Recently, we took several pieces from an old Chinese rug and turned them into small, usable rugs for a client of ours. This is what we began with... (click to enlarge):

These pieces came from a rug that had been in a flood and left wet too long before being brought to us. Much of the rug had rotted. Instead of throwing the rug away, we cut away all of the pieces that could be salvaged and threw the remainder away. Now these fragments (after having been thoroughly cleaned and santized) can see use again. The colors are strong, the pile full, and the look is pleasant.

Here are the "After" shots (click to enlarge):

The sides of the pieces were secured and furnished with new sidecords, and new pre-fabricated fringes were attached to each secured end. Like this:

If you have a rug in your collection that has seen its better day, but has sections of it that are still in good condition, this could be an option. Rather than disposing of the piece, see if it makes sense to cull out the good segments and make smaller throw rugs out of them.

If you would like our opinion on the matter, you can email us at rugcarecentral@gmail.com and we'd be happy to discuss it with you. Please include a photo or two of the rug in question.

Dave W.

As you can see, the perimeter was pretty gnarled and there was a lot of wear in the field from steady use over the years. Plus, there were areas of dry rot where the sides were in the worst condition. But the design was still visible, and the features striking, so repair options were discussed.

Patching the rug would only really work if a piece of a similar rug (era/structure) could be found. Our scrap collection is extensive but nothing we had came close enough. If the rug were a collectible piece, reweaving could have been considered, but at this point, any remaining value in the piece would be based mostly on appearance. So the decision was made to cut the piece down, add new sidecords as needed, clean the ends up and do some dyeing in the field to make the design pop again.

First, the side borders were removed. This would let us work with the borders separately, finding the best segments to retain, and also treat the field as its own unit as well. Treating each segment separately would also serve to better mask the seams when the work is finished. A straight cut across the entire piece is pretty noticeable, from front and back.

We figured out the best way to cut out the worst of the wear in the field by folding the center over onto itself until the pattern in the field matched up well.

Once the cuts were made to both the field and the side borders, each piece was secured properly, and then the rug was ready to be reassembled. 

Here is a close-up of the corner, after the reassembling was finished. Close inspection will reveal the seams, but they won't be noticeable to a person walking into a room, viewing the rug while standing.

Here's the same corner, from the back side.

Strips of fabric were used to reinforce the seams from the back, since the rug is going to see use again (rather than be displayed on the wall as art). We wanted the piece to be strong.

The rug started out 4'8"x9'6" and ended up 4'8"x8', so it was shortened by a foot and a half. The sides are complete now, the ends secure, the field design touched up, and the rug is ready for use again.

If you have a rug that you feel is worn or damaged beyond hope, there are usually always options. Feel free to contact us at rugcarecentral@gmail.com and we can discuss it.

Among the rugs they've produced are some Turkish rugs called Azeris which have a rich, unique look, and occasionally feature some interesting design elements. From what I understand, weavers are often given free reign to put whatever they want into the designs, and what results is often the weaving equivalent of the old phrase "write what you know". Elements of daily life may feature prominently.

A good example of this came through our shop recently.

We call this The Kitchen Rug. As you can see, the weaver has woven numerous kitchen implements into it: pots, pans, tea kettles, utensils, spice bottles... even a lady to oversee it all! If that wasn't unique enough, the heart border is another interesting touch.

Here are a couple close-ups - you can click them to see them better.

And here are a few more examples of designs from these Azeris that have come through the shop over the past few years... again, click to enlarge.

This wonderfully unique pictoral Chinese rug was in our shop recently. I've seen many of these types of rugs before (having grown up around rugs), but have yet to see one quite like this one. We were granted permission to take and post a few pictures up here, since it is such a visually interesting piece. It is not for sale.

Click the pictures to see close-ups.

The borders are full of wonderful touches...

Here is a close-up of the plaza area before the palace gates.

And here are some close-ups of the buildings...

The client that owns this particular piece received a group of American Indian rugs as an inheritance from her grandfather, and is currently having Lesley restore them, one at a time, so they can be displayed/used again, in his honor.

Once the restoration is complete, I will post some "after" photos, so be sure to check back.

