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Selecting the Right Carpet

Selecting the Right carpet

How to Select the Right Carpet for Your Home

From the Store to Your Floor

You&#;ve decided that carpet is the best flooring choice for your home. Now what? There&#;s a lot to consider and many great options from which to choose. Today&#;s carpet offers a wide variety of choices in style, fiber composition, and color. The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) is here to help you find the perfect carpet for your needs.

Where to Start

Before purchasing carpet, answer the following questions:

How is the room going to be used?
Will it experience heavy or light foot traffic?
Will the room be the center of activity for family and entertaining?
Is there direct access to the room from outside, or is there distance between the carpeted area and the outdoors?
Will the carpet receive direct sunlight?

Your answers will help narrow your carpet options and allow you to select the color, carpet construction, and cushion that best meets your needs. If you still have questions, ask your carpet dealer for guidance.

Here are a few additional factors that will influence your carpet selection:

Will elderly individuals access the carpeted area?
Do you have pets in the home?
Will the carpet be used with heated flooring?
Will you use the carpet indoors, outdoors, or in an area with both elements like a screened-in porch?

From the Store to Your Floor

Where to Start

Before purchasing carpet, answer the following questions:

How is the room going to be used?
Will it experience heavy or light foot traffic?
Will the room be the center of activity for family and entertaining?
Is there direct access to the room from outside, or is there distance between the carpeted area and the outdoors?
Will the carpet receive direct sunlight?

Here are a few additional factors that will influence your carpet selection:

Will elderly individuals access the carpeted area?
Do you have pets in the home?
Will the carpet be used with heated flooring?
Will you use the carpet indoors, outdoors, or in an area with both elements like a screened-in porch?

Color

A Rainbow of Choices

If a room is your interior design canvas, carpet is your palette. You may choose a neutral carpet to maintain focus on the other visual elements in the room. Alternatively, you may select a bold carpet that itself becomes a focal point of the room. Because carpet comes in nearly every color imaginable, the choice is yours.

The always-popular beige carpet makes a room look open and spacious. For a bolder statement, match your carpet to a common color in your furniture and draperies. Environmental colors, like blues, deep greens, rosy quartz, and stony neutrals are becoming increasingly popular. Warm colors turn up the heat in a room that lacks light, while cool greens and blues have a calming effect. Lighter colors make the room seem larger; darker colors provide an extra level of comfort.

There are also practical considerations in color selection. New stain and soil-resistant technology make today&#;s lighter color carpet easy to clean, bringing confidence to those who want light flooring. Medium and darker colors, tweeds, and textures are good at hiding soil and dirt in your home&#;s high-traffic areas.

One final consideration: the color of your carpet will look different under different lighting conditions. Make sure to bring carpet samples home to look at them under your home&#;s unique lighting conditions.

Learn more: 6 Reasons to Choose Carpet for Your Next Remodel Project

Color

A Rainbow of Choices

Learn more: 6 Reasons to Choose Carpet for Your Next Remodel Project

Carpet and Rug Construction

Types of Carpet

Carpet is not one-size-fits all! In addition to several construction techniques you can choose from, carpets are made using a variety of fibers. Understanding the strengths and differences of each will help you make the right choice for your lifestyle, home, and budget.

&#;To get the best performance and most enjoyment out of your carpet, it&#;s essential to select a carpet fiber that fits your needs.&#;

Carpet Construction Options

Cut Pile

One of the most popular constructions, cut pile achieves its durability through the type of fiber used, density of tufts, and the amount of twist in the yarn. Highly twisted yarn holds its shape longer, making it a smart choice for high-traffic areas.

Textured Plush &#; Decorative and versatile textured surfaces help hide footprints and vacuum marks while adding casual beauty to any room. Textured plush carpet is ideal for busy, high-traffic households.
Saxony &#; This refined surface works well in traditional living and dining rooms.
Friezé &#; Casual, informal frieze forms a &#;curly&#; textured surface with its twisted yarns. The unique texture helps minimize footprints and vacuum marks.
Plush (velvet) &#; Best for low traffic areas and formal rooms, plush carpet has a dense, luxurious feel, but shows footprints and vacuum marks easily.

Loop Pile

Same-height loops create a uniform look that holds up well in high-traffic areas. Many of today&#;s popular Berber styles are level-loop styles featuring flecks of a darker color on a lighter background.

Multi-level Loop Pile

This style usually includes two to three different loop heights to create pattern effects, while providing good durability and a more casual look.

Cut-loop Pile

This carpet style combines cut and looped yarns. It provides a variety of surface textures, including sculptured effects of squares, chevrons, and swirls. The multi-color attribute is effective at hiding soil and stains.

