You
Can't Beat Oriental Rugs For Elegance
by: Scott Gray
Oriental rugs will add timeless beauty to your home,
will coordinate with any décor, and enhance any room, hallway, or
entrance. They are also a favorite option when decorating home offices,
and are a particularly good choice for high traffic areas because of
the intricacies of their designs, which hide wear and tear. The term
"oriental" refers to rugs produced on the continent of Asia, such as
Persian (from Iran), Indian, Chinese, and Turkish rugs. Imitations of
the popular oriental patterns are also available and produced by
manufacturers such as Nourison in the USA, and Sphinx, also in the USA
but with its parent company in Egypt.
Making rugs by hand is an ancient art and the old
designs reflect the religious and ethnic structures of the times in
the countries or areas
of origin. Many of these ancient designs are still produced today,
sometimes hand-woven and hand-knotted, other times woven by machine.
The most traditional patterns are those with a floral or garden motif,
or geometric or curvilinear designs around a central medallion
or a central painting-like scene. Oriental rugs used to be constructed
only with such natural fibers as wool, cotton, silk, or goat and camel
hair, or blends of these materials, but now you can find them made
with
less expensive synthetic materials such as olefin (polypropylene),
nylon, polyester, and acrylic. Wool rugs remain the first choice in
durable, soft,
dirt-and-fire resistant, warm rugs, but synthetic
reproductions make oriental area rugs more affordable. They come in a
variety of colors, sizes, and shapes – round, oval, rectangular, and,
of course, the popular runner.
How to Choose Oriental Rugs for Your Home
Decide on how you are going to use each area rug. Is
it going to define furniture groupings or unify all the elements in the
room? Is its primary use to protect a floor or a carpet? Is its prime
function to add warmth and comfort? The use of the rug will dictate its
size and shape. As well, you should keep these points in mind:
The colors should be harmonious with other colors
in the room.
If the center of the carpet will be visible,
medallions or central scenes are good choices, but if the center will
be fully or partially hidden under a table or other furniture, it is
better to go with a repetitive design or an elaborate and interesting
border.
A family with health problems will appreciate rugs
with natural fibers since they have the advantage of not releasing
chemicals into the air as synthetics do.
Very colorful and busy designs can make an oriental
rug the focal point in a room, but if the room is already colorful with
intricate drapery and upholstery fabric designs, choose simple designs
and subtle colors.
If you are going to use two different rugs in one
room, make sure the colors and patterns blend and complement each
other.
Important Cost Considerations
It is not as difficult as you may think to find good
quality, cheap area rugs with oriental designs. When you shop online,
you deal directly with online retailers who can offer discount and
warehouse prices because there are no storefront costs and no middlemen
to pay. As well as shopping online, here are other considerations that
can make the oriental rug of your dreams affordable:
An antique rug is the most expensive and should
have documentation attesting to its authenticity; imitations are much
less costly.
Natural fibers are more expensive than synthetic.
· Hand-made, hand-woven, and hand-knotted rugs made
by weavers are more durable and much more expensive than machine woven
and knotted.
The number of knots per square inch indicates its
quality, and a higher number means a higher cost.
Very intricate and rare designs are the most
expensive.
The country or area of origin affects the price.
Whether you spring for a genuine antique oriental
wool rug that has been hand woven and hand knotted in Iran, or you
choose a polypropylene machine woven rug with an oriental design
manufactured in North America, you will be adding beauty, warmth and
comfort to your home. Enjoy!
About The Author
Scott Gray is an area rug, home decorating
specialist and provides useful information and money saving tips
about home decorating and related information. Visit the web site
at
http://www.area-rugs-4u.net. |
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