"This article starts in a Turkish bath, a “hamam”, and the “hamam” starts with a Roman bath a millennium earlier. While this must seem an odd place to start, Kabul at 5,900 feet altitude has snow on the ground all winter. Mazar e Sharif at 1290 feet does not but stays about freezing, and Peshawar Pakistan (80% flooded) at about 1200 feet averages 40 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter."

 "In Part 1, we wrote about rug making in Afghanistan, using pictures supplied by Ariana. This month we will illustrate the article with pictures supplied by Amadi and Pacific Collection. For our readers who are unfamiliar with this group of firms, Amadshah and Alex Ahmadi run Ariana, Zabi, Zubair and Murtazah Ahmadi run Amadi, and Fred Hazin runs Pacific Collection. They all grew up together..."

There are five major categories of cost for producing a rug: Materials, Labor, Designing and Finishing, Distribution, and Interest (Time Cost of Money)

And as is true of all luxury textiles, the finer the weave, the more luxurious, the more expensive, and the more embodied labor (Karl Marx).

With designs go colors. Designs are created by humans. Designs reflect a person, an event, an idea, and a culture..

The first decision you have to make, is how will the design and color work in your room. The next decision is “Can you afford the rug?” and along with that you need to know if the rug or any other product you put in your home, represents values that are important to you. Your home is an extension of you.

The bulk of hand knotted production Chinese Rugs in the United States arrived between the two World Wars and post embargo (June 1971) until the early 21st century, when Chinese weavers left the looms for more lucrative professions.

Every aspect of the human experience is touched one way or another by textiles, on a minute to minute basis. How does one textile relate to another? How is it that products made all over the globe find their way into your home color coordinated? Trends are ubiquitous, and ever-changing. The relationship between products in the home evolve in an unspoken language and yet there are no specific rules when it comes to Interior Design. There is also no connection between a designer of textiles in New Delhi, for example, and one in Charlotte...

Sotheby’s sold the 17th century rug illustrated for a hammer price of $30 million. Peter Pap represented the under-bidder, a private collector, for this rug. Remember, at auction it is the under-bidder who sets the price by dropping out. Rug News andDesign asked Peter “Why $30 million?”...

By Rob Leahy GROWTH RETURNS, BUT UNEVENLY As I prepared for the Afghanistan/USA Carpet Conference (From Sheep to Shop), held in Dubai September 20-22nd of this...