Seattle Rug Cleaner

About time I posted something new.......

2010-10-28T10:44:00.000-07:00

Will cleaning rugs with soap and water harm wool?

We are often asked if washing wool rugs with water and detergent is harmful to rugs.

If the wool hasn’t been previously damaged, the proper cleaning solutions in the hands of a professional cleaner won’t harm it. The detergents used are mild and only allowed to stay on the rug for a short time.

Wool for carpets and rugs is taken from sheep that live outdoors all year ‘round and are subjected to all kinds or weather – snow, rain, dew, heat, etc. It will get wet many times before the sheep are finally sheared. The wool is naturally greasy with lanolin to protect the sheep’s skin from the ravages of climate and environment.

When the wool is received for processing into fiber, it contains many impurities like dirt, sand, burrs and grease, all of which must be removed before the fibers can be spun into yarn. Most of these are removed in a scouring bath consisting of warm water, either soap or mild detergent and a mild solution of soda ash or other alkaline compounds. These baths remove the lanolin, which is then used in lubricants, cosmetic and pharmaceutical compounds, as well as the solid materials and allows the fibers to become completely wet.

During the dyeing process, the wool is placed in vats where it is exposed to water at high temperature for several hours. Detergents or other wetting agents help to completely wet out the fibers allowing the dyes to thoroughly penetrate the fibers.

Human hair, which can be compared to the wool in carpeting, is washed pretty frequently with soaps and detergents with little harm. The oils are removed, the hair is wet and although the soils are removed, the process doesn’t damage our hair.

Dry cleaners frequently use steam as a tool to remove spots from wool clothing. It’s only used for a short application and doesn’t harm the fibers.

It’s easy to see that after all the wetting that takes place before the wool is shorn and during the yarn processing at high temperatures, the use of a mild detergent and water wash by a professional rug cleaner will not harm your wool rug.

Kudos to Ned Hopper and NIRC Consumer Bulletin #3 April, 1963
Proof that some things never change. TMS

Work VS Blog

2009-12-29T10:32:00.000-08:00

Wow, I didn't realize that it had been so long since I posted to this thing. In the "real" world, the "work thing" is so much more highly rated than the "social networking thing".

It has been a busy, crazy year and my government stimulus check is obviously in the same place as my Ed Mc Mahon Publishers Clearing House check which means fewer employees and more hours at the shop. My Grandkid thinks I live here. Being President of Carpet Cleaners of the Northwest and on the board for the National Institute of Rug Cleaners has also been a big chunk of time with all the political ins and outs. It will be a relief to be able to get back to basics.

Over the last year of more work, I've come to the realization that people who have time to post limitless blogs about how great their business is or who leave multiple posts on industry chat pages with their limitless knowledge or who till their fields on Farmville obviously aren't working - which makes one question the validity of their claims of being great cleaners. If I had time - I'd question my own sometimes

As I boldly head into 2010, you will see fewer and fewer postings (if that is possible) but hopefully some with creditable content. I will be teaching more this year and look forward to being in Troy Michigan in February for Rug Summit II
http://www.icsmag.com/Articles/Breaking_News/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000704402

in Atlanta Georgia at the Restoration Industry Association Convention in March

and in Seattle in August for a basic two day rug repair class in conjunction with the Restoration Industry Associations Three Day Rug ID Class taught by Ellen Amirkhan and Aaron Groseclose.https://www.netforumondemand.com/eWeb/DynamicPage.aspx?Site=ria&WebCode=EventList

Happy New Year to all, best wishes to you and yours.

Thea

In Palm Springs for the Restoration Industry Association convention.

2009-03-10T22:23:00.000-07:00

If anyone ever follows my Facebook pages, you would know that I am currently in balmy Palm Springs California for the Restoration Industry Association convention. This is amazing on a number of levels: 1. It was totally FREEZING in Seattle when I departed on Monday in the midst of an early spring snowstorm that I was afraid would close the airport. 2. It's about the only place to hang with my peers in rug cleaning and restoration in the United States and
3. Today I had the great pleasure of lunching and visiting with Dr. Khosrow Sobhe in Los Angeles
(well, closer to Beverly Hills if you must know) and meeting his lovely wife and son.

Check out Ashkan's web design pages.

For those of you who may not know Dr. Sobhe, he is the President of Sobco International Trading with offices in Tehran and Los Angeles, He has multiple college degrees, is on the board of the Southern California branch of the Textile MUseum and more! On top of it all, he is just a genuinely nice person. With rugs.

