The art of rug making is a precious one. The devotion and precision used by those who have handcrafted these beauties for centuries upon centuries is amazing. One must have incredible patience and a sharp eye to succeed in making a one of a kind Oriental Rug.

        There are few places where the amazing art of rug making is present....Iran, India, China, Pakistan, Turkey, Nepal, Afghanistan, Rumania, Russia and Armenia are all the countries from whose talented artisans come these truly fine creations. From ancient treasures to modern contemporary designs, Oriental rugs represent centuries of the most exquisite artistry and meticulous craftsmanship. The method in which the rugs are made has remained unchanged for thousands of years.

        The process begins by shearing only the absolute finest sheep's wool, then washed free of lanolin. It is then "carded," or brushed, to straighten the fibers, and then spun into thread. Next it is dyed in giant boiling vats as many as twenty times by master dyers, then hung to dry. Each part in the process is considered an art in itself.

        Rug designs can be inspired by the world surrounding the artisans, both contemporary and historic. Animals, gardens, mountains, forests, shrines, hunting grounds and dreams can all be seen among the vibrant threads. It is not unusual to see a war scene, a Mondrian, Miro, Kandinksy or a re-introduction of a famous design period such as Art Deco, Nouveau, Aubusson, Savonnerie or Arts & Crafts, which would all be more contemporary than tradition calls for.

        In villages and cities, each design is reproduced to scale on a paper graph called a "cartoon" from which the weavers construct the real rug, one knot at a time.

        Nomads, on the other hand, do not use cartoons, but their remarkable designs are woven from memory and have been passed down generation to generation.

        The hands on part of the weavers job really asks the utmost patience. The weaver starts a painstaking job that will take months, if not years, to complete. Using their design as a constant reference, the weaver builds the rug from thousands, often millions of individually tied knots made with the help of a loom. The more knots, the more strong and sturdy the rug will be.

        The loom has remained relatively unchanged over the centuries. The most primitive forms are the nomadic or horizontal designed with easy portability in mind. Rural rug making utilizes the vertical loom, consisting of two vertical beams, comprising the rug's width, called the "warp" threads.

        The warp threads, which usually are made of cotton or wool yarns, are tightly stretched along the length of the loom. In a pile rug, pieces of differently colored woolen yarn are "knotted" around each pair of warp threads. As each row of knots is completed, weft threads are inserted across the width of the loom and a new row is begun. The weft and the warp thereby make up the hidden foundation of the rug and the knots create the pile and the pattern. Typically there are two types of knots - the Turkish and the Persian.

        An average weaver can tie between ten and fourteen thousand knots in a day, amounting to roughly one or two inches of woven carpet between several weavers working together. It is possible for two weavers to complete an 8' x 10' carpet in about five to six months.