We recently cleaned and restored a very fine Turkish oriental rug from a client in Earls Court (Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Central London). As you can see from the image, this is a particularly fine piece with very soft wools. The piece has natural dyes, is handmade and has a cotton foundation – this means the fringes are made from cotton (that’s the extension from what forms the warp and weft base of the rug).
The client came to us following a recommendation from a close friend who had also very recently had a beautiful antique Kazak oriental rug cleaned and restored. Without seeing the rug, it is very difficult to give an accurate appraisal of what work is required. Each and every client rug is different and therefore it is very important that we see the rug or carpet before quoting for cleaning and repair. One should be very wary of anyone claiming to hand clean Oriental and Persian carpets and rugs without first seeing and feeling the piece in situ.
When we attended the clients property to give a free quotation we were delighted to walk around the property with the client informing them of exactly what their carpet and rug collection consisted of. There were Afghan hallway runners in deep reds and a beautiful Persian Kashan carpet set out in front of the fireplace. The Turkish piece we restored was a real treasure – the client had owned it for many years and was in fact an heirloom from her father – purchased somewhere between 1930 and 1940 in the Middle East. Once we talked the client through the best course of action – we took the rug away for appraisal at our workshops in London. It is worth noting that all our cleaning and repairing of Oriental carpets and rugs, regardless of size and quality, is conducted in London.
Once the rug was hand cleaned it looked incredible and revealed the true golden colours of the wools and striking designs in the centre of the field. In fact, one could easily mistake the piece for a silk Persian rug given the shine of the wool and softness of the pile of the rug. The client asked if the rug could be hung on the wall, which of course we obliged and proceeded to sew on five hoops to the rear of the rug from which it will be hung from a strong picture rail.
After the rug had been cleaned and some small repairs to the fringes were conducted – we called the client to arrange delivery. We always uplift and deliver free of charge both in London, Edinburgh and actually throughout the UK. The rug is due to be delivered back to the client next week. Another specialist rug cleaning and repair service in London from The Oriental Rug Repair Co. Ltd.