Understanding Carpet Fibers

To get the best performance and most enjoyment out of your carpet it&#;s essential to select a carpet fiber that fits your needs. The majority of the carpet produced in the United States contains one of five primary pile fibers: nylon, polyester, polypropylene (olefin), triexta, and wool. Synthetic fibers represent the vast majority of the fiber used to manufacture carpet in the U.S. Each fiber type offers somewhat different attributes of durability, abrasion resistance, texture retention, stain and soil resistance, colorfastness, ease of cleaning, and color clarity. Manufacturers, retailers, specifiers, and designers are valuable resources in helping you determine the most appropriate fiber and carpet construction for your needs.

Learn more: 3 Steps to Consider When Shopping for New Carpet

Selecting the Right Cushion

The cushion that sits between your baseboards and the visible carpet is an unseen but essential part of your carpet system experience. It&#;s well worth the time to ensure you&#;re picking the best option. A firm and resilient carpet cushion forms the foundation for your carpet. The right cushion acts as a shock absorber to increase comfort and extend the durability of your carpet. It also improves acoustics and provides increased insulation, making a room quieter and warmer.

When selecting cushion, check the carpet manufacturer&#;s requirements for thickness and density. A general rule of thumb for most residential carpet applications is to choose cushion no more than 7/16 inch thick and no less than 1/4 inch with 6 pounds per cubic feet density. If the carpet is a berber or a low-profile carpet, choose a cushion no more than 3/8 inch thick with 8 pounds density.

The type and thickness of cushion you need varies based on your traffic levels and patterns. For example, bedrooms, dens, lounge areas, and other rooms with light or moderate traffic can use thicker and softer cushion. Living rooms, family rooms, hallways, stairs, and other heavy-traffic areas require thinner, firmer cushion.

The wrong carpet cushion can negatively affect the carpet in several ways, including diminished appearance, wrinkling, buckling, separation of the carpet seams, and breakdown of the carpet structure itself. Improper cushion selection also may void warranties from the carpet manufacturer.

A Quick Cushion Guide

Residential cut pile, cut-loop, or high-level loop carpet requires a resilient, firm cushion with a thickness of 7/16 inch and no less than 1/4 inch with 6 pounds per cubic feet density. Types of cushion may be comprised of fiber, rubber, or various polyurethane foams including the very common bonded foam product often referred to as &#;rebond.&#;

Berber carpet, thinner loop, or cut pile carpet is made with large, wide loops, and functions best when supported by a stable, low-flexing, cushion. A thicker, softer cushion is not recommended. Cushion thickness should not exceed 3/8 inch for these products. Check with your carpet manufacturer to determine whether your carpet selection requires a specific cushion.

Carpet and Indoor Air Quality

&#;Indoor air quality (IAQ) is an important consideration, especially since we spend approximately 90 percent of our time indoors.&#;

The Green Label Plus Symbol

Indoor air quality (IAQ) is an area of growing importance because of the amount of time we spend indoors as well as concerns about asthma, allergies, and VOCs. Green Label Plus is a voluntary, industry testing program for carpet, adhesive, and cushion products that establish the highest standard for indoor air quality ever set by the carpet industry.

The program sets a higher standard for IAQ and ensures that customers are purchasing the very lowest emitting products available.

The Green Label Plus program has such a positive impact on the indoor environment that it is recognized by third parties for its testing requirements. Additionally, the Green Label Plus program&#;s tough standards exceed the green building requirements dictated by California schools.

Read the Green Label Plus &#; Fact Sheet

If you are concerned about asthma, allergies, or VOCs, be sure to ask about Green Label Plus carpet, cushion, and adhesive options for your home.

&#;Indoor air quality (IAQ) is an important consideration, especially since we spend approximately 90 percent of our time indoors.&#;

The Green Label Plus Symbol

The program sets a higher standard for IAQ and ensures that customers are purchasing the very lowest emitting products available.

Read the Green Label Plus &#; Fact Sheet

If you are concerned about asthma, allergies, or VOCs, be sure to ask about Green Label Plus carpet, cushion, and adhesive options for your home.

Textile floor covering For other uses, see Carpet (disambiguation).

A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fibers such as polypropylene, nylon, or polyester have often been used, as these fibers are less expensive than wool. The pile usually consists of twisted tufts that are typically heat-treated to maintain their structure. The term carpet is often used in a similar context to the term rug, but rugs are typically considered to be smaller than a room and not attached to the floor.[1]

Carpets are used for a variety of purposes. These include insulating a person's feet from a cold tile or concrete floor, making a room more comfortable as a place to sit on the floor (e.g., when playing with children or as a prayer rug), reducing sound from walking (particularly in apartment buildings), and adding decoration or color to a room. Carpets can be made in any color by using differently dyed fibers. Carpets can have many different types of patterns and motifs used to decorate the surface. Carpets are used in industrial and commercial establishments such as retail stores and hotels and in private homes. Today, a huge range of carpets and rugs are available at many price and quality levels, ranging from inexpensive, synthetic carpets that are mass-produced in factories and used in commercial buildings to costly hand-knotted wool rugs that are used in private residences.

