Common Mistakes When Buying a Persian Rug
Purchasing a hand-knotted rug should be a process: it’s important to do your research to learn why these beautiful carpets are so beloved and valued. There’s the understanding of a rug’s particular design and colors. The visiting of two or three rug dealers to learn more about, for example, the difference between a Tabriz and a Kerman design. And so on. A quality rug dealer will be excited to teach you about the world of rugs.
The rug buying process truly can be an adventure as you learn more about the history of these beautiful textiles and hone your ability to discern a higher quality rug over one of lesser quality.
Mistakes will happen, of course: it’s part of the process. You may, for example, not understand the difference between a hand-knotted and hand-tufted rug at first, and possibly almost pay too much for a hand-tufted rug. Watch out for dealers who won’t show you the back of a “handmade” rug, this is a sure sign the rug is actually hand-tufted.
To help prevent you from making a big mistake (such as purchasing a shoddy machine-made rug at a quality hand-knotted rug’s price), we’ve put together a list of three mistakes rug buyers sometimes make. This list is just a start to the journey, make sure to do additional research.
- Not doing at least some research.
As mentioned in this post’s first paragraph, buying a Persian rug the right way may entail some “work.” It’s enjoyable work, but in our culture of “I want it and I want it now,” many people may decide they want a rug tomorrow and so head online and purchase the first rug on eBay that suits their taste. It may be a true hand-knotted rug or it may not be. But wanting a hand-knotted rug and not researching how to make sure any rug really is hand-knotted is a recipe for the purchase of a machine-made rug branded as a hand-knotted rug.
- Not measuring the space where you plan to place the rug.
“Eyeballing” a space is not measuring! You need to know exactly how big the rug can be before you fall in love with a rug. It’s happened many times: someone falls in love with a rug she knows will fit, only to find that it…doesn’t. (Many rug dealers will take the rug back/trade it so long as it’s in the same condition as when it left the showroom, but why take that chance?) Measuring takes relatively little time in the beginning but can save many headaches at the end of your rug search endeavor. If you have purchased a rug that is too large, and cannot return it, don’t fret too much! The skilled weavers at Behnam Rugs do custom sizing for our customers. It is possible to downsize your rug, but why go through all that trouble when you could avoid it by simply measuring the space?
- Buying a rug for what you believe will be its increased value as it ages.
Not all hand-knotted rugs increase in value as they age. Not all antique Persian rugs are valuable: some of them are so far gone and need so much restoration that they’ve just become “old rugs.”
While many fine hand-knotted rugs do increase in value over time, there’s no guarantee the rug you buy will be one of them. Instead of purchasing one of these works of art because you hope you or your heirs will be able to cash in on its increased value, purchase a rug for the best reason of all: because you love it. If you are hoping to purchase a rug that will appreciate, do some research. Note that traditionally designed handmade Persian and Oriental rugs are always in style and therefore more likely to increase in value.
We just love Persian and Oriental rugs here at Behnam Rugs and we’d love to help you learn why they are such coveted textiles. Give us a call at 972-733-4000 to schedule an appointment.
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