wool for the pile, which is between 120 to 840 knots per square inch. Another famous by its carpets and rugs
Persian town is Bakhshaish. The typical design of Bakhshaish rugs includes the so-called Herati pattern with central medallion and “tortoise” border. By contrast with Isfahan carpets several geometrical motifs are used here. The clean symmetry is the most distinguished for Bakhshaish rugs. Their colours are very typical: the medallion is made by yarns with bright colors, while the background involves lighter colours. The weft and warp yarns are spun from wool or cotton. The pile is woollen. The knots are very tight, which makes the rugs extremely stable in wearing out.
Another place in Iran, famous with the production of Persian carpets is the town of Bidjar, situated in Kurdistan. The most important characteristics of Bidjat rugs is their durability and weight, therefore they are known as “the iron rugs”. The Herati design is frequently used as well as geometrical and curvilinear patterns. The colour palette includes ochre, navy, orange, beige and ivory, cherry red, brown, light blue, pink, yellow. The pile of Bidjar rugs is distinguished for being higher, compared with other Iranean rugs. Very high quality wool fibres are used for the pile.
The foundation of very old carpets was made by wool threads as well. The most important here is the technology of beating up the knots row. The beating is very strong, which makes the carpet very tight. On the other hand, the beating provokes high tension in both warp and weft threads. This precondition the requirement that Bidjar rugs cannot be folded, but only rolled, if needed. Having such a high quality Persian carpet is expensive and at the same time very big pleasure. You have to take care for proper cleaning and professional maintenance in order to enjoy it for very long time. This way you will experience every day the oriental fairy-tale stories about he Persian flying carpets… staying at your home.
Wool Carpets
Posted by Ian Harper in Wool on September 14, 2011
Wool carpets are great to use and have a widespread history as well. Almost 8000 years ago, people learnt the art of shearing goats and sheep and creating wool and fantastic weaving techniques. Soon, people realized the need for insulation and warmth and that’s how carpets came into existence eventually. Wool carpets are the best products to be used for keeping your homes warm. This indeed has become a timeless product, as every household needs a carpet to enhance the décor and they preferably demand carpets made from 100% wool. Though these carpets, made from the most natural sources of fiber, are expensive, yet people prefer using these carpets for various reasons.
These wool carpets as well as the wool rugs have innumerable incarnation as well. You would find traditional carpets of Persian or oriental styles that are made up of 100% woolen fibers and you would be offered a wide range of colors and hues to suit your taste and the walls of your home. Wool carpets are also used for wall-to-wall carpeting.
You would also come across wool carpets in blends; such carpets are made from natural and synthetic fibers to enhance the look. These are less expensive as compared to the original wool carpets. But there are some people who prefer not to use these blended carpets as it seems to reduce the numerous benefits of the carpets made from 100% wool.
The synthetic fibers, such as polyester and nylon came into existence during the middle of the 20th century. As the price of these materials was comparatively lesser than wool, the carpets made form these synthetic fibers captured the market of the wool carpet. The synthetic carpets were not only cheap; but could also be used for making tufted carpets and rugs. But the wool carpets still existed due to its glamour and richness and decorated many households.
People still choose wool carpets to the synthetic ones because they want to avoid the synthetic fibers used. As the synthetic carpets are created with the use of certain chemicals, there have been some issues of concern regarding the chemicals. It is often believed that these carpets tend to release the chemicals continuously and it gets mixed to the air which we breathe. Arguments also state that these synthetic carpets contribute in making the household toxic and polluted and must be strictly avoided.
As this is a serious concern, there has been a constant growth in demand for wool carpets that uses natural fiber. However, there are some wool carpets that are often treated with chemicals for stain resistance. But the natural carpets do not receive any such treatments.
Wool carpets have several benefits as well. These carpets do not house dust mites and is not a pollutant as such. Wool fibers have their own natural property for resisting stain and are known as lanolin. Wool carpets are biodegradable as well and are made from renewable resources; it is often regarded as “green carpeting”.