EDIT

Here are some "after" photos of the rug (click to enlarge):

If you own an American Indian carpet and it is in need to repair/restoration, you can contact Lesley by calling San Diego Rug Cleaning Co. directly at (858) 566-3833, and we can give you more information.

Normally, moths are attracted to dark, undisturbed places near rugs, usually underneath a piece of furniture - a chest, or cabinet, or entertainment unit, etc. Any place that stays covered and gets no air or direct sunlight. Moths can take root there and begin their perpetual feast. 

Moth casings appear as little tubular spider-web-type residue, as pictured above. If your rug has furniture on it and has been unmoved for a year or longer, you should take time, if possible, to move the furniture and examine the rug beneath. Be sure to check the back side as well, since moths can attack from both sides.

Moth casings on the back side

In the following video clip, Lisa Wagner discusses how to identify moth damage, and some of the structural concerns to be aware of.

The Shiraz featured in the video is a rather extreme example, as Lisa mentioned. The effected corner had also been damaged by mold/dry rot, but there was also extensive moth damage, as demonstrated in the following pictures.

The damage can be repaired in most cases, but at rather substantial cost. 

The best defense against moth damage is frequent inspection, regular wash, and also if possible, avoid having heavy, low-standing furniture on the rug to begin with. 

(Click to Enlarge)

To spare your eyesight, I have trascribed the text here (to the best of my ability to decipher it):

Genuine Peking Rug

Made by one of the leading rug artists of China whose insignia appears on the right-hand lower corner of the rug. This is an allegorical creation by the artist of a group of statuary presented to the Temple of Xwo Yen in the reign of Kwah Ling.

The Fairy Rug

Showing the eight immortals of China. In the center seated on the sacred swan is Lao Tze, founder of the Taoist religion. On either side is an attendant. The other eight are the good people each of whom carries a magic charm in hand by which he is rendered invisible as he goes around the world doing good. Leading from left to right the figures are as follows:

1^st Goddess of the Harvest

2^nd God of Prosperity

3^rd God of Learning and Light

4^th God of Poetry

5^th Animal Attendant Representing Faithfulness

6^th The Venerable Lao Tze

7^th Woman the Help Mate of Man

8^th God of Sculpture and Art

9^th God of Music

10^th God of Joy

11^th Goddess of Fortune

The clouds represent infinitude of space and eternity

It is nice for us to finally have an explanation, as far as the identities of these characters. When similar rugs come in in the future, we will have this on file to give to the rug owners.

Here are clickable thumbnail pictures of each of the characters:

This is a runner we have in here at the moment, with a gaping hole in the field. Patching would be problematic, in that we would need a fragment of a similar rug to pull a patch from... matching the color and texture of that background color would be next to impossible.

And restoring it would not be cost effective. The amount of money that would be needed to do a reweave could easily be spent on simply buying a new rug, since this rug is a contemporary piece. It is hand-woven, true, but it certainly isn't an investment piece. The value of this type of rug rests in its appearance more than anything - and right now, it has a large hole in it!

But it also has a repeating pattern, which makes it a perfect candidate for cutting down. 

This idea is to remove a section and reattach it, matching the pattern as closely as possible, effectively making a shorter version of the same rug.

Here is a shot from the back, which gives an approximate idea of what the results will be. Instead of simply cutting it straight across and reattaching it, it helps visually to cut the borders in different places. This will help minimize drawing the eye to the place where the cut was made.

The center piece is removed, then cuts are plotted out in a staggered pattern for the borders.

Once the cuts are made, and the edges secured properly, the halves are reattached like a puzzle. Every attempt is made to match the design up perfectly; however, often small weaving quirks and variations prevent a perfect match. In this case, the two medallions were each slightly different widths. 

The rug is secured, strong and ready for use. It is about 18 inches shorter, but the big, ragged hole is gone. If you know to look for it, the seam is visible (especially from the back), but people passing by will never know the rug used to be longer!

This strategy won't work in every case, but for some damaged rugs, it is definitely a viable option. 

Behold, another victim in the age-old struggle between puppies and hooked rugs!

