We were recently invited to pick up, wash and restore some small holes caused by moths, a beautiful Persian Nian rug – located in Westminster, London. Our client had a variety of hand made oriental rugs ranging from Afghan, Turkish and some lovely Indian Kashmiri silk rugs that also needed cleaning. However, the Persian rug was a favourite and was situated in the lounge between two armchairs. It was wool on a cotton foundation, cream and pale blue with silk highlight throughout the hand made woven pile.
The client had been moving furniture for the redecoration of the room and had noticed that the part of the oriental carpet that had been under the seat, had been attacked by moths. The damage was down to the cotton foundation, but not right through the base. Moth damage in oriental rugs can cause an alarming amount of work to repair – almost always requiring re-piling and re-building.
We removed the carpet after inspection and transported it to our workshops in North London.
Our first priority was to dust extract the rug, which in the process, removes any moth eggs that may be at the base of the knots. We then applied an organic moth solution which kills any existing larvae in the rug.
We then hand washed the rug using soft brushes and organic shampoos, which ensured that the colours did not run and did not remove the natural oils from the wool.
After the rug had been dried naturally our next task was to dye wools to match the rug and reweave the damaged areas using a small loom. Each knot painstakingly re-knotted in exactly the same way as original. The repair was invisible after completion.
Once this was completed and the new wools trimmed down to match the surrounds, we lightly brushed a moth treatment into the pile and allowed it to settle before a final inspection by our workshop manager.
On return to the client, it was impossible to see the repairs and the colours were as vibrant as was when first woven.
Our client was astounded at the quality of work and the overall difference in the look of the rug. They said they would have no hesitation in using us again and recommending us to friends, saying our service and expertise was brilliant.