There are innumerable benefits of using wool carpets; it is not only beneficial for the dwelling, but for the environment as well. Wool is a natural product which is renewable as well. If you buy woolen carpets, it would accelerate the production of wool, which would in turn be beneficial for the local farmers.
Wool carpet can actually retain its appearance for a longer period of time, unlike other carpets as it has proper bounce and bulk that can very well withstand the pressure exerted and the repeated footfall as well. Wool carpets are naturally resilient. Scientists have also acknowledged this fact and have further added that as such hair of wool has three-dimensional spiraling crimp, which acts almost like that of miniature spring. These springs can increase the elasticity of each fiber and can enable the hair to bounce back after repeated pressure. This is a unique feature of wool carpets and gives it an extra edge over the synthetic ones.
Wool carpets also have natural abilities to resist stains as the fibers are covered by thin membrane, which acts like as repellant and help in preventing the penetration of water into the woolen fiber. This is another contributing factor that enables these wool carpets to retain its appearance.
Wool also has natural dirt resisting properties, which is unique. If wool carpets are to be observed under a microscope, it can be seen that the surface of the fiber is made from overlapping scales that represents a roof structure. These scales can help in trapping all the dirt and soil at the very top, quite close to the carpet’s surface. It can then be removed quickly and very easily with the help of a vacuum cleaner.
Wool carpets are flame-retardants as well and it is one of the natural properties of wool. As wool fibers contain protein and moisture in abundance, it can actually act as a self-extinguishable product.
Apart from all these benefits, wool carpets can provide several health benefits to us as well:
Wool carpets are non-toxic. They are non-allergic as well, but some people are allergic to wool by nature, they cannot use the same.
Wool doesn’t support the growth of bacteria.
As wool contains moisture in abundance, it minimizes static electricity and reduced the risk of certain shocks as well.
Wool carpets also act as purifiers and can prevent the contamination caused due to nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde and sulfur oxide. It helps in trapping these contaminants in the fiber.
Wool carpets have too many air pockets and the credit for this goes to the shape of the carpets. This enables the carpets to provide proper insulation to the room and can also regulate the temperature in the room.
All these factors actually prove that wool carpets are the best till date and will always be. It not only complements the décor of your home, but also helps in maintaining some of the essential properties that a healthy dwelling must have. It is environment friendly, health friendly and can be used for every household. Cleaning these carpets is even easier and can be done at home itself.
Wool Wilton Woven Carpet Cleaning
Posted by Ian Harper in Carpet Cleaning, Wool on July 3, 2011
In past years, there has been confusion about Wilton Royal. This brand is based in Wiltshire in the United Kingdom and was known to produce some Wiltons, Axminister and tufted products. The name was purchased by Carpets International which has filed for bankruptcy. The name is now owned along with the Kosset brand by Abington Carpets Limited. These carpets are similar to Axminster as they are both woven on a loom where the backing is also integral to the pile. The pile is created by using yarn through the backing. This makes the product stronger but it also costs more.
Design possibilities are very limited because only 5 colors can be used. Mostly plain velvet styles present prominent in marketplaces. The imports of these products supposedly are high quality but are cheap and cheap as well as offering budget possibilities. They are produced using yarns made of Polypropylene and submit with loose appearances and creases along with stiff backs that cause installation problems. A carpet that is genuine Wilton will cost over 35.00 pounds sterling per every two meters. It will look good and last for a long time. Don’t be fooled by the names as you may not be talking about a true Wilton Woven carpet.
Wilton carpets from England are eagerly sought because of the precise drawing, elegance of design and subtle coloration. They often follow mostly Persian patterns but also draw from the Crafts and English Arts. Many designs follow the Sultanabad Persian designs. These carpets are produces on Jacquard machinery. It allows separate yarn piles to come to the surface in the design and the rest remain inside. This provides more flexibility of design parameters as well as being woven with both colors and different pile heights to create multiple patterns and textures.