One tug in the right place will start the rug unraveling. Even though dogs tend to have brief attention spans by nature, it doesn’t take too long before substantial damage can be done. Thankfully, it usually looks worse than it actually is. The repair itself is pretty straightforward.

Who could stay mad at that face?

If the loose wool is sent in with the rug, this is ideal. It then becomes a matter of properly reattaching the wool. However, if the wool is missing (say, in the puppy's tummy!), then we will try and match the wool as close as possible, from the vast collection we have on hand.

Unfortunately, I cannot offer any sage advice for preventing this sort of damage, aside from keeping your rugs and pets apart (hardly practical). This is just one of those occasional “pet accidents” you’ll have to endure as part of the choice you made to combine your love for pets with your love for rugs.

Good as new!

We’ll be here to help, when it’s needed!

If you live outside the San Diego area, you can ship these rugs to us for repair, if you’d like, or you can drop us a quick email at rugcarecentral@gmail.com and we’ll try to locate a reputable rug repair facility in your area.

Uh oh...

The culprit?

A Potted Plant!

Potted plants may seem like a good idea, and add just the right touch to compliment the décor in your living room, but usually, moisture associated with the upkeep of the plant will find its way from the pot into the rug underneath. Left undisturbed long enough, this will permanently damage the rug. Often, the damage is not discovered until it is way too late to prevent.

Let's say it’s been a year or two, the time has come to get your rug cleaned, and so the furniture is moved out of the way – and there it is… an ugly hole, perhaps smelling of mold.

Usually, the problem area is larger than the hole itself. As you can see in the picture, there is the hole, and then there is the extended, discolored area surrounding the hole that is weak, and won’t “hold” onto any type of repair. All of that weak area needs to be removed. Once the rug has been washed and sanitized, the weakened area is removed and secured. The rug can then be repaired (since leaving a big hole is not normally a very palatable option!).

Options

The hole can be rewoven and restored to its original condition – though this route is time-consuming and costly, and normally only reserved for highly collectible pieces that need restoration in order to maintain their investment value. Normally, we wouldn’t do this type of restoration, but rather refer them to reweaving houses overseas that specialize in the type of rug in need of reweaving.

The more typical route we go with in our shop (and the option that normally makes the most sense for our clients) is to patch the area with a fragment of a similar type of rug.

In the case of a Karastan we repaired recently, reweaving certainly wasn’t a logical choice, so we patched it. There were two problem areas: a large area about 1 foot square, and a smaller area in another corner, about 2 inches by 5 inches.

The weakened area was removed and the perimeter secured.The weakened areas were removed and secured. A piece from a separate Karastan fragment is prepared and secured, shaped to precisely fit into the gap in the rug.

a patch from a different Karastan is prepared for use. 

The weak, rotten area has been trimmed away and the perimeter secured.

Once the fragment is shaped and secured properly, it is secured into the rug itself. No glues are used.

Close-up view of patch seam, from back sideIf you know to look for it, a patch will usually be apparent.The most important thing we focus on is strength. If the patch is strong and secured properly, then the rug is useable again, and does not need to be babied or avoided when walking. Getting the design to match nicely is a plus, but is not the top priority. The design can often be modified with dyes to better blend, but if the color scheme and general look/feel of the patch matches that of the rug, then a person walking into the room and looking at the rug will never know that it has been patched. Upon close examination, a patch is normally noticeable. But the idea is to patch the damaged area in such a way as to not draw the eye, like a big hole would.

Upon entering the room, the patch is practically invisible. But the important thing is it is strong and the rug can be used without fear.This repair is relatively inexpensive, and is effective, making the rug useable again, while at the same time done in such a way that if, in the future, the rug owner wanted to have the area rewoven, it could be easily be done. If the patches were lathered with latex on the backside (as we see some rug repair shops do) then reweaving would be much more difficult, since the latex is impossible to remove.

If you have a potted plant as part of your interior décor, the best defense is to not put it on your rug at all. Place it nearby, or on an elevated stand that allows plenty of air to get between the rug and the underside of the plant. Of course, artificial plants could be considered as well.