When it comes to choosing the perfect Persian rug or Oriental rug, the possibilities are endless! You can find them on your travels abroad. You can find them while road-tripping across the United States, by visiting showrooms and antique malls, or simply by cruising the Internet. Keep reading to find out how to enjoy shopping without making rug buying mistakes.

Wouldn’t you like to be immersed in a brand-new and enriching shopping experience?  Most people are scared of feeling uneducated.  The salesperson rattles off unfamiliar terms about Persian rugs and overloads your senses with their vast array of knowledge; ultimately you struggle in the vocabulary dust. Play your cards right and you could learn more in one short visit to a showroom than you think.

Protect yourself from the Top Five Buying Mistakes listed below and you’ll feel empowered to make the right choice when you decide it’s time to venture into a dealer’s showroom and choose a Persian rug.  This is also true of Oriental rugs of all types.

Here are the

Top Five Persian Rug Buying Mistakes

Buying a poor quality or damaged Persian rug

You should always buy the best rug your budget will allow. After all, you do get what you pay for. Indicators of quality in a Persian rug include whether the rug is hand made or machine made, the density of the pile, and the nature of the dyes. If considering a vintage rug, you might notice a lovely patina on the wool. This indicates quality wool containing a lot of lanolin. Look at the back of the rug to see if there is any damage.  Repairs will typically look like a patch or a seam.

While skilled artisans like those at RenCollection can clean animal stains and repair edges and fringe, some damage is beyond repair, such as water damage or ripples that prevent the rug from lying flat.  Always examine the front and back of a Persian rug whenever possible to find damage.  This link is to an earlier article about buying quality vintage rugs.

Buying the wrong size Persian rug for the space

Inspect the front and back of a rug

Always look at the front and back of the rug.

Measure the room where you want to put the rug. The rug should never butt up to the wall, but it should be big enough.  If you have furniture near the wall, the front legs should rest on the rug.  Keep a minimum of eight inches on all sides of a piece of furniture.  A rug that matches the length of your sofa exactly looks awkward.

Tip:  Use Blue Painter’s Tape to trace the outline of where a rug would land in your room.  This helps you visualize how big the rug needs to be.  The most common sizes are 6×9, 8×10, 9×12, 10×14, & 12×15.

Buying the wrong rug for the space

Make the rug a part of the plan at every phase of design. Don’t leave it as an afterthought.  Consider the style of your furniture, the colors, the lighting.  Bring pictures of your space and a pillow or swatch of fabric from your furniture to the rug showroom.  You will be able to consult with a professional there.

Always start with the rug.  Find one you love, then build your space around it.  If you try to find the rug at the end of the design process, out of thousands of different rugs there might be two which could work–and you might like one of them.   When you start with the rug, your options are virtually endless.  You can see RenCollection’s wide variety of Persian rug designs here for inspiration.

Buying a Persian rug you simply do not want

Remember, you are going to a rug business.  The business is to sell rugs–as many rugs as possible–for as much as possible.  Walk in with a specific budget and then stick to it!  If you give an inch, your wallet will be cleaned out faster than you can blink.

That being said, remember to be flexible.  Your dream rug might not fit within the budget you set.  The most honest salesperson will show you a range of price options (below your budget, right at your budget, and slightly more than your budget).  This technique allows you to see and appreciate the difference in quality and, if necessary, adjust your budget to get the rug you want.  Don’t get pressured into buying a rug you don’t want or can’t afford.

It’s quite simple–if you don’t love it in the showroom, you won’t love it at home.

Tip:  Don’t be afraid to haggle!  You will never be able to get a $100,000 rug for $500, obviously.  Yet, you might get a 3-5% discount just for paying with cash or check instead of using a credit card.

Not buying from a knowledgeable, reputable dealer

Look at the color of a rug

Always look at the pile very carefully. The color should be consistent, and if it’s a vintage rug, it might have a fine patina to it.

At RenCollection Rugs, we know Persian rugs. We vet our new and vintage rugs carefully. Before we display them in our store, we always clean and restore them, if necessary. View our collection of rugs here.

Want to know more? Email us at info@Rencollection.com, call us at (214) 698-1000, or come and visit us at our RenCollection Rugs showroom. We are here to help.