They can also take much longer to manufacture than other carpets. There are also more design patterns such as Runners, Ingrain, Georgian, Gothic, Colonial Revival, Edwardian, Regency and Art Deco just to name a few of the patterns that are available for these types of rugs. Both the plain single framers and Jacquard are woven using the traditional weft and warp weaving process. Traditional Wiltons have the characteristic of continuous pile run into the carpet and being raised above the surface by way of hooks or wires. These carpets are or loop or cut products and have different surface textures as well as different yarn types.
These carpets are also woven with either cut and loop pile, loop- pile or cut pile. These fibers can vary to produce a much sculpted effect. Most fiber combinations can include, synthetic fibers, 80/20 wool – nylon mix or 100 percent wool. They can also be designed to create surfaces and multi level patterns with soft variations of texture, color and pile treatment. Here is some interesting history of these wonderful carpets. These carpets are manufactured in a small percentage in Kidderminster and Wilton. Back in the early 1900’s these were the major products for this town.
Wiltons pile are sheared and cut open. This provides velvet like quality. If you were to compare Wilton to say Brussels back in the 19th century, the Wiltons were double the cost of a Brussels rug. During the Regency and Federal periods at that time could only be afforded by the wealthiest of people. Wiltons were extremely expensive and very few could afford these types of carpets. During the 1790’s these carpets were brought to the United States. Select ports such as Boston were a great draw for those seeking these types of carpets. These remain the highest grades of carpets and the revival of these carpets is due largely to period designers.
There are many manufacturers that offer different historic patterns of the 18th, 19th and early 20th century eras. With that being said, how do you clean a carpet like this? There are several different professionally made cleaners that can be used to clean rugs without harming the rug itself. Items such as Capture, which is a dry carpet cleaner, can clean these types of rugs without harming the pile or backing. Weaving of these carpets began back in 1741, when it was popularized and prospered until 1815. Wilton Royal factory was founded at the turn of the century.
Lord Pembroke founded this factory to rescue an unnamed carpet factory that had fallen on hard times. It ceased operation in 1995 after a takeover and was not allowed to retain the Wilton Royal prefix. There are many exports that are named Wilton from all over the world. From China to England and beyond, the popularity of the Wilton brand and the luxury that it affords makes it a top choice especially those who are interested in the best there is but also historical and period pieces from many different eras in time.
This is one of the most long lasting carpets that you can buy. While mechanization has brought the price down some and made it comparable, if you are looking for an older Wilton, as stated before, you will be handsomely for an earlier carpet made especially during the 1700 era. Wilton is a name well acquainted with luxury and excellent manufacturing. These are rugs that can hold up to a lot of wear and tear and still look good decades after they have been bought. As long as the carpet is taken care of, the carpet will last for quite a long time.
If you look at a lot of historical places in the United States, such as the Biltmore House, you will be able to see a Wilton carpet there. Long associated with the wealthy and rich, these carpets have passed the test of time. With so much luxury and the process used to create and manufacture these types of carpets, is it any wonder that these are the most popular among collectors, period collectors and those who just want a great luxurious carpet. So if you are looking for the best, then check out the best, Wilton Woven Carpets.
how do i know if my carpet is wool and should i clean my wool carpet?
Posted by Ian Harper in Carpet Cleaning, Wool on July 3, 2011
Q. how do i know if my carpet is wool and should i clean my wool carpet?
A. You can test the fiber of you carpet but it means taking a fiber and burning it. the result of this you will be able to tell from how it burns, the colour of the flame, and the ash what your carpet is made from. If I where you I would let a professional carpet cleaner tell you. it cost nothing to get a quote from one.
and yes once a year you should clean any carpet. don’t wait until its looks dirty as that will mean that the dirt is starting to wear you carpet.