Last year I had the singular pleasure of visiting Iran for the Kish International Handknotted Rug Exhibition, thanks to the efforts of Dr. Sobhe and others. It was a truely moving event for me
and I appreciate everyone's efforts on my behalf. Thank you too, Barry O'Connell for introducing us! Another genuinely nice person.

Thea

Multi Generational Rugs in Seattle

2009-02-28T13:47:00.001-08:00

We had a lot of fun here today. An old time client and her husband are moving into a smaller home so it's time to bring the rugs in for cleaning before they go to her daughters house. We've seen these rugs regularly over the years and watched the kids grow up.

She was telling her daughter how they had first purchased the rugs with their first joint income tax refund after they were married for their first home. The daughter was remembering how the rugs were just older than she was and how they had always been the focal point of her parents home and how excited she was that they would continue to be so in hers.

We are cutting new pads as well so they can keep looking their best.

Afghan Next Top Model - seriously

2009-02-19T09:20:00.000-08:00

Not my typical blog post, but what the hey! That means it's my own true forum.

I was both heartened and dismayed to hear on NPR this morning that there is going to be an Afghan Next Top Model contest. My deep and sincere hope is that they can truly show the beauty and creativity of modest dressing to inspire young people living within Muslim culture, whatever country they may reside in. I would dislike seeing an attempt to recreate the shallow, unamusing American TV show where the girls (and guys) run around in next to nothing, behaving badly. Read the entire article from Radio Free Europe here.

A web site I love is Hijab Style. http://hijabstyle.blogspot.com/

When I've travelled I'm always astounded by how stylish the women are - like Jackie O (and in some areas the Middle Ages) BUT, what I always bring home with me, is how nice it is to be out in public without guys gaping and hooting. I've seen everything from the very stylish European/ Syrian/ Iranian look to pink fuzzy bunny slippers and flannel PJ's peeking out of the bottom of a seriously black draped jilbab and hijab dressed woman in a grocery store to the wild nomadic tribal outfits. Nobody blinks. As long as all of the bases are covered there's this amazing array of fashion that we in the US are not exposed to.

I spent a really delightful couple of hours in the Dubai Historical Museum (it was the only cool place around) watching a gaggle of teenaged girls "push the limits" much like their American counterparts at the mall. While their outfits were certainly modest by US standards, (and technically hijab) I could hear in the back of my mind the parental grumping about tight tops, skirts and jeans. The various headwraps alone and the nuances of those little drapes of fringe could fill volumes!

In Kish Iran last year at a rug show, I was interviewed by a delightful young woman about my opinions on Iranian rugs. Off camera, the questions were all about how I perceived and experienced hijab. My personal experiences have always been great. The first few days always feel awkward, then later when I have to go without headware, I feel really naked and exposed.

All of the women I spoke with there told me that they felt liberated by wearing hijab and judged on their intellegence and ability to do a job rather than their appearance. Funny on how we see a woman wearing hijab in the US and judge her on her appearance rather than her ability......

I'm certainly no expert, but it's refreshing to go out in public and not see anyone's body parts hanging out - female or male.

Am I the Advice Queen of Rugs or What!!

2009-02-09T20:12:00.000-08:00

Hi Thea,
This looked more like a Thea question than a Barry question. Got any ideas?
Barry

--- On Mon, 2/9/09, Kent Schneider wrote:

From: Kent Schneider
Subject: Rug Pilling
To: JBOC@SpongoBongo.com
Date: Monday, February 9, 2009, 10:46 AM

Hello,

My name is Kent Schneider and I own a small furniture and rug shop in Atlanta called Verde Home. I do a monthly newsletter in which I like to research and write an article about topics which my clients ask me about. One topic which has been coming up a great deal lately seems to be rug pilling. I have been in the handmade rug business for about 10 years and am aware that pretty much all rugs will pill. I have also noticed that cheaper rugs (generally tufted or machine made) will tend to pill more heavily and for longer periods of time. I am doing some research on this and would like to write a brief essay on the topic for my next newsletter but am having trouble finding credible sources for information as to why this happens. My hypothesis (from what research I have been able to uncover) is that the cheaper rugs are probably made from cheaper wool. This wool is dryer and of shorter staple length resulting in a more brittle fiber which
will be more prone to breaking and pilling. I also suspect that this effect may be have something to do with the wools treatment and spin but I have not yet been able to connect all the dots.

I was wondering if you had ever written or researched the topic and could point me in the right direction?

Thank you for any help you may be able to provide.

Kent Schneider

*voted best of Atlanta

Hello Kent, Barry has forwarded your question to me and I hope that I can somewhat answer your question.

