Rugs, Carpets, and Decorating

The growing popularity of Tibetan-weave rugs has expanded the design pool of hand-woven rugs dramatically. These rugs are often categorized as "contemporary" or "transitional" whether they have original designs or ones base upon some other tradition. We at Landry & Arcari have produced several rugs based on the rich, but under-appreciated, African textile tradition. If you are in the vicinity of either our Boston or Salem, MA, showrooms, check out these rugs.

Below are three rugs that are African designs interpreted in Tibetan rugs woven in Nepal. All three these rugs are approximately 6 feet by 8 feet 6 inches in size.

The Kuba and Shoowa people of the Democratic Republic of Congo have long been producing exceptional works of art in wood carving and textiles. Of particular interest to are the raffia cloth embroideries. Raffia is a fiber made from a number of species of palm trees indigenous to Africa. The embroideries are small squares incorporating abstract geometric figures, various shades of brown, and variations in texture for the design.

Our "Shoowa" is a 100 knot rug using Tibetan wool, mohair, and silk. The silk in the rugs shimmers. The striped lines throughout the design are silk.

Our "Raphia" is also 100 knot rug also using Tibetan wool, mohair, and silk. However, instead of a large-scale design it emphasizes texture. As in the Kuba inspiration the rug has variations in texture and random placement of color.
Each of the pile diamonds in the design is surrounded by a flat area.

In North Africa we find a different esthetic. The Berber nomads in the Atlas Mountains produce shaggy rugs with random lines. Often these rugs depend on natural wool colors to form the design.

Our "Ruafa" rug is a 60 knot rug of 100% Tibetan wool pile. It is not a reproduction of a Berber rug; it is definitely a Tibetan rug. However, it has a simple abstract design that reflects its Berber inspiration. It also has the advantages that its shorter and denser pile is more practical and that it can be made to almost any size.

The house itself was remodeled and restored over the centuries, and just as the house evolved, so too did the furnishings. With this in mind, the curator decided to furnish the rooms with period furniture and rugs from the mid 18th to mid 19th century. The original rugs from the 18th century were long gone, so the curator approached Landry & Arcari Oriental Rugs and Carpeting to help them find suitable antiques or reproductions of rugs in a style that would have been common in this period.

There was no documentation on exactly what sort of rugs were in the house originally. However, since the Turners were very wealthy at the time and both owned and dealt in fabrics from all over the world, we can assume that the family would have had access to the very best rugs. The curator concluded after research that Transylvania rugs would have been most appropriate for a wealthy home of this period. The museum gave us pictures of old Transylvania rugs that they wanted us to emulate and in consultation with the curator, we arranged for reproductions of three rugs in the Transylvania style to be made in Turkey for the museum.

The name itself for this style of rug is misleading, because the rugs most likely did not originate in Transylvania (region in northern Romania). They received their name because so many of them were discovered in the Lutheran churches of Transylvania. Rug scholars believe that most of these rugs were woven in Turkey and most likely ended up in the region due to trade throughout the Ottoman Empire.

The reproduction rugs that we had made for The House of Seven Gables are now on display in three rooms of the museum.

Here you can see a Transylvanian rug used in the parlor of the museum. Note how bright the wallpaper, paint, and rug colors are. The palette for this particular rug was developed to match the period accurate wallpaper.

The largest rug appears in the dining room. Again, note how the rug colors coordinate with the wallpaper. All of the wallpaper in The House of Seven Gables was based on the original paper which was found on the wall under centuries old layers of wallpaper and paint. The reproduction wallpaper itself was made using traditional techniques, as were the Transylvanian rugs that were woven by hand in Turkey, using natural plant dies just as a rug of the 18th century would have been made.

Finally, the museum commissioned us to have this smaller rug made for one of the house's bedrooms.

Original Transylvanian rugs can be found in museums and in important collections. We are also proud to offer a terrific contemporary copy of a Transylvania rug.

Design New England, January/February 2009 - see page 104

Rug weaving has long been a "cottage industry" and although workshops have been the source of many rugs, the homes of the weavers are the source of many more. Weavers weave outside their homes on portable looms. The weaver may sell her rugs at the local market place, under contract to an exporter, or hold on to the rugs until the family needs money from their sale. The original "at home" business, cottage rug weaving operations have employed families for centuries.

Jeffrey, our Oriental Rugs Manager, makes frequent buying trips to Southeast Asia. In his travels to work with his overseas rug productions, he found that most of the local children of the rug weavers involved in the cottage rug industry were unable to attend school because of the high cost of school and the prohibitive distances to get there. To improve the lives of our carpet producers and their families, Landry & Arcari Oriental Rugs and Carpeting made a substantial donation to have a school built in the Bhadohi district of northern India. Now serving 200 children, the free school has made education available for the children of the community, most of whom are the first generation in their family to attend school.

