Hamadan Rug repaired

Finished repair

 It was a very satisfying moment when I stitched the last buttonhole knots into the edging of the fringe to make sure the new knots don't unravel. As you can see from this section of the repair it is still lighter than the rest, but time will make it the right colour.  The rug was not cleaned prior to the repair and professionals always clean the rugs first so that every piece of wool is the correct colour. 

This was my first rug repair and I am more than pleased with the results. Would I do it again? yes I think I would if it was not too large a hole and I could match the colours again.

Tools and wool used

This was the mess left at the end, you can see I used two tapestry wools for the edge and I also had some wonderful really thick luscious Alpaca wool which somebody gave to me for the side edges.  I am so lucky to have friends in the Embroiderers' Guild who have a network of other friends who share things out when they don't want them and this wool has been in my stash for about 3 years. I used two large needles one with a slight curve which I think I bought many years ago when I upholstered a Chesterfield settee. I also used some very strong cotton and beeswax produced by a friend called Melanie who kept her own bees. The string was bought at W H Smiths and was their fine parcel string but I also used some thicker string I had here too. Two pens were used to add a dot of colour to the knots to blend them in and I dyed the white Alpaca wool with tea as that is what is sometimes done to old rugs to give them a worn look. 

So there you have it, the tools of the job. I also used the internet to research how to do it. The following websites I bookmarked and read as and when I was stuck for ideas.

Rug structure and the Hamadan weave below:
http://www.persiancarpetguide.com/sw-asia/FAQ/FAQ9995.htm

Antique Hamadan rugs
http://www.spongobongo.com/0her9970.htm

Rug repair and restoration
http://www.rugart.biz/rug-repair.html

End finishes
http://www.marlamallett.com/end.htm

Classic Rug Care
http://www.rugcare.co.uk/rugrepairs.html

I also looked up cleaning but thought it best to leave this area alone as its specialised, however, using an upright vacuum cleaner with a beater is why most rug edges become torn and worn. You should use an upholstery attachment to clean your rug and get down on your hands and knees. Beaters on cleaners damage rugs, but they can be used on the back when you turn them over if you are careful.

Rugs should really be given a good beating on some sort of line outside and a broom handle works quite well if you don't have an old fashioned bamboo carpet beater. I used to have one but sadly it was in the days when I saw it as a novelty and not a useful home tool. So its back to the broom handle for me.......

Progress on Hamadan Rug

 Keeping the rug taught so the warps did not hang loose and the knots come undone was a problem. I used a board behind and stapled the warps to it so I could apply tension.

This is the stage I have reached. The new wool is in place and I don't think the colour match is too bad.  I had to do a row of plain navy then a row of red and beige dots and then another row of navy with a final row of red. I have tied in and sewn in the wefts all apart from the last one. I now need to concentrate on the fringe. This is the difficult bit next as this is what will hold the repair and the rug together.

Mending Hamadan rugs

This is not my rug but belongs to a friend with a holiday cottage.  She knows I can repair things so asked if I would look at this.  Well its not embroidery or quilting but I have dabbled with weaving and darning in the past.  Rugs like this one can be repaired by professionals but as its a small area I thought I would give it a go.  Basically, I think it has been caught in a vacuum cleaner and tugged and then the tear on the fringe has become worn and extended over time.  I needed to check what type of rug I was dealing with first and found out from the back of it that its a single weft, Hamadan rug, which means Turkish knots and rough, strong wool and also some camel hair.  The rug smells of very old incense too so it was probably made in a tent or similar. If you look at the dyes most of them are vegetable but I suspect the bright orange is a chemical one, so it's not that old but it is good quality.

You can see that I needed to weave some new warps and wefts into the edge and I also had to stabilise the end warps which were broken so that the knots of wool would not slide off, this required a sort of blanket stitch. I have not quite finished replacing the warps in this photo. I find the rug very heavy to pull onto my lap whilst working so only do half an hour at a time as its quite a strain and also the rug covers me in fine gritty sand.  I will need to give it a good bashing outside with a broom handle and then vacuum it carefully when I am done. All being well I will post again when it progresses. I think a challenge on this scale does depend on a certain degree of luck, and I hope the repair works, time will tell.