Carpets can be produced on a loom quite similarly to woven fabric, made using needle felts, knotted by hand (in oriental rugs), made with their pile injected into a backing material (called tufting), flatwoven, made by hooking wool or cotton through the meshes of a sturdy fabric, or embroidered. Carpet is commonly made in widths of 12 and 15 feet (3.7 and 4.6 m) in the US and 4 and 5 m (13 and 16 ft) in Europe. Since the 19th and 20th century, where necessary for wall-to-wall carpet, different widths of carpet can be seamed together with a seaming iron and seam tape (formerly it was sewn together) and fixed to a floor over a cushioned underlay (pad) using nails, tack strips (known in the UK as gripper rods), adhesives, or occasionally decorative metal stair rods. Wall-to-wall carpet is distinguished from rugs or mats, which are loose-laid floor coverings, as wall-to-wall carpet is fixed to the floor and covers a much larger area.

Etymology and usage

[edit]

The term carpet comes from Latin carpita and Old French carpite.[2] One derivation of the term states that the French term came from the Old Italian carpita, from the verb carpire meaning 'to pluck'.[1][3] The Online Etymology Dictionary states that the term carpet was first used in English in the late 13th century, with the meaning 'coarse cloth', and by the mid-14th century, "tablecloth, [or] bedspread".[4] The word comes from Old French carpite 'heavy decorated cloth, carpet', from Medieval Latin or Old Italian carpita 'thick woolen cloth', which may derive from Latin carpere 'to card, pluck'.[4] The Latin word "carpet" was introduced in the 13th century by the Florentines from the Middle Armenian word &#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#; (carpet). The meaning of the term carpet shifted in the 15th century to refer to floor coverings.[4]

The terms carpet and rug are often used interchangeably. A carpet is sometimes defined as stretching from wall to wall.[5] Another definition treats rugs as of lower quality or of smaller size, with carpets quite often having finished ends. A third common definition is that a carpet is permanently fixed in place while a rug is simply laid out on the floor. Historically, the term carpet was also applied to table and wall coverings, as carpets were not commonly used on the floor in European interiors until the 15th century.[citation needed]

The term rug was first used in English in the s, with the meaning 'coarse fabric'. The term is of Scandinavian origin, comparable to Norwegian rugga 'coarse coverlet', from Old Norse rogg 'shaggy tuft', from Proto-Germanic *rawwa-.[6] The meaning of rug "evolved to 'coverlet, wrap' (s), then 'mat for the floor' ()".[6]

Types

[edit]

Woven

[edit]

The carpet is produced on a loom quite similar to woven fabric. The pile can be plush or Berber. Plush carpet is a cut pile and Berber carpet is a loop pile. There are new styles of carpet combining the two styles called cut and loop carpeting. Normally many colored yarns are used and this process is capable of producing intricate patterns from predetermined designs (although some limitations apply to certain weaving methods with regard to accuracy of pattern within the carpet). These carpets are usually the most expensive due to the relatively slow speed of the manufacturing process. These are very famous in Turkey, Iran, India, Pakistan, and Arabia.[citation needed]

Needle felt

[edit]

Needle felt carpets are more technologically advanced. These carpets are produced by intermingling and felting individual synthetic fibers using barbed and forked needles forming an extremely durable carpet. These carpets are normally found in commercial settings where there is frequent traffic, such as hotels and restaurants.[citation needed]

Knotted

[edit] Main article: Knotted-pile carpet

On a knotted pile carpet (formally, a "supplementary weft cut-loop pile" carpet), the structural weft threads alternate with a supplementary weft that rises at right angles to the surface of the weave. This supplementary weft is attached to the warp by one of three knot types (see below), such as shag carpet which was popular in the s, to form the pile or nap of the carpet. Knotting by hand is most prevalent in oriental rugs and carpets. Kashmir carpets are also hand-knotted. Pile carpets, like flat carpets, can be woven on a loom. Both vertical and horizontal looms have been used in the production of European and oriental carpets. The warp threads are set up on the frame of the loom before weaving begins. A number of weavers may work together on the same carpet. A row of knots is completed and cut. The knots are secured with (usually one to four) rows of weft. The warp in woven carpet is usually cotton and the weft is jute.[citation needed]

There are several styles of knotting, but the two main types of knot are the symmetrical (also called Turkish or Ghiordes) and asymmetrical (also called Persian or Senna). Contemporary centres of knotted carpet production are: Lahore and Peshawar (Pakistan), Kashmir (India), Mirzapur and Bhadohi (India),[7]Tabriz (Iran), Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Northern Africa, Nepal, Spain, Turkmenistan, and Tibet. The importance of carpets in the culture of Turkmenistan is such that the national flag features a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five carpet guls (designs used in producing rugs). Kashmir and bhadohi is known for handknotted carpets of silk or wool.[citation needed]

Tufted

[edit]