Jeff Arcari at the Landry and Arcari booth

The fun kicked off on Thursday, March 26 at an event to benefit the Boston Architectural College. Catered with live music, all of the proceeds of the opening went to support the BAC, New England's largest independent, accredited college of spatial design. The event was a rousing success -- the gala preview raised more than $100,000 for the Boston Architectural College. As part of the fundraiser, we raffled off $2,000 towards a custom rug.

Here are some images of the most popular rugs at our booth:

Two new designs from our own production line:  Nishikigoi left) and Nouveau (right)

         Chinese Art Deco Rug, Circa 1930

Look for more information on Art Deco Rugs and custom rug production in future posts.

When figuring the size of your rug, consider the size of your room and your decorating tastes. How much floor space do you wish to show?

Would you like your furniture on the rug for a warm feeling?

Would you prefer your furniture off your rug for a crisper look?

A small area rug can provide a focal point.

When placing a rug under a dining table, remember to leave enough room so that the chair legs remain on the carpet when pulled out. About two and a half feet beyond each dimension of the table should leave enough room.

A room-size rug sets the ambience for the room.

Don't forget comfort too - for example, installed broadloom in a bedroom, hallway, or family room insulates while creating a comfortable place to relax and play.

Would you like something formal such as a Kashan design rug with fine and intricate detail (left)? Perhaps you would prefer bold and geometric such as a Heriz (center)? Maybe a rug relaxed in design and weave such as an Oushak best reflects your tastes (right)?

All of these Oriental rug designs are natural complements for fine antiques. However, don't let that limit you; traditional rug designs also look splendid with contemporary furnishings.

You won't believe the range of contemporary designs now available in rugs. Some contemporary designs show bold geometric patterns (left). Others have little or no pattern and emphasize texture (center). Maybe consider a gabbeh rug, an ancient, tribal design with a contemporary look (right).

And just as traditional rug designs can be used with contemporary furnishings, so too can contemporary rugs be used to great effect with antiques. Don't be afraid to mix it up!

Consider also the increasingly popular "transitional" rugs that use designs that are derived from fabrics. Like fine fabrics, these rugs often emphasize wonderfully luxurious materials, such as silk and mohair. As in fabrics, the designs can vary from cozy to cutting edge. They offer an updated color palette in a wide range of tones, from very soft to strong. And since the designs derive from fabrics, you will easily find upholstery and curtains to match.

Don't be overwhelmed with all these choices; a fine rug showroom can assist you in picking out colors and styles to find the perfect rug for you. Try out rugs in your home to see what fits best. And if you don't find the perfect rug, an experienced rug dealer can look for you or even have one custom-made to your exact requirements.

Color draws us in and creates a mood that soothes, uplifts, and inspires.  When choosing a rug, consider the tone of the rug's colors.  Do you want a soft or dark look?  Bright and vibrant colors?  Or something more neutral and muted? A soft-toned rug can brighten up a room; a darker rug sets a more intimate mood.

The lighting in the room is critical.  Before purchasing a rug, see how it looks as the light changes throughout the day.  A reputable rug dealer will let you try a rug at home before purchasing.  If you are considering broadloom, lay the sample on the floor where it will go and view it at different times of day to see how the color changes in response to the changing light.  And remember, a handmade rug will appear lighter or darker depending from which side it is viewed.

All the knots in a hand-woven rug face in one direction. The images above show the same rug from opposite directions. If you look at the rug from the end where the knots point (left), the rug will appear darker because the ends of the knots absorb the light.  If the rug is viewed from the other end (right), the rug will appear lighter because more light reflects off the sides of the yarn forming the knots. 

How best to integrate all of your various design elements to achieve the style you want can be overwhelming.  To unify your look, consider choosing a rug first.   Once you have selected your rugs and carpeting, the rest of your décor – wall colors, upholstery fabrics, furniture, window treatments, etc. – will follow.  Your rug is the foundation of the room.  If you love your rug, you will love your room.

This blog is dedicated to living with rugs. As owner/operators of Landry & Arcari Oriental Rugs and Carpeting, a rug store in Boston and Salem, Massachusetts, we've had the privilege of experiencing the world of rugs through the people who own them, the weavers who handcraft them, the designers who use "art underfoot" to create compelling and livable designs, and the countries and cultures they come from.  Through this blog we  hope to share some of the unique joy that we’ve experienced as we’ve traveled this world, both literally and figuratively. 

Postings will explore trends in design and carpeting, and reflect on the sources around us that inspire us.  Blogs on the beauty, history, and manufacturing of rugs will hopefully serve as a primer on the ancient and fascinating world of rugs.  And because we know that rugs are practical as well as inspirational, we plan to include concrete advice about choosing, using, and caring for your oriental rugs and broadloom carpeting.

If there are specific topics you’d like us to address, let us know.  We hope that by sharing a bit of our world we will encourage you to share yours too.