Handmade Persian rugs are possibly one of the most alluring types of wall hangings. These carpets are beautifully designed, they are capable of being used as the showcase of the room, and they are long-lasting so they can be handed down through generations. Hand-knotted Persian rugs are an investment.
Handmade Persian rugs should be protected from the direct light of the sun. it does not matter if you decide to hang them on the wall or place them on the floor of a room, the hand-knotted Persian rugs can fade if they are exposed to direct sunlight for long periods.
The more knots that are tied into each inch of handmade Persian rugs, the more valuable the rug is. When you are trying to determine the value of hand-knotted Persian rugs you want to examine the backside of the carpet. Measure an inch of carpet and count how many knots are tied into the threads that make up the carpet.
Carpets that are made from silk threads will have more knots per square inch than carpets that are made from wool threads. This is because wool threads are thicker and fewer threads will fit into a square inch of carpet.
The designs on the carpet are often traditional patterns that have been passed done through generations of carpet makers. Some of the designs will be unique to a region where the carpets were made, and some will be unique to the family that made the carpet.
Some carpet makers sign their carpets by placing their name on the outer edge of the carpet pattern. The signed rugs are highly valued, and the signature may only be a small symbol that the rug crafter used. Research all of the symbols that are commonly used in Persian rugs to determine if you might have found a signed rug.
Rug fibers are dyed using natural dyes, artificial dyes, and other processes. The dyes that are used in the rug will partially tell you what region a carpet was crafted in. Some of the natural colors are only available in certain areas of the world. The color of the design on the carpet may establish part of the value of that carpet.
You should always check a small place on the back of a rug to see if it is color-fast before you clean the rug with water or any cleaner. You do not want to colors of the fibers to run, bleed, or fade into the other areas of the carpet.
These handmade rugs are not trash if they get torn. You can repair the rugs yourself, or you can have a professional repair the rug for you. To repair the rug yourself you do not have to be able to sew. You only need to pull the sections together and tape them from the backside of the carpet where the tape will not be seen. Cut any loose fibers so the rug will not ravel, or continue to come apart.