Antique Rug Repair & Restoration

The question of whether to restore, repair, or preserve an antique area rugs depend on the circumstances.

Rug knots consist of two types: the Persian or Senneh, also known as the asymmetric knot and the Turkish or Ghiordes, also known as the symmetrical knot. The symmetrical Ghiordes knot is used in all rugs made in Turkey, Caucasus, Turkistan, Northwest Iran (formerly Persia), and some tribal weaving areas in the south of Iran.

Color Matching
Dyeing wool and silk is an art. For that reason color matching is absolutely critical when it comes to antique rugs. Repair, restoration, and preservation all require achieving the right blend of color, wool and design to match the look and the feel of the rug. Dyes are either derived from natural substances or synthetic chemical sources. Modern synthetic red dyes are produced in Germany and Switzerland by using high-quality chrome Ciba Geiger dyes which produce different shades of red. Indigo blue or true indigo is obtained from the plant Indigofera tinctoria. Among the plant hues used in antique Oriental rugs, indigo is one of the colors that can be reproduced using modern synthetic dyes making it extremely hard to distinguish natural vegetable indigo dye from synthetic indigo dye. Indigo dyes have been used on wool, silk and cotton. Yellow-colored dyes require scientific analysis to distinguish plant dyes from synthetic dyes. There are a large number of yellow plant-based dyes. For the color brown natural vegetable dyes were obtained by using Madder Red, darkened with iron. These are typically found on older rugs. Greens were invariably obtained by double-dyeing with indigo and one of the yellow dyes.

Antique rug repair work is an art form. To match colors, wools need to be blended by strand, age and type to assimilate the exact texture and luster. This requires the rug restorer to re-spin and re-dye the wool to get the exact color match. Replicating the rug design for repairing holes requires the use of a digital camera and a computer that records one knot at a time to provide the antique rug repair technician with a knot-by-knot blueprint. Rebuilding the warp and the weft — the carpet's foundation — requires the same meticulous attention and detailed analysis as wool pile blending.

Antique Rug Repair
Repairing stabilizes the integrity of the entire textile, restoring resiliency and strength. It prevents additional injury that structural weakness can cause. Stabilizing the body of the rug can stop unraveling and fraying, which affect not only the rug construction, but the artistry of the rug and of course the value of the rug.

Antique Rug Restoration
Antique rug restoration is costly because the repairer must match the dyes, wools and construction to that of the original rug. In other words, the damaged part is replaced to match the original. This means that the physical construction and the attributes of the rug need to be replicated: weave structure, wool texture, and design. Most antique rugs that truly qualify for restoration need to be very valuable rugs, meaning they're not only old but rare as well. Sadly only 10% of the antique rugs in people's homes qualify for restoration.

Antique Rug Preservation
Preservation of rugs is reserved for only the rarest example of rug artistry because any alteration of them could diminish their artistic excellence. These types of rugs are normally used for display only. Most rugs of this category are scarce and not normally used on the floor. Preserving the original structure and ensuring its longevity is of utmost importance. Preservation of rugs, like other art forms, attempts to stabilize the rug without changing its current condition. Stabilizing it may involve physical reinforcement of a delicate area without creating a structural change.

Parts Of Rugs That Need Repair:
Most common antique rug repairs: ends, edges, holes, and field wear.
Rug ends consist of the vertical warp thread of the rug loom on which the knots were tied originally. These become the extended fringe ends. The tightness on the fringe ends is critical to keep the ends of rugs from fraying and unraveling. It is very important that end borders remain intact and do not fray to prevent loss of end border colors. Normally a rug fringe-end will need re-working later on in the life of the rug. The five ways rug fringes are finished are: knotted, overcastting the ends, sew chain stitch, elaborate braiding and hand-weaving individual fringe lengths into the rug body.

Note:
Area Rugs fringes should not be vacuumed. Rug edges wear away the quickest. Normally repairs are done in two ways. Provided the edge cording is intact, it can easily be overcast with matching colored wool. All repairs need to be done by hand, not by machine. If the original edge cording is completely worn through then new warping will need to be secured, sew and strung under tension, followed by overcastting. An alternative procedure is to weave by hand, closely and securely, a pre-fabricated edge into the edge of the rug.

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We treat each case individually with special care to ensure your satisfaction with best results. Our cleaning solutions contain only safe, non-toxic, biodegradable, and environmentally safe cleaning fluids. Broadway Carpet NY Carpet & Rug Cleaning thanks you for choosing us as your rug and carpet cleaners for the last two decades.

Professional hand washing of antique wool rugs removes the aforementioned pollutants and serves to moisturize and rejuvenate the wool. Wool is a natural fiber and needs lanolin-based moisturizers to maintain wool integrity. “Re-lanolining” antique rugs add luster and finish to the wools. Hydrous lanolin, coconut oil and mineral oil may be used to clean antique wool rugs since they all contain lanolin.

Stretching, sizing, and blocking ensure that rugs lay properly on the floor. Good rug service such as A&B Carpet & Rug Cleaning can carefully stretch, size and block rugs.

Wrapping for storing or shipping: At Broadway Carpet NY Carpet & Rug Cleaning we use only recycled paper and/or recycled plastics which are waterproof and breathe well. Mothballs may be placed in your rugs if you decide to store them for more than 30 days or if the climate is hot or humid. Always place your rugs in a dry climate area.

Repairs We Offer:
Fringing, ½” & ¼” Binding, Re-Weaving, Cutting, Blocking, Stretching, Surging, Re-Braid, Water, Soot & Dry Rot and so much more....

We also do Color Restoration and Vegetable Dying Of Area Rugs
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