Oriental rugs are extremely versatile and can serve numerous purposes in your home. Whether you are decorating your living room, family room, bedroom, kitchen, hallway or patio, there’s a Oriental rug that is right for you. Unlike wall-to-wall carpet, which is normally best kept rather neutral, Oriental rugs can bring colorful patterns and designs into your room without overwhelming it. Plus, unlike carpeting, Oriental rugs can be changed with the seasons – or your mood – and are yours to keep should you move.

If you are lucky enough to have wooden floors in your home, Oriental rugs are the perfect compliment. With a little care your wooden floors will last forever. They don’t collect allergens the way carpet does, are easy to clean and provide a perfect background for a beautiful Oriental rug. But even if you have wall-to-wall carpeting you can still use Oriental rugs. Simply place them in high-traffic areas to protect the carpet or use Oriental rugs to tie a seating area together. You can even put Oriental rugs on the walls to create an interesting display!

The Importance of Using a Quality Rug Pad

Experts in the home décor industry all agree that every Oriental area rug requires a good-quality rug pad underneath it. Not only does this promote safety in your home by preventing the rug from slipping, it also increases the life of your Oriental rug and makes it much easier to regularly vacuum. Never use tape or adhesive to anchor a Oriental rug to your floor or carpeting. This can easily damage both the floor and rug. 

The Persian Dream rug pads we sell at Rug Specials - RugDepot come with a 10-year warranty. They are guaranteed not to mar, stain or discolor the floor and to hold your Oriental rug securely in place. They come in a variety of sizes and are reversible for use on either bare floors or carpeting. Also, most Oriental rugs manufacturers require that their product be placed on top of a quality rug pad in order to validate their warranty against defects in workmanship.

Remember, every Oriental rug needs a pad. Click here to see the high-quality, 10-year Persian Dream rug pads available from Rug Specials - RugDepot.

Useful Information About Oriental Rugs

Oriental rugs exude beauty and quality. Oriental rugs are timeless works of art. But what exactly does the term "Oriental rug" mean? "Oriental rug" commonly describes a hand-woven item produced primarily in the Near East to Central Asia. Machine-made rugs of any sort are NOT "Oriental rugs" in the accepted sense. These are more accurately defined as "Oriental-design" rugs. This is an important distinction.

There is also an important distinction between decorative rugs and collectible rugs, though there can be some overlap. Modern Oriental rugs are produced in commercial workshops. They are made by hand and therefore quality as genuine Orientals. They originate in Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, India, and China. These rugs often are described with other terms, including modern, contemporary, transitional and traditional. 

Modern, decorative Oriental rugs are beautiful and wear well. The value of these products has much to do with the manufacturing process (machine vs. hand-spun), quality of materials (wool vs. olefin), dyes (natural vs. synthetic), and the geographic authenticity of the rug and its weavers. It is thrilling to find the designs and techniques that have developed over time and give these works of art their historic value and mystique.

The commercial workshops of India, Pakistan, and other newer centers of Oriental area-rug manufacturer arose in part to help fill the demand for handmade rugs caused by a twenty-year embargo against genuine Persian (Iranian) products. True Oriental rugs became almost unattainable. The embargo turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the industry, because concerns about quality and the degeneration of the art resulted in a renaissance in new Oriental rug production.

Common Oriental rug designs include: 
Floral 
Arts & Crafts 
Modern/Contemporary 
Rectilinear (primitive/geometric) 
Curvilinear 
European

The origin of most modern Oriental rugs are:
Iran, India, China, Turkey, Nepal/Tibet, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Turkmenistan, Romania. 

The origin of the majority of antique Oriental rugs are:
Persia, India, China, Turkey, France, Afghanistan and the Caucasus Region which includes Azerbaijan, Armenia. Georgia and Turkestan.

A Note About Oriental Rug Labels

The labels on Oriental rugs can be quite confusing. Frequently you will see the Oriental rug described according to the Persian (Iranian) city in which the rug's design originated. For example, an Oriental rug labeled "Sino-Kashan" would describe a Chinese-made copy of a Persian floral medallion Oriental rug popularized by the city workshops of Kashan, Iran.

An Oriental rug retailer should be very specific when stating the country-of-origin of a rug. The origin should be on the rug tag, and in all written descriptions of the rug. A rug can be of Persian design but might be woven in India, China, Romania, Egypt or Pakistan. Likewise, a Chinese design might have  been woven into a rug created in India. 

At Rugs Direct we take the confusion out of rug labels. Our labels and online descriptions clearly and concisely state all of the pertinent information regarding each rug, including the origin, fiber content, size, and all relevant manufacturer information. 

Oriental Rugs at Rug Specials - RugDepot

Remember, there is no room in your home that will not benefit from the addition of a beautiful, new Oriental area rug. And the best place to shop for Oriental rugs is the nation's leading source for area rugs, Rug Specials - RugDepot. Explore our huge inventory and incredible prices by visiting our online showroom at www.rugdepot.com