Handmade Natural Grass Rug
The Salt Flats rug is a natural grass rug, handmade in India from wool and bamboo silk and measuring 367 x 276 cm. It covers 10.1 square metres.
The design up close
A soft khaki ground, a stone colour with a slight green grey cast, carries a pale cream design. Fine broken lines, small checks, diamonds and chevrons sit in stripes across the rug. From above the surface looks almost plain and gently clouded, because the sheen lifts some stripes lighter than others. At a low angle the cream pattern shows clearly.
The bands vary in width. In one, short cream lines meet in a V and repeat like a herringbone. Another is a lattice of small diamonds with a dot in each, another a field of tight checks, and others are rows of upright dashes that look like stitching. Between them the ground stays plain for a stretch, which gives the eye somewhere to rest.
The cream is soft and the khaki is muted, so the contrast stays low. The ends finish in a pale grey white fringe, and the sheen makes the stripes shift in tone as you move around the rug.
Indian weaving and this rug
India has a long rug weaving tradition, with centres including Agra and the Bhadohi and Mirzapur area of Uttar Pradesh. Indian workshops weave many modern and abstract designs, often to order, in a wide range of colours and sizes. Wool is the most common pile, and some rugs mix wool with bamboo silk, as this one does. Soft, close tones with a gentle pattern are common in the modern designs.
How this natural grass rug is made
This natural grass rug is handmade in India from wool and bamboo silk. Bamboo silk is a viscose (rayon) fibre made from bamboo cellulose, with a silk-like sheen. It is softer and less resilient than wool, so a rug with bamboo silk suits rooms with lighter foot traffic. The wool gives the pile its body and a matte finish. Matte wool sits next to shinier fibre in the pattern, so the cream lines catch the light at one angle and sink into the khaki at another.
Sizing it for your room
At 367 x 276 cm, this natural grass rug is 3.67 by 2.76 metres, a large rug. Under an eight-seat dining table of 240 x 100 cm, it extends 63.5 cm past each end of the table and 88 cm past each side, which leaves plenty of room for chairs.
In a living room, a three-seat sofa about 2.2 m wide, centred along the long side, leaves 73.5 cm of rug on each side of it. Under a king bed 183 cm wide, set across the width, you get 46.5 cm on each side.
Looking after your natural grass rug
Vacuum it on a suction-only setting, or with the beater bar switched off, so the brush does not pull at the pile. Turn it around every six to twelve months so sun and foot traffic wear it evenly. Blot spills with a clean white cloth and cold water rather than rubbing them in. When it needs a full clean, choose a cleaner who washes handmade rugs by hand.
Put a good underlay beneath it. It stops the rug sliding on timber or tiles, adds cushioning and takes some of the wear off the pile. Moths like wool in dark, quiet spots, such as the part of a rug under a sofa, so vacuum those areas often and lift the furniture now and then.
Rubbing spills can dull bamboo silk, so this rug needs a cleaner who handles that fibre by hand.
See it before you buy
Visit our showroom at 307 Penshurst St, North Willoughby, open every day from 11 am to 4:30 pm, to see this natural grass rug in person. If you would rather judge it in your own room, with your own light and furniture, book a home trial and we will bring a selection to you.
You can see this natural grass rug in our showroom or at home. Browse more Contemporary rugs, or ask about a custom made rug in your own size and colour. Read more about bamboo silk and viscose.