These are carpets that have their pile injected with the help of tufting gun into a backing material, which is itself then bonded to a secondary backing made of a woven hessian weave or a man made alternative to provide stability. The pile is often sheared in order to achieve different textures. This is the most common method of manufacturing of domestic carpets for floor covering purposes in the world.[citation needed]

Others

[edit]

A flatweave carpet is created by interlocking warp (vertical) and weft (horizontal) threads. Types of oriental flatwoven carpet include kilim, soumak, plain weave, and tapestry weave. Types of European flatwoven carpets include Venetian, Dutch, damask, list, haircloth, and ingrain (aka double cloth, two-ply, triple cloth, or three-ply).[citation needed]

A hooked rug is a simple type of rug handmade by pulling strips of cloth such as wool or cotton through the meshes of a sturdy fabric such as burlap. This type of rug is now generally made as a handicraft. The process of creating a hooked rug is called rug hooking.[8]

Unlike woven carpets, embroidery carpets are not formed on a loom. Their pattern is established by the application of stitches to a cloth (often linen) base. The tent stitch and the cross stitch are two of the most common. Embroidered carpets were traditionally made by royal and aristocratic women in the home, but there has been some commercial manufacture since steel needles were introduced (earlier needles were made of bone) and linen weaving improved in the 16th century. Mary, Queen of Scots, is known to have been an avid embroiderer. 16th century designs usually involve scrolling vines and regional flowers (for example, the Bradford carpet). They often incorporate animal heraldry and the coat of arms of the maker. Production continued through the 19th century. Victorian embroidered carpet compositions include highly illusionistic, 3-dimensional flowers. Patterns for tiled carpets made of a number of squares, called Berlin wool work, were introduced in Germany in , and became extremely popular in England in the s. Embroidered carpets can also include other features such as a pattern of shapes, or they can even tell a story.[citation needed]

Fibres and yarns

[edit]

Carpet can be formulated from many single or blended natural and synthetic fibres. Fibres are chosen for durability, appearance, ease of manufacture, and cost. In terms of scale of production, the dominant yarn constructions are polyamides (nylons) and polypropylene with an estimated 90% of the commercial market.[9]

Nylon

[edit]

Since the 20th century, nylon is one of the most common materials for the construction of carpets. Both nylon 6 and nylon 6-6 are used. Nylon can be dyed topically or dyed in a molten state (solution dying). Nylon can be printed easily and has excellent wear characteristics. Due to nylon's excellent wear-resistance, it is widely used in industrial and commercial carpeting. In carpets, nylon tends to stain easily due to the presence of dye sites. These dye sites need to be filled in order to give nylon carpet any type of stain resistance. As nylon is petroleum-based it varies in price with the price of oil.[citation needed]

Polypropylene

[edit]

Polypropylene, a polyolefin stiffer than the cheaper polyethylene, is used to produce carpet yarns because it is still less expensive than the other materials used for carpets. It is difficult to dye and does not wear as well as wool or nylon. Polypropylene, sometimes referred to simply as "olefin", is commonly used to construct berber carpets. Large looped olefin berber carpets are usually only suited for light domestic use and tend to mat down quickly. Berber carpets with smaller loops tend to be more resilient and retain their new appearance longer than large looped berber styles. Commercial grade level-loop carpets have very small loops, and commercial grade cut-pile styles can be well constructed. When made with polypropylene, commercial grade styles wear very well, making them very suitable for areas with heavy foot traffic such as offices. Polypropylene carpets are known to have good stain resistance, but not against oil-based agents. If a stain does set, it can be difficult to clean. Commercial grade carpets can be glued directly to the floor or installed over a 1/4" thick, 8-pound density padding. Outdoor grass carpets are usually made from polypropylene.[citation needed]

Wool and wool-blends

[edit]

Wool has excellent durability, can be dyed easily and is fairly abundant. When blended with synthetic fibres such as nylon the durability of wool is increased. Blended wool yarns are extensively used in production of modern carpet, with the most common blend being 80% wool to 20% synthetic fibre, giving rise to the term "80/20". Wool is relatively expensive and consequently, it only comprises a small portion of the market.[citation needed]

Polyester

[edit]

The polyester known as "PET" (polyethylene terephthalate) is used in carpet manufacturing in both spun and filament constructions. After the price of raw materials for many types of carpet rose in the early s, polyester became more competitive. Polyester has good physical properties and is inherently stain-resistant because it is hydrophobic, however oil-based stains can pose a problem for this type of material and it can be prone to soiling. Similar to nylon, colour can be added after production or it can be infused in a molten state (solution dyeing). Polyester has the disadvantage that it tends to crush or mat down easily. It is typically used in mid- to low-priced carpeting.[citation needed]

Another polyester, "PTT" (Polytrimethylene terephthalate), also called Sorona or 3GT (Dupont) or Corterra (Shell), is a variant of PET. Lurgi Zimmer PTT was first patented in , but it was not produced until the s, when Shell Chemicals developed the low-cost method of producing high-quality 1,3 propanediol (PDO), the starting raw material for PTT Corterra Polymers. DuPont subsequently commercialized a biological process for making 1,3-propanediol from corn syrup, imparting significant renewable content on the corresponding Sorona polyester carpet fibers.[10] These carpet fibers have resiliency comparable to nylon.[11]