In a nutshell, pilling is caused by the incomplete slippage of fiber from a tuft. Instead of being completely shed, the fibers collect at the surface of the textile and can cause pills as well as a condition termed "bearding": an entanglement of slipped fibers on a textile surface without the unsightly little balls of material.

Pilling and bearding are not confined to wool fibers but may be found in any staple yarn product.

Lets start with the yarn:

Wool is naturally a staple fiber. When it is sheared from the sheep, it is graded by the length of the fibers as usually determined on where it is taken from the sheep AND by whether the fleece is a fall or spring shear.

Spring shear has had all winter to grow and is a denser, stronger and longer staple. Sheep that have had two shearings have a shorter, lighter staple in the fall and is typically more suitable for sweaters, suits and blankets etc. The quality of wool also depends on the breed of sheep, what they have been grazing on, minerals in the water and the weather. As you can see there are many variables.

Most TUFTED rugs come from India and China. The sheep used in these areas typically
have been inbred with Merinos. These have more lanolin in the wool, needs a more agressive cleaning to get rid of the grease and is a shorter, more brittle staple.

Most KNOTTED rugs from Turkey, Iran, Nepal, etc still use the wool from the indiginous fat tailed sheep. For too many reasons to continue here, the wool has completely different qualities but these have a long dense staple better suited to rug making.

Now on to rug construction:

Are you aware that making a tufted rug is essentially the same process whether or not one is making broadloom in Dalton or a rug in Dehli.

In Dalton, the primary backing is run through a tufting machine that punches the yarns through at a (literally) miles per hour rate, there is a layer of latex applied to the back and it is laminated to the secondary backing with heat and pressure. It is then sheared and inspected, rolled up and sent off.

In Dehli, the primary backing (usually with the pattern drawn on) is stretched into a frame to keep it tight. The yarn is inserted to the rug from the face with a tufting machine. This is an electric device for inserting yarn BUT becuase it IS held by hand, these are sold as "hand tufted" as opposed to "hand knotted". After the face is completed, a layer of latex is applied to the back and a secondary canvas is applied to the back. Other problems inherant with rugs made this way can be latex odor, bleeding color from the canvas backing, leakthrough of colors used to mark the pattern on the canvas and delaminating, brittle latex. This last one has a LOT to do with your pilling question.

Just a bit more: After the rug is tufted it is aggressively washed with(usually) a lye solution to remove the cuticle from the wool and give it luster, but this weakens both the pile and foundatation further.

So the question you're really asking me is how does the yarn slip out of the back and cause pills.

In tufted rugs, the little ball of latex that holds the individual tuft into the backing is called the tuft bundle. It must enclose 100% of all the fibers of the tuft although 80% and up would reasonably be considered within industry standards. The fibers that are not enclosed by the latex slip out to the surface from the abrasion of traffic or vacuuming and they become entangled eventually becoming pills.

Why are the fibers not completely enclosed by glue? Maybe they didn't use enough to start with, or maybe they were running out of glue and added more filler so the glue dried out and it didn't hold the tufts. And who knows what all they put in the glue there anyway???

Pilling and dry powdering latex CAN be remedied by removing the secondary backing, recoating the insides of the carpet with a good quality latex and
reapplying the secondary backing. At this time repairs can be made to any missing pile as needed.

We do these routinely and are not expensive repairs.
I hope this helps.

Thea Sand,CRS IICRC023262
Emmanuel's Rug and Upholstery Cleaners
Seattle WA

Would the "green cleaning" of area rugs still smell as sweet?

2009-02-05T19:20:00.000-08:00

One of the most frequently asked questions that I get is " Do you use chemicals to clean rugs?". I'm assuming that this is because, in an effort to make their cleaning system "special" more cleaners advertise that they use "no chemicals" or "green cleaning" and the public is misinformed and confused. As usual, let me throw some things at the wall and see if they stick.....

Everything in the world as we know it, natural or manmade is created from chemicals. Wikipedia states Chemical substances (also sometimes referred to as a pure substances) are often defined as "any material with a definite chemical composition" in most introductory general chemistry textbooks. According to this definition a chemical substance can either be a pure chemical element or a pure chemical compound. That makes water (H20) and air (02, hydrogen + other elements), wool and cotton chemicals in a literal sense. Water made in a lab is identical in every way to water that comes from a river (except for the silt and debris).

So YES in a real technical sense that when we use soap and water to clean rugs, we do use chemicals. Even natural fiber rugs are made from chemicals.

