Carpet weaving is an age-old tradition in Nepal dating
back to the centuries. In the hilly region, local carpet Raddi, Pakka, were woven with
indigenous wool and design for the local market.
The Tibetan Refugees who came to
Nepal in the late fifties started the commercial production of carpets. It was first
exported to Europe. It is now one of the major and an important export item of Nepal and
exported to more than thirty countries of the world.
The Hall Mark of Nepalese-Tibetan Carpet
 100% handmade
Pile of 100% pure hand-spun woolen
yarn or silk
Height of pile: 6mm to 10mm (0.15 to
0.30 inch)
Fast-colors & Eco-friendly dyes
of vegetable/chemical origin
Average density: 60 to 150
knots per square inch or 2.5 square cm.
Nepalese carpets are Hand knotted by the Tibetan Loop Senneh knotting system.
As the carpets are individually 100% handmade, small
differences and variations in colors, sizes and designs from carpet to carpet will occur,
which emphasizes genuineness of being 'Hand Made,' one-of-a-kind and will increase its
value.
This
also gives a 'Hand-crafted' look to the Nepalese-Tibetan carpet
Carpet
Making Process
Wool
Tibetan
wool is long stapled, rich with lanolin, lustrous, has natural springiness that resists
matting and is considered the best wool for carpet. Over time, Tibetan woolen carpets
develop patina (shine), not found in other wool. It is sorted and washed by hand to remove
dirt and foreign matters and sun dried. The New Zealand wool of type 128 (36 micron,
100-mm barb length) and lately silk and British wool is used. |
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Carding
The wool
is carded by hand or machine.
Hand carding is the best process to maintain the quality of the wool, it
is time consuming and expensive process. Hand-carded products are still
available on order.
To meet the growing demand for the carpet, the wool is machine-carded.
100% Tibetan or Tibetan and New Zealand wool in varying
percentages are blended in the carding process.
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Spinning
The
carded wool is Hand-Spun into yarn of desired thickness using a Spinning wheel (Charkha).
The thickness of the yarn determines the quality of the carpet.
Types of Handspun yarn: 60 knots, Super 60 knots, 80 knots, 100 knots,
etc
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Dyeing
The handspun
yarn is dyed with vegetable (Natural) or Azo free chemical dyes manufactured by renowned
international companies.
Vegetable dyes are earth tone colors and give a natural look
to the carpets. It is prepared from various
parts of the plants such as fruit rind, leaves, buds, flowers, bark,
stem, wood, roots, etc.
Pots dyed yarn using vegetable dyes are available on special order.
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Weaving
The carpets are entirely hand-woven in a vertical loom. The weavers tie each individual knot using the graph as
guideline, sketched with the design of the carpet to be knotted and the
colored yarn to be used on each knot.
The tools used are iron rods, scissors, knife, levers,
comb beaters , etc.
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Trimming
and Shearing
The
designs & patterns of the knotted carpet are trimmed and sheared to remove any uneven
wool using a special scissors.
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Washing
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The trimmed
carpet is washed by hand to remove dirt and restore
the original shine of the wool.
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Types of wash available: Normal, Antique, Gold, Hard shine, Faded to Herbal wash.
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Final Touch
The
finished carpets are given a finishing touch by re trimming and
stretching to correct any distortion in shape.
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