Acrylic

[edit]

Acrylic is a synthetic material first created by the Dupont Corporation in but has gone through various changes since it was first introduced. In the past, acrylic carpet used to fuzz or "pill" easily. This happened when the fibres degraded over time and short strands broke away with contact or friction. Over the years, new types of acrylics have been developed to alleviate some of these problems, although the issues have not been completely removed. Acrylic is fairly difficult to dye but is colourfast, washable, and has the feel and appearance of wool, making it a good rug fabric.[citation needed]

History

[edit]

The knotted pile carpet probably originated in the Caspian Sea area (Northern Iran) [14] or the Armenian Highland.[15] Although there is evidence of goats and sheep being sheared for wool and hair which was spun and woven as far back at the 7th millennium, the earliest surviving pile carpet is the "Pazyryk carpet", which dates from the 5th-4th century BC. It was excavated by Sergei Ivanovich Rudenko in from a Pazyryk burial mound in the Altai Mountains in Siberia. This richly coloured carpet is 200 cm × 183 cm (6 ft 7 in × 6 ft 0 in) and framed by a border of griffins.[16]

Although claimed by many cultures, this square tufted carpet, almost perfectly intact, is considered by many experts to be of Caucasian, specifically Armenian, origin. The rug is woven using the Armenian double knot, and the red filaments' color was made from Armenian cochineal.[17][18] The eminent authority of ancient carpets, Ulrich Schurmann, says of it, "From all the evidence available I am convinced that the Pazyryk rug was a funeral accessory and most likely a masterpiece of Armenian workmanship".[19] Gantzhorn concurs with this thesis. At the ruins of Persepolis in Iran where various nations are depicted as bearing tribute, the horse design from the Pazyryk carpet is the same as the relief depicting part of the Armenian delegation.[15] The historian Herodotus writing in the 5th century BC also informs us that the inhabitants of the Caucasus wove beautiful rugs with brilliant colors which would never fade.[20]

Afghanistan

[edit] Main article: Afghan rug

There has recently been a surge in demand for Afghan carpets, although many Afghan carpet manufacturers market their products under the name of a different country.[21] The carpets are made in Afghanistan, as well as by Afghan refugees who reside in Pakistan and Iran. Famous Afghan rugs include the Shindand or Adraskan (named after local Afghan villages), woven in the Herat area in western Afghanistan.[citation needed]

Afghan carpets are commonly known as Afghan rugs. Afghan carpets are a unique and widely recognized handmade material design that originates from Afghanistan. They often exhibit intricate detailing, mainly using traditional tribal designs originating from the Turkmens, Kazakhs, Balochs, and Uzbeks. The handmade rugs come in many patterns and colors, yet the traditional and most common example of Afghan carpet is the octagon-shaped elephant-foot (Bukhara). The rugs with this print are most commonly red in color. Many dyes, such as vegetable dyes, are used to impart rich color.[citation needed]

Armenia

[edit] Main article: Armenian carpet

Various rug fragments have been excavated in Armenia dating back to the 7th century BC or earlier. The oldest single surviving knotted carpet in existence is the Pazyryk carpet, excavated from a frozen tomb in Siberia, dated from the 5th to the 3rd century BC, now in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. This square tufted carpet, almost perfectly intact, is considered by many experts to be of Caucasian, specifically Armenian, origin. The eminent authority of ancient carpets, Ulrich Schurmann, says of it, "From all the evidence available I am convinced that the Pazyryk rug was a funeral accessory and most likely a masterpiece of Armenian workmanship".[22] Gantzhorn concurs with this thesis. At the ruins of Persepolis in Iran where various nations are depicted as bearing tribute, the horse design from the Pazyryk carpet is the same as the relief depicting part of the Armenian delegation. Armenian carpets were renowned by foreigners who travelled to Artsakh; the Arab geographer and historian Al-Masudi noted that, among other works of art, he had never seen such carpets elsewhere in his life.[23]

Art historian Hravard Hakobyan notes that "Artsakh carpets occupy a special place in the history of Armenian carpet-making."[24] Common themes and patterns found on Armenian carpets were the depiction of dragons and eagles. They were diverse in style, rich in colour and ornamental motifs, and were even separated in categories depending on what sort of animals were depicted on them, such as artsvagorgs (eagle-carpets), vishapagorgs (dragon-carpets) and otsagorgs (serpent-carpets).[24] The rug mentioned in the Kaptavan inscriptions is composed of three arches, "covered with vegatative ornaments", and bears an artistic resemblance to the illuminated manuscripts produced in Artsakh.[24]