The confusion lies in the fact that the word chemical also applies to the products (and by-products) of the chemical industry in a broad chemical category including polymers, bulk petrochemicals and intermediates, other derivatives and basic industrials, inorganic chemicals, and fertilizers.

Occasionally we use solvents to remove oil and grease based spots and residue from rugs but typically NO, we don't use those chemicals to clean rugs. In many cases any latex in the backing would dissolve and this kind of cleaning would create other problems. Even after spotting with solvent (which evaporates) the rugs are usually wet cleaned anyway.

The amount of solvent used to spot is so small that there's a very low chance of it affecting your carbon footprint AND if everyone cleaned their things more regularly AND was more careful about what got dropped on the floor, we could use less.

We have our water quality checked yearly by the city of Seattle to see exactly what the heck is going down our drain. We use a good old fashioned washfloor, not an automated cleaning system so the water runs into a drain and screen along the side to collect the solid material that washes off of and out of the rugs (pet hair, lint, gravel, etc.). The remaining water always passes inspection as safe to enter the sanitary sewer system. We did look at a water recycling system a few years ago but it was SOOOOO bulky and expensive not to mention having to retrofit our building to take the system, the city mavens of recycling threw up their hands and told us not to bother.

The soap we use is formulated for wool rugs, about a ph7 which is neutral and is about as mild as a hair shampoo. It has no appreciable odor or fragrance. We use cold water to wash and rinse with unless we're correcting fringes or sanitizing a synthetic urine filled rug.

The rugs are air dried.

What could be greener? Soap, water and air. Clean rugs keep your home healthier, keeps dirty old rugs out of landfills and is economically efficient. Regular cleaning makes them easier to maintain.

Back to "green cleaning" rugs in Seattle......

Just when you thought it was safe......

2009-01-29T18:43:00.000-08:00

About the time we thought the flood rugs had come to an end, we had an inundation (literally) of rugs from folks that have finally gotten around to checking on their self storage units and found that things have been wet now for about two weeks. These are mildewing, moldy, partly wet/ partly dry, discolored and SMELLING like something else again. Depending on the degree of damage some are still salvageable and some are sadly, not.

Don't try to correct this problem at home, this is best done by experienced professionals, a lot like those car ads on TV where they drive in improbable situations and get out smiling...........

Most mold, mildew and fungus removal products commonly available over the counter have a chlorine bleach component. Did you know that protein fibers like wool and silk DISSOLVE in chlorine? Do we see a potential problem here if the product is in the hands of a neophyte?

The best place to start remediation is just with a thorough cleaning and complete drying to remove any viable spores. Drying and dehumidifying is extremely important to kill the fungus.

There are commercial products available that will kill the fungus associated with the mold/ mildew however the black staining that comes along with the territory is probably here to stay.

A trip to the ozone machine can often help the smell BUT as they say, only you can judge
what you're willing to live with. Oddly enough, having your cleaned rugs and textiles treated with fluorocarbon based products (soil resist treatments) can help inhibit the growth/ return of fungus spores by reducing the amount of food available. Maybe they slide off Teflon too.....

Check out the helpful tips at the University of Georgia.

Other than that, not a very eventful day. Just trying to help the accountants get 2008 closed,

last quarters tax filings, closing January (glad it's over!)......I noticed leaving for work at 6 am that it's already getting light earlier and I've realized that I'm ready for Spring.

Hot rug news, but not much about rug cleaning in Seattle today

2009-01-25T09:40:00.000-08:00

I don't know about anyone else but this seems like a perfect opportunity for that long awaited trip to London! Shah 'Abbas opens next month at the British Museum in London and includes the Cyrus seal - the first declaration of human rights. Very cool and perhaps the beginning of better relations with our Iranian friends.

Dr Khosrow Sobhe of Rug Idea in Los Angeles has successfully passed the first part of the Restoration Industry Association's Certified Rug Specialist course! The test is comprised of a written and visual identification component, then a separate written paper with something rug related as the topic. It's quite comprehensive.

I had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Sobhe speak last July in Atlanta GA at the Oriental Rug Retailers Association meeting about Gashgaii weaving and he is a great addition to our association.

Hope to see him in March in Palm Springs CA at the RIA convention. After all of cruddy cold weather (snowing again by the way) some sun and warmth will be quite welcome.

Blog 0 Rama - keeping busy in an economic slowdown

2009-01-24T07:04:00.000-08:00

Well! I never thought that I would be complaining about being too busy, especially now, but the horrid weather of December is the savior of January.

We were not only inundated with snow and rain, but when it all melted it had to go somewhere......

like homes, businesses and the local antique mall.

