Coming Soon!

Fair Trade Oriental Rug Event

October 8–10

Join us during our upcoming Oriental Rug Event featuring over 300 handknotted rugs all made by fairly paid adults, from 2'x3's to 10'x14's. Since our store is not large enough to carry these rugs year round, we host this special event to bring these high quality, fairly traded handknotted rugs to our community from the Main Rug Gallery at Ten Thousand Villages, Ephrata, Pennsylvania.

It's an event not to miss as these fairly traded rugs represent a win-win situation for all – high quality, fairly priced, handknotted rugs for the consumer and fair-paying, consistent jobs for artisans.

Rug Event Location
One World Goods
Pittsford Plaza
3349 Monroe Ave
Rochester, NY 14618
585-387-0070
owg@frontiernet.net
Map It!

Rug Event Hours
Friday 10-9
Saturday 10-9
Sunday 12-5

Free Public Seminar
Friday, October 8
6:30 p.m.

How Does One Choose?

"How will I be able to choose my rug? There are so many to choose from." This is a comment we hear over and over again as customers come in search of their perfect rug. By helping you understand the different types of rugs, you will also quickly figure out which rug speaks to you the most and fits into your home the best.

There are three major kinds of Pakistani knotted rugs: Bokhara, Persian and Tribal. Although these rugs have their differences, their durability and merit as fine, handcrafted rugs are the same.

Rug Types from our artisan group Bunyaad - in a nutshell

Persian

The Persian rug is the quintessential Oriental rug, famed for its intricacy, knot density and symbolism. Our Persians are all handknotted using a very fine, synthetically-dyed wool.

Persian rugs are known for their detailed floral designs, either with a pronounced center medallion or with a repeating all over pattern. Due to their intricacy they tend to have a higher knot count.

Persians are also known for their diverse color pallete. The number of colors in each rug ranges from 15 to 25, giving customers huge flexibility in terms of style and decor. Commonly known Persian designs include Kashan, Kerman, Tabriz or Mughal.

• Knot count: 500-800 per square inch and sometimes as high as 1000
• Colors: 15-25 due to intricate and floral designs
• Composition: 100% wool on a cotton warp and weft. Some pieces will be crafted with a large percentage of silk knots. This will be noted on the price tag as a bundle of silk costs approximately four times the price of wool.
• Production: A 9’x12’ rug could be completed in 12-14 months by five experienced artisans working five hours a day. High quality 800 knot count rugs would take the same artisans 18 months to complete.
• Average Retail Price: $300 for 2’x3’ to $6800 for 9’x12’. High quality 800 knot count rugs can range in price from $2200 for 4’x6’ to $9500 for 9’x12’
  
  Search our Persian inventory online

Bokhara
(Pronounced Bow-khAR-ah)

These rugs have fine repetative geometric patterns on a solid background color, generally in jewel tones. They tend to have velvety, plush piles and are very pliant (almost blanket-like) in texture. They are part of a very long tradition and heritage in various parts of Pakistan such as Multan, Hyderabad, Lahore and surrounding areas of the northeast region.

• Knot count: 200-300 per square inch
• Colors: 5-8 jewel toned colors with solid color background
• Composition: 100% wool on a cotton warp and weft. Some rugs will have touches of silk to outline the design. In addition, some specialty pieces will be crafted with a large percentage of silk knots. This will be noted on the price tag as a bundle of silk costs approximately four times the price of wool.
• Production: A 4’x6’ Bokhara can take three months with two experienced artisans working five hours a day.
• Average Retail Price: $250 for 2’x3’ to $3800 for 9’x12’
  
  Search our Bokhara inventory online

Diversity in Tribal styles

Tribal rugs are made by different tribal groups and therefore the designs will vary from geometric to large floral patterns. In general, Tribal rugs are less formal than Persian or Bokhara style rugs. All Tribals are made with 100% wool knotting.

The knot count depends on how the wool has been spun (drop spindle, spinning wheel or machine spun) and can range from 60-120 knots per square inch. Some specialty pieces are 600-800 knots per square inch. See the short descriptions below for special characteristics of our most popular Tribals.

Chobi Tribal
(Pronounced Choe-bee)
Chobi rugs are traditionally from the border region of Pakistan and Afghanistan. The word "chobi" itself is Farsi for "color like wood." Our Chobis tend to have large geometric floral patterns and they are all hand-knotted of hand-spun wool. The dyes are made entirely from hand-gathered fruits, vegetables, roots, tree barks and dried fruit shells, making Chobis the most labor intensive of all of our tribal carpets. Natural Dye Chobis are renowned for their lanolin-rich luster and stunning natural coloring. Their colors range from soft muted tans and browns to rich coppers, deep maroons and sage greens. Our natural dyeing techniques have been refined over the years to ensure a natural dye that is steadfast and long lasting.

Search our Chobi inventory online

Gabbeh Tribal
(Pronounced Gah-bay)
Gabbeh rugs are akin to Chobis in that they are knotted from entirely hand-spun yarn, dyed with 100% hand-gathered natural dyes. They have a softness and luster that emulates the look of an antique rug. This hand-gathered dyeing process is incredibly labor intensive and adds to the general value of the rug. The hand-spun yarn and natural dye process means that these rugs are entirely natural and hand-produced. Gabbeh patterns tend to have a more contemporary look, ranging from stripes and geometric designs to Arts & Crafts style vine patterns.

Search our Gabbeh inventory online

Kazak Tribal
(Pronounced Kah-zahk)
Kazaks are known for their indigo blues, rosy reds and tans, as well as their casual and warm appearance. Our Kazak rugs are 70 to 100% natural dye. Kazak natural dyes are commercially-produced natural dyes (such as indigo and cochineal) and are therefore less labor intensive than hand-gathered natural dyes. Some artisans choose to augment their natural dyes with some synthetic dyes in order to create the precise color they desire. The yarn in Kazaks is hand-spun and knot count generally ranges from 100 to 144 per square inch, using the Turkish knot method.

Search our Kazak inventory online

Shairwan Tribal
(Pronounced Share-wahn)
Shairwan rugs are essentially Kazak style rugs in terms of pattern, but they are made with a finer hand-spun wool and a higher knot count. Like Kazaks, Shairwans are 70 to 100% natural dye, depending on the preference of the individual artisan. Shairwans are intricate geometrically patterned pieces with common coloration including dark blue, turquoise, peach, terra cota, orange, yellow and wheat.

Search our Shairwan inventory online

Khan Mamdi Tribal
(Pronounced Cahn Mahm-dee)
Khan Mamdi (otherwise known as Kargai) carpets originate in both the Pashtun and Hazara tribal cultures of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Historically, they would have been knotted with naturally dyed hand-spun yarn, but today they are almost entirely knotted from synthetically-dyed machine-spun yarn. They are constructed with 100% finest grade wool in both their knotting and their warp. Khan Mamdi rugs stand out for their gold, brown and copper coloration. They often have deep midnight blue and forest green accents as well.

Search our Khan Mamdi inventory online

Beljik Tribal
(Pronounced Bell-jick)
The hallmark of the Beljik is its remarkable color, ranging from deep maroon and burgundy to an almost golden coppery red. These rugs are generally considered to be the finest of all tribal style rugs. They are made with finely spun, high quality wool and knotted into intricate geometric patterns with complex and intricate borders. The dyes used in Beljiks are synthetic in order to give them their depth of color. Beljiks sometimes have needlework detailing along their fringe and bound edges, adding to the overall intricacy of the carpet.

Search our Beljik inventory online