The art of carpet weaving was in addition intimately connected to the making of curtains as evidenced in a passage by Kirakos Gandzaketsi, a 13th-century Armenian historian from Artsakh, who praised Arzu-Khatun, the wife of regional prince Vakhtang Khachenatsi, and her daughters for their expertise and skill in weaving.[25]

According to ancient perceptions, the carpet is the universe where, according to mythological conceptions, there is

The sacred center,
The cosmic space,
The zone demarcating and protecting the universe.[26]

Azerbaijan

[edit] Main article: Azerbaijani rug

The Gultapin excavations discovered several carpet weaving tools which date back to the 4th-3rd millennium BC. According to Iranica Online, "The main weaving zone was in the eastern TransCaucasus south of the mountains that bisect the region diagonally, the area now comprised in the Azerbaijan SSR; it is the homeland of a Turkic population known today as Azeri. Other ethnic groups also practiced weaving, some of them in other parts of the Caucasus, but they were of lesser importance."[27] Azerbaijan was one of the most important centers of carpet weaving; as a result, several different schools have evolved. While traditionally schools are divided into four main branches, each region has its own version of the carpets. The schools are divided into four main branches: Kuba-Shirvan, Ganja-Kazakh carpet-weaving school, Baku carpet school, and Karabakh school of carpet weaving.[28] Carpet weaving is a family tradition in Azerbaijan that is transferred verbally and with practice, and is associated with the daily life and customs of its people. A variety of carpet and rug types are made in Azerbaijan such as silk, wool, gold and silver threads, pile and pileless carpets, as well as kilim, sumakh, zili, verni, mafrashi and khurjun. In , the traditional art of Azerbaijani carpet weaving was added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of UNESCO.[29][28]

Balochi

[edit] Main article: Balochi rug

Balochi Rugs are a group of carpets that are woven by the Baloch tribes.[30] The size of Baloch rugs are eight feet in length, which made them lighter and easier to transport.[31] Their material typically include of wool or a mixture of wool and goat hair, newer carpets have a warp made of cotton and sturdy wool pile rugs.[citation needed]

China

[edit] See also: Oriental rug

As opposed to most antique rug manufactory practices, early Chinese carpets were woven almost exclusively for internal consumption.[32] China has a long history of exporting traditional goods; however, it was not until the first half of the 19th century that the Chinese began to export their rugs. Once in contact with western influences, there was a large change in production: Chinese manufactories began to produce art deco rugs with commercial look and price point. The centuries-old Chinese textile industry is rich in history. While most antique carpets are classified according to a specific region or manufactory, scholars attribute the age of any specific Chinese rug to the ruling emperor of the time. The earliest surviving examples of the craft were produced during the time of Chen Shubao, the last emperor of the Chen dynasty.[citation needed]

India

[edit]

Carpet weaving may have been introduced into the area as far back as the 11th century with the coming of the first Muslim conquerors, the Ghaznavids and the Ghurids, from the West. It can with more certainty be traced to the beginning of the Mughal Empire in the early 16th century, when the last successor of Timur, Babur, extended his rule from Kabul to India to found the Mughal Empire. Under the patronage of the Mughals, Indian crafters adopted Persian techniques and designs. Carpets woven in the Punjab made use of motifs and decorative styles found in Mughal architecture.[citation needed]

Akbar, a Muhal emperor, is credited with introducing the art of carpet weaving to India during his reign. The Mughal emperors patronized Persian carpets for their royal courts and palaces. During this period, he brought Persian crafters from their homeland and established them in India. Initially, these Mughal carpets showed the classic Persian style of fine knotting, then gradually the style blended with Indian art. Thus the carpets produced became typical of Indian origin and the industry began to diversify and spread all over the subcontinent. During the Mughal period, carpets made on the Indian subcontinent became so famous that demand for them spread abroad. These carpets had distinctive designs and boasted a high density of knots. Carpets made for the Mughal emperors, including Jahangir and Shah Jahan, were of the finest quality. Under Shah Jahan's reign, Mughal carpet weaving took on a new aesthetic and entered its classical phase.[citation needed] Indian carpets are well known for their designs with attention to detail and presentation of realistic attributes. The carpet industry in India flourished more in its northern part, with major centres found in Kashmir, Jaipur, Agra and Bhadohi.[citation needed]

Indian carpets are known for their high density of knotting. Hand-knotted carpets are a speciality and widely in demand in the West. The carpet industry in India has been successful in establishing social business models that help underprivileged sections of the society. Notable examples of social entrepreneurship ventures are Jaipur rugs[33] and the Fabindia retail chain.[34]

Another category of Indian rugs which, though quite popular in most western countries, have not received much press, is hand-woven rugs of Khairabad (Citapore rugs). [citation needed] Khairabad, a small town in the Citapore (now spelled as "Sitapur") district of India had been ruled by Raja Mehmoodabad. Khairabad (Mehmoodabad Estate) was part of Oudh province which had been ruled by shi'i Muslims having Persian linkages. Citapore rugs made in Khairabad and neighbouring areas are hand-woven and distinct from tufted and knotted rugs. Flat weave is the basic weaving technique of Citapore rugs and generally cotton is the main weaving material here but jute, rayon, and chenille are also popular. IKEA and Agocha have been major buyers of rugs from this area.[citation needed]