Especially after the Corps of Engineers decided to release a bunch of water without noticing how ligh the water levels were already. Obviously a governmental agency. Check out the video Barry O'Connell made the day after rugs started coming in. So no time to blog when you're up to your armpits in alligators, as it were.

Rugs started coming in on Friday night, we worked on just getting the water out of rugs and drying them all day Saturday, Sunday and finished up on Monday. Barry was a great help as we needed all the hands we could muster. They all still need to be cleaned, but now we're waiting on insurance adjusters.

SO between regular work and dealing with wet soggy rugs, el-bloggo has been neglected and I need to get back on track.

Here's some other interesting things that have been going on: The global economic slowdown is affecting carpet making in Iran. Here's the latest from Tehran Times....

Anyone besides me remember Gulistan rugs? Here's a great history put out in the Armenian Reporter..... Gulistan's were beautiful rugs and we still see them occasionally.

Here's some humor on a lighter note, I really despise the romance novel genre HOWEVER the cover pictures can really get me going laughter wise. This creative and innovative man has gone where no one has dared before and put much, much better titles on these schmaltzy books. Remember folks, these aren't mine.

Emmett Eiland, well respected rug scholar and over all nice person is publishing his new novel in serial form on the internet. Check it out...

If you love San Francisco, check out the tribal arts and textiles show Feb. 12-15, 2009. The San Francisco Rug Society will also have some activities going on around this as well. You'll also find on their homepage the sad news of ACOR being cancelled this year.

That's all for now, back to rug cleaning here in Seattle.

IT'S BAAAACK!

2009-01-04T20:02:00.000-08:00

No that's not just SNOW on the TV screen, guess what little weather surprise came back this afternoon? You guessed it, SNOW. It's coming down right now like a fiend with up to six inch accumulations expected, POSSIBLY turning to rain by tomorrow (that also menas possibly NOT!). Ummmmmm. We're still digging out in our neighborhood, with lots of trees the old snow has been lingering.

Too bad, work had finally started get back to normal after New Years.

Friday and Saturday saw a steady stream of things coming in for cleaning, which is good.

If the bad weather keeps you inside, brighten your day by cruising the Iran National Carpet Center's pages.

Kawasaki Syndrome, carpet cleaning and media hype....

2009-01-03T09:32:00.000-08:00

Happy New Years all, I hope that this finds you healthy and moving into the New Year with renewed vigor. This is a really poor segue into a touchy and controversial subject, but one that needs to be addressed and rather promptly. I'll most likely fail, but I hope to be reasonably sensitive to the feelings of others.

I was saddened to hear yesterday of the loss of Jett Travolta. He had suffered for many years with a condition known as Kawasaki Syndrome amongst other things.

Years ago Kawasaki Syndrome somehow became associated with carpet cleaning and this morning, a long time client phoned sweating bullets about whether having the carpet cleaned was a bigger risk to her new grandbaby than the dog feces tracked in from the bad weather. HHmmmm. Dog poop or carpet cleaning........

We all have legitimate concerns about the health of our loved ones. The best we can do in this world is to try to make informed decisions based on real information, not knee jerk reactions fueled by the media playing on our emotions. The Carpet & Rug Institute based in Dalton Georgia is an independent, science based organization well respected throughout the industry as a research and testing entity. If you want to know about carpet and rugs, this is a great place to get information. I would like to share with you their research regarding Kawasaki Syndrome and carpet cleaning.

If nothing else, I hope this will spur you to find out more about this rare condition.

Another excellent resource is the Restoration Industry Association and the well respected researcher Dr Steven Spivak who is on their staff.

I hope this helps.

Thea

Winter wonderland?

2008-12-27T15:48:00.000-08:00

Between my guy having a total hip replacement surgery and the pre and post surgery hooha AND our special little weather treat, I haven't had much time to blog.

Streets here have been closed, we have 14 inches of snow in our yard and while (finally) main streets are getting plowed, most side streets are closed. 8 inches of solid slush is common. It was coming down faster than we could get rid of it.

We were unable to get the employees to work to clean rugs, unable to get the trucks out to clean rugs, clients were unable to get out to bring us rugs SOOOO the gist being we were pretty much closed between the 18th through Christmas. We're currently shooting for next Monday the 29th.

Even UW was closed for three days in a row. Now the thaw is hitting and the air is warmer than the snow so there's an odd looking fog everywhere rising from the snow. Rain is forecast starting tomorrow so we expect flooding and some busy times between water, holiday parties and pet accidents.

