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Turkish Rugs: The DOBAGs
"Take the time to learn about the culture from which your rug originates."
Buying a new rug is, without a doubt, the most challenging task in decorating. If at all possible, buy your rug before you choose paint colors for your walls and, ideally, before you invest in a sofa or dining furniture or any other expensive piece of furniture. This is not always possible however and when it isn't, the best advice I can offer is to take your time and really do the necessary research. Begin by visiting rug stores and find what you are generally attracted to. Check the internet for pictures of rugs you like. If you know, specifically, which style and ethnicity of rug you prefer, your research will be all the easier.
My most recent rug experience, as a decorator, resulted in the purchase of two Turkish DOBAG rugs. My client, after several visits to rug stores in New York, fell in love with these hand-knotted, woven, wool rugs made by the village women in the Aegean region of Western Turkey. DOBAG, by the way, is named after a carpet weaving project which you can read about here.
The DOBAG, therefore, is a village rug. It is not factory-produced. A genuine DOBAG will always bear the DOBAG tag on the back of the rug.
The wool is often (though not always) handspun and always colored with natural vegetable dyes. The rugs are created on looms in the villagers' homes. The hand-tied knots that create the "pile" are also wool. The size of the loom determines the size of the rug, so, since these looms occupy space in village houses, the rugs range from decorative squares the size of an automobile's floor mat to, approximately, 5 ft. by 7 ft. area pieces.
Each rug reflects the creative expression of its weaver, though a variety of design traditions are repeatedly represented in, for example, the flower or village-scene patterns woven for the border.
Some important tips:
Research your area for a reputable dealer. There are advantages to buying your rug from a large department store as most of them have customer-friendly return policies.
.........DOBAG rug from the village of Maldan in western Turkey’s Yunt Dag mountains
The rug merchant or department store should be willing to let you take the rug to try in your home and return or exchange it if you do not like it, for any reason. Also insist upon a statement of the rug's age, origin and quality of wool.
Look at the way the rug lies. Is it uniformly flat? Are the sides parallel?
Turn the rug over. The design of a hand-knotted rug will appear the
same on the back as on the front. The design of a machine-made rug
will be hard to read.
Is the design on the front clear? A well-knotted and -dyed piece will have a clear design and will be pleasing to the eye. Avoid blurred designs and rugs in which the quality or shape of the design disturbs the eye.
Feel the quality of the wool. It should be soft to the touch but firmly and
uniformly knotted. The dyed wool should have a luster-like quality.
Note the fringe. The fringe pieces on a handmade rug are the extensions of
the loom’s warp threads. On a machine-made rug, the fringe is a post-production
addition.
Additionally, the selvedges of a machine-made rug are stitched on —
in contrast to being a part of the weave, as in a handmade piece.
Finally, consider the child-labor laws of the rug’s country of manufacture.