Iran

[edit] Main article: Persian carpet

Iranian carpet is derived from Persian art and culture. Carpet-weaving in Persia dates back to the Bronze Age. The earliest surviving corpus of Persian carpets comes from the Safavid dynasty (&#;) in the 16th century.[35] However, painted depictions prove a longer history of production. There is much variety among classical Persian carpets of the 16th and 17th centuries. Common motifs include scrolling vine networks, arabesques, palmettes, cloud bands, medallions, and overlapping geometric compartments rather than animals and humans.[citation needed] This is because Islam, the dominant religion in that part of the world, forbids their depiction.[citation needed] Still, some show s engaged either in the hunt or feasting scenes. The majority of these carpets are wool, but several silk examples produced in Kashan survive.[36]

Iran is also the world's largest producer and exporter of handmade carpets, producing three-quarters of the world's total output and having a share of 30% of world's export markets.[37][38] The world's largest hand-woven carpet was produced by Iran Carpet Company (ICC) at the order of the Diwan of the Royal Court of Sultanate of Oman to cover the entire floor of the main praying hall of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque (SQGM) in Muscat.[39]

Balochi

[edit] See also: Balochi rug

Balochi Rugs (Balochi:&#;&#;&#;&#; &#;&#;&#;&#;&#; &#;&#;&#; &#;&#;&#;&#;) are a group of carpets that are woven by the Baloch tribes.[30] The size of Baloch rugs are eight feet in length, which made them lighter and easier to transport.[40]

Baloch rugs tend to be a dark combination of reds, browns, and blues, with touches of white and their material often includes wool or a mixture of wool and goat hair; newer carpets have a warp made of cotton and sturdy wool pile rugs.[citation needed]

Baloch rugs are typically eight feet in length, which made them lighter and easier to transport.[citation needed]

Nature, animal figurines, religious beliefs in Baluch prayer rugs, and objects of interest and use by the people of the tribe and the villagers are visualized in these designs. They are mostly designed geometrically with lines and surfaces, creating abstract and non-abstract patterns.[citation needed]

Mehrabi is a prayer rug designed in the Balochi style, and it typically features a mihrab or arch at one end of the rug.[citation needed]

Pakistan

[edit] Main article: Pakistani rug

The art of weaving developed in South Asia at a time when few other civilizations employed it. Excavations at Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, ancient cities of the Indus Valley civilization, have established that the inhabitants used spindles and spun a wide variety of weaving materials. Some historians consider that the Indus Valley civilization first developed the use of woven textiles. As of the late s, hand-knotted carpets were among Pakistan's leading export products and their manufacture is the second largest cottage and small industry. Pakistani craftsmen have the capacity to produce any type of carpet using all the popular motifs of gulls, medallions, paisleys, traceries, and geometric designs in various combinations.[41] At the time of independence, manufacturing of carpets was set up in Sangla Hill, a small town of Sheikhupura District. Chaudary Mukhtar Ahmad Member, son of Maher Ganda, introduced and taught this art to locals and immigrants. He is considered founder of this industry in Pakistan. Sangla Hill is now a focal point of the carpet industry in Pakistan. Almost all the exporters and manufacturers who are running their business at Lahore, Faisalabad, and Karachi have their area offices in Sangla Hill.[citation needed]

In Pakistan, multiple material types are used including: wool, silk and cotton or jute etc. Carpet textures are typically soft and light in Pakistan.[42]

Scandinavia

[edit] Main article: Scandinavian rugs

Scandinavian rugs are among the most popular of all weaves in modern design. Preferred by influential modernist thinkers, designers, and advocates for a new aesthetic in the mid-twentieth century, Scandinavian rugs have become widespread in many different avenues of contemporary interior design. With a long history of adaptation and evolution, the tradition of Scandinavian rug-making is among the most storied of all European rug-making traditions.[citation needed]

Turkey

[edit] Main article: Turkish carpet

Turkish carpets (also known as Anatolian), whether hand knotted or flat woven, are among the most well-known and established handcrafted artworks in the world.[43] Historically: religious, cultural, environmental, sociopolitical and socioeconomic conditions created widespread utilitarian need and have provided artistic inspiration among the many tribal peoples and ethnic groups in Central Asia and Turkey.[44] Turks, nomadic or pastoral, agrarian or town dwellers, living in tents or in sumptuous houses in large cities, have protected themselves from the extremes of the cold weather by covering the floors, and sometimes walls and doorways, with carpets and rugs. The carpets are always hand made of wool or sometimes cotton, with occasional additions of silk. These carpets are natural barriers against the cold. Turkish pile rugs and kilims are also frequently used as tent decorations, grain bags, camel and donkey bags, ground cushions, oven covers, sofa covers, bed and cushion covers, blankets, curtains, eating blankets, table top spreads, prayer rugs and for ceremonial occasions.[citation needed]