Hope that you all had a safe holiday. After the fist fight I saw today at Fred Meyers I guess the Peace on Earth thing is over until next year. Check out the lovely (and PEACEFUL) Christmas greeting from Dr Mehrabadi at the Iranian Interests Section in Washington DC. on Barry O'Connell's main page. I find it somehow ironic that all of my Christmas morning phone calls to wish us holiday greetings were from my Muslim friends.

Thea

Thursday - the OTHER humpday.

2008-12-04T22:00:00.000-08:00

When you work Monday through Saturday, Thursday becomes "humpday" in the middle of your week. I start to run out of energy today, start to perk back up tomorrow and I'll have some energy back by Saturday.

Tonight was our Carpet Cleaners Institute of the Northwest holiday meeting and we were at the Renton Technical College culinary school. Muy Bueno! The food was great! They have a lunchroom there and you can get a great meal for under $10!

Not much rug stuff to relay, I managed to repaint my office and finish the tile in the bathroom today.

Thea

Too dull for a title

2008-12-02T20:14:00.000-08:00

One thing about this blog - it prompts you for a "title". Much too grand a term for the kind of day today was.

Today was my first board meeting as President of CCINW (Carpet Cleaners Institute of the Northwest). This was a working board meeting, not the kind where you sit in a swanky room swilling martinis. I went to work at 6 AM, cleaned up yesterdays messes and put out fires, went to my board meeting and came home. Whee!

It really was more interesting than that. Many kudos to the great people of the CCINW board - there have been so many volunteer hours spent to advance the industry, usually without the appreciation of the rank and file members who get the benefits.

Tomorrow is a carpet inspection, Thursday is our industry dinner, Friday is a reception at Earthues for the new holiday collection.

Saturday is rug appreciation day at Emmanuel's Rug & Upholstery with Barry O'Connell!
Drop in and have a cup of coffee.

The day after...Thanksgiving!

2008-11-28T17:18:00.000-08:00

Hopefully this isn't your kitchen after you use the self-cleaning oven to tidy up after yesterday's food fest. We tend to have small holiday gatherings, but this is how I have felt "the day after" whatever holiday, trying to clean up. A nuclear holocaust would have been easier.......

We opened for work today at Emmanuel's. Black Friday can be either hit or miss for us so we had a few come in and a few go home but today was best spent as a day to accomplish cleaning in the shop. We've been doing some auto body work, replacing a water pump on the Isuzu delivery truck and I've been replacing tile on the bathroom floors.

Barry O'Connell was in the shop today browsing the repair material bins for some interesting things to make videos of. Be sure to check out the results.

We wrapped up early today in the interest of work. Someones water lines decided to have a rupture and flood the home while they were in Florida on vacation so I drove the cargo van (with Barry riding shotgun) to go pick up a load of wet rugs.

Here's a great hint for wet rugs or when bringing in something with a messy spill you don't want to have spread through your rug: lay newspapers, a sheet of plastic, a towel or rags (depending what has spilled) on the surface of the rug and roll the rug up around them. It can keep colors from bleeding from front to back, pet accidents from smearing, etc.

Have a great weekend!

Thea

Annual Holiday Rant - 10 tips to a happier Holiday

2008-11-25T19:45:00.000-08:00

Since it's right before Thanksgiving and lots of you will be putting up holiday decorations this weekend, I thought I'd take the plunge and do the "Annual Holiday Rant".

While the holiday season is great for most of us with only moderate blasts of anxiety, stress and over-indulgence, holidays for our pets are full of too many strange things in the house, strange people in the house, food they can't/ shouldn't eat in the house, bad weather that keeps them in the house, being outside too long because we were busy and forgot to let them back into the house, being boarded while the family goes away from the house and a TREE (in the house) that we either climb in the yard (if you're a cat) or urinate on (if you're a dog) that is to be stoically ignored, and so on. As you may have guessed, IN THE HOUSE is a key theme here. That means rugs, carpets and furniture.

Now, more than any other time of year, we are inundated with pet bodily waste related to any or all of the above. Here's some useful hints to help you and your furry family members survive until Spring.

1. Don't let your pet drink the tree water. This seems like great, good common sense but can be harder than it first appears. Use a tree skirt that covers the base, place the packages so pets can't get to the water basin, get a fake tree. When they fill up with it, it needs to go somewhere.... and they'll either vomit or urinate.

2. If you must have decorations on the bottom of your tree, consider plastic or non-breakable ornaments. Tinsel can cause bowel obstructions, broken glass can cut the inside of the mouth and cause internal bleeding. Tinsel on the tree is cute, tinsel in poop isn't. Unless you want to hang it on the tree.

