Persian Gabbeh rugs are woven in and around the Shiraz and Fars regions of Iran, mainly by the Qashqai tribe. They usually have a very long pile of up to an inch deep. The original old Gabbeh rugs were undyed and so cream, brown, grey and black were the only colours available. The designs have always been geometric with large expanses of clear field. In the 1970's and 80's bright colours were introduced to the Gabbeh rugs and they proved very popular with the modern decor. This trend was soon noticed by other handmade rug and carpet weavers around the world, particularly Indian, Pakistan and Turkey. Today Persian Gabbeh rugs are produced in much smaller numbers and it can be difficult to find stock in London's Oriental rug warehouses.

There's no doubt the alluring factor when high end stores announce the January sales. But the fact is that in today's market and with access to the internet, you should be able to find a reputable Oriental rug dealer that can sell you a Persian rug or carpet at the right price all year round. London's west end stores work on enormous mark up's and its easy for them to cut 75% off their normal retail price and still come out with a very healthy profit, and its usually the rugs and carpets that have failed to sell and best avoided that are discounted the most. The trick is to access London's Oriental rug warehouses, which is actually where most of the UK stores buy their Oriental rugs and carpets from, despite what they say. Can you really imagine the store buyer hunting for handmade rugs and carpets in Afghanistan or Iran, I don't think so. David J.Wilkins has never had a sale, we simply sell Oriental rugs and carpets direct from London's wholesale warehouses at what most people would consider sale prices all year round.

It’s nearly Christmas folks (like we need to remind you!) and this means the party season is nearly here. This can be a worry for owners of Oriental rugs, the thought of hoards of people trampling party food into their Persian is enough to induce a cold sweat. Fear not though, there are simple safety measures to take which ensure your rug survives all the fun and festivities. Take the rug up – One of the easiest ways to keep your rug safe over the holiday season is simply to take it out of the equation altogether. Store it away until the last of the parties in the New Year then put it back down again. We’ve covered the subject of storing rugs in one of our previous blogs at David Wilkins so follow the care guide and at least this way you know your rug won’t come to any harm. Protect it with another covering – Place a plastic sheet or some other covering over the rug on a temporary basis. If you decide to leave the rug down, a protective cover will prevent food and drink from spilling into the fibre and it should prevent you from having a seizure at the same time. Ask people to remove their shoes – Place a shoe rack near the front door and ask visitors to remove their footwear when they visit your home over Christmas. It’ll stop the outside world from being trodden all over your lovely Persian and prevent you from having to clean the carpet afterwards. Keep certain rooms off limits – If you have a Persian rug in the lounge area of your property, have a party in the kitchen, extend it out into the conservatory, use a small gazebo in the back garden if needs be. As long as you drive foot traffic away from the sensitive areas of your house you can relax and get into the party spirit without wondering what’s happening to your rug.

In many handmade Persian rugs and carpets you will discover the deliberate mistake. Followers of Islam believe only Allah makes things perfectly, and therefore to weave a perfect rug or carpet would be an offence to Allah. The original deliberate mistake is usually made in the execution of the pattern of the rug and not in the dying of the wool or silk, and certainly not the quality of the weaving. Genuine deliberate mistakes in oriental rugs and carpets may be very difficult to spot and can be as subtle as a different colour used in a flower petal. In reality with all handmade oriental rugs and carpets, mistakes creep in whether deliberate or not.

In the world of oriental rugs the age of a rug can only be placed into four main ranges. This is because the exact year when the rug was woven is impossible to pinpoint. Also age means money, consequently many descriptive terms have evolved over the years, especially on the retail level. The main four ranges that you may hear are.

Antique     100 years or more

Old            40 to 99 years

Semi-old  20-39 years

New          0-19 years

The reason new oriental rugs and carpets can still be classed as new even after 10 years or more is because of the length of time handmade rugs and carpets can take to reach the western markets. The best advise it to always seek a reputable dealer and accept that the age of your rug is at best approximate.

The one thing you can say about a Persian rug, apart from it being beautiful, is this is a feature that needs the right surroundings to be truly appreciated. The rest of the room often pales into insignificance once you lay an oriental rug on the floor. Still, you could always decorate the rest of the room and base it around the rug so they work in harmony together. Here’s our take if you want a few ideas, read our article about decorating a room for a Persian.