The oldest records of flat woven kilims come from Çatalhöyük Neolithic pottery, circa B.C. One of the oldest settlements ever to have been discovered, Çatalhöyük is located south east of Konya in the middle of the Anatolian region.[45] The excavations to date (only three percent of the town) not only found carbonized fabric but also fragments of kilims painted on the walls of some of the dwellings. The majority of them represent geometric and stylized forms that are similar or identical to other historical and contemporary designs.[46]

The knotted rug is believed to have reached Asia Minor and the Middle East with the expansion of various nomadic tribes peoples during the latter period of the great Turkic migration of the 8th and 9th centuries. Famously depicted in European paintings of The Renaissance, beautiful Anatolian rugs were often used from then until modern times, to indicate the high economic and social status of the owner.[citation needed]

Women learn their weaving skills at an early age, taking months or even years to complete the beautiful pile rugs and flat woven kilims that were created for their use in every aspect of daily life. As is true in most weaving cultures, traditionally and nearly exclusively, it is women and girls who are both artisan and weaver.[47][48][49]

Turkmen

[edit] Main article: Turkmen carpet

Türkmen carpet (also called "Bukhara Uzbekistan") is a type of handmade floor-covering textile traditionally originating in Central Asia. It is useful to distinguish between the original Turkmen tribal rugs and the rugs produced in large numbers for export in the s, mainly in Pakistan and Iran. The original Turkmen rugs were produced by the Turkmen tribes who are the main ethnic group in Turkmenistan and are also found in Afghanistan and Iran. They are used for various purposes, including tent rugs, door hangings and bags of various sizes.[50]

Uyghur

[edit]

Weaving was traditionally done by men in Uyghur society. Scholars speculate that when the Mongols invaded northwest China in the 13th century, under the leadership of General Subutai, they may have taken as captives some of these skilled carpet weavers.[51]

Europe

[edit]

Oriental imports

[edit]

Oriental carpets began to appear in Europe after the Crusades in the 11th century, due to contact by Crusaders with Eastern traders. Until the mid-18th century they were mostly used on walls and tables. Except in royal or ecclesiastical settings, they were considered too precious to cover the floor. Starting in the 13th century, oriental carpets begin to appear in paintings (notably from Italy, Flanders, England, France, and the Netherlands). Carpets of Indo-Persian design were introduced to Europe via the Dutch, British, and French East India Companies of the 17th and 18th century[52] and in the Polish&#;Lithuanian Commonwealth by Armenian merchants (Polish carpets or Polonaise carpets).[13]

Spain

[edit]

Although isolated instances of carpet production pre-date the Muslim invasion of Spain, the Hispano-Moresque examples are the earliest significant body of European-made carpets. Documentary evidence shows production beginning in Spain as early as the 10th century AD. The earliest extant Spanish carpet, the so-called Synagogue carpet in the Museum of Islamic Art, Berlin, is a unique survival dated to the 14th century. The earliest group of Hispano-Moresque carpets, Admiral carpets (also known as armorial carpets), has an all-over geometric, repeat pattern punctuated by blazons of noble Christian Spanish families. The variety of this design was analyzed most thoroughly by May Beattie. Many of the 15th century Spanish carpets rely heavily on designs originally developed on the Anatolian Peninsula.[citation needed] Carpet production continued after the Reconquest of Spain and eventual expulsion of the Muslim population in the 15th century. Sixteenth century Renaissance Spanish carpet design is a derivative of silk textile design. Some of the most popular motifs are wreaths, acanthus leaves and pomegranates.[citation needed]

During the Moorish (Muslim) period, production took place in Alcaraz in the province of Albacete, as well as being recorded in other towns. Carpet production after the Christian reconquest continued in Alcaraz while Cuenca, first recorded as a weaving centre in the 12th century, became increasingly important, and was dominant in the 17th and early 18th century. Carpets of completely different French-based designs began to be woven in a royal workshop, the Royal Tapestry Factory (Real Fábrica de Tapices de Santa Bárbara) in Madrid in the 18th century. Cuenca was closed down by the royal degree of Carlos IV in the late 18th century to stop it competing with the new workshop. Madrid continued as a weaving centre through to the 20th century, producing brightly coloured carpets, most of whose designs are strongly influenced by French carpet design, and which are frequently signed (on occasions with the monogram MD; also sometimes with the name Stuyck) and dated in the outer stripe. After the Spanish Civil War General Franco revived the carpet weaving industry in workshops named after him, weaving designs that are influenced by earlier Spanish carpets, usually in a very limited range of colours.[53]

Serbia

[edit] Main article: Pirot carpet

Pirot carpet[a] (Serbian: &#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#;&#; &#;&#;&#;&#;&#;, Pirotski ćilim) refers to a variety of flat tapestry