3. Keep light wires away from your pets. Chewing extension cords or lights can have an "electrifying" experience for your pet. You can tape over cords on the floor with 2 inch blue painters non marking tape or cover them with mats.

4. Keep strings, ribbons and wrapping paper picked up and away. Sometimes our pets think that these are toys. String or ribbon can be ingested and will usually reappear in unattractive ways. Wrapping paper dyes can turn bodily wastes interesting colors and can leave permanent stains. Ink pens & felt tips as well.

5. Get out the vacuum cleaner and keep the pine needles cleaned up. These little stinkers get tracked into my house all year round and I have two dogs so I know all about this one. Triple with a Christmas tree and wet weather. When ingested they can cause vomiting or get stuck in the throat.

6. Put the tree in an out of the way place where it won't get knocked over! Just because the tree looks good in the middle of the room or entry just remember that when the basin gets overfilled and Uncle Charlie has a couple of drinks - worlds collide! After the wet spot sits under the tree until sometime in January, turns black with mold and mildew, possibly gets dry rot and smells badly, please don't be surprised that it can't be repaired. Think about anchoring the tree to the wall someplace. Don't hang the cat's catnip or jerkey treats on the tree either, it's an invitation to disaster.

7. Candles. Watch them carefully...wax is a pain to get out and pets are often fascinated by the flickering lights.

8. Pets don't do well with holiday food designed for people. Alcohol, chocolate, candy, neon colored frosting, gingerbread, eggnog, peanuts, popcorn, potato chip dip, smoked salmon......ahhh yes, the list goes on. Also no chicken or turkey bones.

9. Mistletoe, holly, poinsettias and other holiday plants are poisonous. Both cats and dogs eat grass for their digestion outdoors but don't let them chew on holiday greenery. We'll all be sorry.

10. A calm pet is a good pet. Take your dogs for a short walk or throw a toy, play with your kitty, feed them dinner, let them out for a good long potty break and then let them hang out in a familiar, out of the way room with their favorite blanket and a chew toy when guests arrive. Sometimes the excitement of visitors can prompt accidents of all kinds. If they need to visit, do so after the excitement dies down.

Check with the ASPCA for additional cold weather and holiday tips for your pets.

If you DO have one of those magic "holiday moments" here's a link to Rug Rags online spotting guide or come visit us at Emmanuel's for FREE sample of spotter and a printed spotting guide to keep on hand for emergencies!

There - over for the year. Happy Holidays.

Thea

Rugs - the musical

2008-11-22T19:17:00.001-08:00

What a day this has been, what a rare mood I'm in, why it's almost like being with RUGS!
(apologies to Lerner & Loewe)

What a day it was. There's something about going to work an hour early on a Saturday (7:30 PST) and being busy from the time you open the door to go in until you leave an hour after closing time. The Thanksgiving panic is underway. A failure to plan on one parties part is not necessarily a crisis on the others........you only have so many on location appointments in a day and when they're full, there really aren't any more unless there's a shift in the time = space continuum AND rugs still take a certain amount of time to be cleaned and dried. Today was our drop dead date for Thanksgiving and between the phone and the tidal wave of rugs, it was great. No meals, no biffy breaks, no coffee, no e-mail.

WAIT! there was that little short period of time when Barry O'Connell (of SpongoBongo fame)
was in the shop trying out the new video camera on some of my oddball textile collection.

For some reason, I have managed to accumulate a large assortment of small Central Asian embroideries, camel trappings, horse thingies, etc. I like the one we shot about the blue glass beads from Herat. They are glass beads at the most primitive level attached to a macrame type of netting. Herat is near the northwestern corner of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan and there are Teke and Salor influences there, however the band in the video is Baluch. There is a distinctive greenish color to the macrame portion done by dipping the wool into indigo and afterward treating it. The embroidered pillow covers and zari work pieces are Salvation Army finds. ANYWAY......They're a still affordable small collectable.

One of the most interesting Baluch pieces I have seen for some time was at
Emmett Eiland's Gallery in Berkeley CA. They had used bottle tops as a decoration. Very enterprising people. If you're ever in the Bay Area drop in and visit them, the yurt is a real treat!

After a day like today, the current musical interlude is my sweetie snoring. He's been generously taking time out from being his mean attorney self to help me with a variety of repair projects on vehicles and equipment and I'm taking this opportunity to offer my very public THANK YOU!
Thank you also to Barry for helping me flip rugs and wait on people.

Hope all of you have a restful weekend, I'm looking forward to waking up without the alarm clock tomorrow.