• Choose appropriate colours: Persian rugs are bold enough on their own so you don’t have to be brash with the colours on the wall. Keep the colours neutral, white walls look stunning with Persian rugs, they make the room feel light and airy, it’ll seem bigger and make a showcase feature out of the rug.
• Try to coordinate: If you decide you want a little colour on the walls look for shades that’ll compliment the rug. For example, if your rug has a large degree of red and blue in it why not paint your walls grey? They’ll look chic, provide the room with a boutique feel and still show off the rug in the best possible way.
• Avoid heavily patterned curtains: Don’t ‘crowd’ the room with heavily printed curtains, the chances are they’ll clash with the rug. Stick with a trendy look and try plantation shutters or wooden Venetian blinds instead. Paint them white and they’ll look amazing as window accessories but won’t take the shine off your rug.
• Combine neutral sofas with coloured cushions: If you have a cream or oatmeal sofa suite find cushions that match the colours in the carpet. They’ll compliment the Oriental rug and tie the sofa in with the theme without being overstated.
• Keep it minimal: If you really want your rug to be the feature of the room opt for the minimalist look and cut back on other furniture items. Sometimes less is more when it comes to interior design so keep it simple and make your rug the feature with the wow factor.

Buy a Persian rug and this is one feature that you want to be on show at all times. Say you had to put the rug into storage for a short while though, suppose you were moving home or were renovating your property and you wanted to keep the rug protected, how would you look after the rug whilst it was out of sight? This guide gives you a few tips about rug storage and it’ll help you keep a Persian in perfect condition. • Give the rug a clean: Before you place the rug into storage give it a good clean and that will remove dust and dirt particles that could be hiding in the fibres. Never pack a rug away before you have cleaned the fibres, dirt can fester and leave marks in the carpet. • Spray the rug with an insecticide: Use a specialist insecticide that’s kind to carpet fibres and protect the rug from moths, beetles and other pests that like to feast on fibres. Use a non-staining product that won’t damage the fibres in the carpet, get advice from a rug supplier if you have any trouble finding a good repellent. • Carefully roll the rug: Don’t fold the rug, simply roll it for short or long-term storage to prevent crease marks from appearing in the fibre. Just leave the rug where it is with the fibre facing upwards and begin to roll it into a ‘tube’ shape until all you can see is the backing. • Wrap it in plastic: Use coloured plastic if possible to prevent light from filtering through and completely cover the rug from end to end. Secure the plastic into place with masking tape and make sure you fix down any flapping sections. • Store off the floor: Place the rug in a cool, dark room where you can control the light levels. Don’t leave it on the floor, carpet beetles could attack the pack, so place it on a shelf if you can, or raise it off the floor by resting it on a couple of objects. • Check it: If you are storing your rug for the long term take a look at it once a month or so. Unwrap it, unroll it and look for signs of infestation, hopefully everything will be fine and you can wrap it back up again.

Keep out of strong sunlight: Sun is the natural enemy of rugs. place your rug in a conservatory or a very sunny room and the colours will fade in time. Don't place heavy furniture on the rug: Indentations caused by heavy furniture items can be hard to remove. Weight distribution cups can be purchased to place under the feet of your sofa or table. Regular cleaning helps. Keep your rugs in great condition by giving them a good shake or you might want to beat them outside to remove dirt and debris if you prefer. Light vacuuming can also clean rugs just be careful you don't damage the fringes. Stain removal: If you spill something on your rug deal with it straight away by placing a piece of kitchen towel on the spill to absorb the fluid then gently sponge the area clean. If in doubt contact your rug supplier or specialist oriental rug cleaner for advise.  

Forget all those other home features, a new rug is all you need to add a little glitz to your home. Find a rug that fits and everything else just falls into place, you can base your whole decor around a feature rug. This article examines how to select a feature rug for your property and gives you tips on ways to make the most from your new purchase. Where are you going to put the rug ? Work out which room you want to display the feature rug. This could be your hallway for example or possibly the main living area where you rest and relax most of the time. Make a decision on where you are going to place the rug and once you know, think about the size of the rug that you require. Fill the space Size is everything when you are choosing a new rug. Buy something that's too big and it'll swamp your room, buy something that's too small and it'll look lost in it's new surroundings. Take accurate measurements of the room where you want to place the rug to make sure you get the correct size. Handmade rugs rarely come in standard sizes, so some compromise is usually necessary. Don't come up short If you are placing furniture on a rug like a coffee table make sure the rug protrudes at either end. Furniture looks best placed in the middle of the rug and you might want the rug to extend so it slots neatly under the legs of a sofa at each end. Just make sure there's plenty of the rug on show when you are coordinating it with items of furniture and don't sell the room short.

You will find many Oriental rugs and carpets contain the woven signature of the weaver. The importance of this is usually over stated by dealers and customers alike. A quality rug or carpets will speak for its self and many very fine handmade rugs and carpets remain unsigned. Make sure the Oriental rug or carpet you are interested in is signed within the main body of the carpet and not protruding out onto the fringe as this is a sign that the signature of a famous weaver could have been added at a later date. Some famous signatures you may come across in Persian rugs and carpets are, Sarafian from Isfahan and Habibian from Nain.