AU NATUREL Rug

Size 3’x6'
Indigenous sheep wool 
Handspun
Handwoven
Hand-dyed with vegetable dyes
Rotate it often, vacuum, use rug beater and spot clean. Do not use harsh chemicals or heavy-duty vacuums
Crafted by rural weavers from Western India

Disclaimer: Due to the handmade nature of our products and variations of device screens, you may find slight variations in color and/or craftsmanship. Even if from the same dye lot, slight variations in color may occur. This is not a defect, but a unique feature of handmade goods.

In some cases, a rug may shed some of its fibers at first. This is completely normal. The shedding of a new rug should stop after light regular vacuuming and normal wear. It's important to vacuum your new wool rug at least once or twice a week, as this is when it’s most prone to shedding.

Description

Hand spun & dyed yarn are handwoven into splendid rugs. The yarn is sheared from indigenous sheep. These traditional rugs were used to spread on the floor or to cover grains. Kings and ministers also enjoyed these attractive rugs, known for their strength as well as beauty. A diminishing market for handmade products, which take longer to produce and cost higher, means handcrafted rug production in this Western Indian region is now on a sharp decline and considering only 3-5 pieces can be woven in a month, by the handful of remaining traditional weavers, causes a huge strain on their continued survival.  To add to their woes, the region is annually affected by acute drought and agriculture is severely affected, in effect, revenue from weaving becomes the artisans' chief source of income and is crucial to their livelihood. Each piece is known to be sturdy enough to last an entire century.

A small version of a carpet, rugs cover a small area and are an accent carpet. Rugs are usually less than 40 sq ft. in size and being light, can be moved from room to room or hung on a wall. Use them brighten up a muted carpet or walls. 

Handwoven fabrics are meticulously planned and created requiring a complex estimation, depending on the design. 

A Fair Trade product. Handmade by artisans in India.

How It's Made

Rural weavers from Western India have skillfully crafted this product on handlooms. The artisans carefully string sheep’s wool yarn vertically upon the loom to create the warp and horizontally to create the weft. They then weave the interlacing yarn, creating expressive, decorative patterns.

Determination of how close the warp yarns will be placed next to each other, precise calculation of where the next color thread will be incorporated (e.g., 1-inch stripes,) and careful calculation for minimal loom waste are some steps of the process. Hand weaving is unforgiving as once woven, weaves can't be undone.