Thea

Mothra attacks

2008-11-20T10:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we had a really lovely, approximately 75 to 100 year old Mowry Tekke rug come in.

Great aubergines and greens, large format (10 x 13), silky fabulous wool. Problem? Live moth infestation.

This rug sat in the office of an older individual where there was little activity and the moths got a foothold. SO - here's some handy dandy moth info.

Moths that attack wool or silk are NOT seasonal. They can hide in dark, unused areas like under furniture or on the back side of rugs and furnishings to attack when you least expect it.

Since I feel that I don't need to re-invent the wheel to write this as it's been doneso well, many thanks to Randy Hyde of Renaissance Rug Cleaners in Portland Oregon:

"Prevention is easy--when storing articles, place in tight fitting garment bags or plastic storage containers. All garments should be cleaned before storage. Consider using plastic or zip-locking bags to store sweaters in dressers. Storage cartons can be sealed with good quality tape. All seams and joints should be taped over. Vacuum closet floors, shelves and dresser drawers before putting clothing away for summer. Furs can be professionally cleaned and placed in cold storage for protection. Good housekeeping will remove lint, dust, or hair. Be sure to move and vacuum under furniture ifyou have wool rugs, and the ½ inch space along baseboards that is missedby many vacuums. Areas that are frequently vacuumed do not become damaged. Cedar oil, cedar chips and cedar closets have generally been overrated as a control of wool pests. Very young larvae of clothes moths that are exposed to high concentrations of cedar oil vapor are killed, but older larvae,adults, and most carpet beetles are not affected by the oil. Cedar lumber in closets or chests will lose oils over time and after three years are useless in killing any fabric pest. Tight fitting, well-constructed cedar chests makes it difficult for insects to get to the clothing. If you have found a problem, vacuum or brush the insects off the article.Washing or dry cleaning will kill all life stages. Freezing is an option if the article has been kept at room temperature before treatment. The shock of going from 70 degrees to near zero will kill the insects. Place articles in freezer bags loosely packed, expose to below zero for 72 hours. Clothes moths and carpet beetles can survive in unheated attics, bird nests, wall voids and other sites if they have a chance to acclimate to slowly falling temperatures. Heating articles to above 130 degrees for one hour will also kill all life stages. Direct spraying of fabric with insecticides or moth proofing agents creates the risk of staining, discoloration, shrinkage, and weakening fabrics.Chemical reactions caused by water, solvents or the chemical themselves can also occur. These chemicals are also difficult to find. There are clothing sprays that contain pyrethrum, permethrin, allethrin or resmethrin. A wider selection of insecticides are registered for carpet treatment. Moth balls (naphthalene) and PDB (paradiclorobenzene ) change into gases and work as fumigants, but are ineffective as repellents. To work effectively,they must be confined in a closed system with little air movement such as asealed plastic box. Hanging these products in a closet will usually not build up to toxic levels. If toxic levels occur, there is the concern of people breathing the vapors. Items will need to be aired before use. "

Moth traps are a good early warning system. Thes don't kill moths, but let you know when you're having a breakout and can take defensive measures.

Rotate your rugs regularly, vacuum often.

This is a really long posting, but if it helps with the heartbreak of moths it's worth it.

Thea

Radiator heaven!

2008-11-18T20:02:00.000-08:00

After some stalling this morning, the radiator showed up repaired and painted a lovely beetle black. Thankfully it slid right into place and didn't leak!!

Barry scanned another of my bags, I hope I don't go down for posterity as a "bag lady".

No sage words about rug or carpet cleaning in Seattle or anywhere else today. I spent the day today doing what I hate most, accounting. Some people LOVE numbers and are meant to be accountants. I am not one of those people, however I'm a severe textile junkie if you couldn't tell...

I did get out to look at a couple of rugs being consigned for sale: a 12 x 17 Creme Kerman Karastan from the 1930's (more or less) and a second Karastan, 8 x 10, pattern yet to be determined. These are classic original rugs, full piled. No stains, odors or other immediate issues and a great economical choice for a family looking to fill a big space with a good quality rug for less than new! Hope to get pictures posted later this week.

Thea

What a weekend........

2008-11-17T18:16:00.000-08:00

Most people work five days a week and they get to look forward to weekends. Here at Emmanuel's Rug and Upholstery Cleaning, sometimes the mere DREAM of a five day work week is enough to either make me wax poetic or seize up in gales of hysterical laughter. In the sage words of Alfred E. Newman, "What, me worry?".

Last Saturday, I sent my valued shop assistant, Ket out to do a minor spotting job with one of our oldest (but presumeably well working) truckmount machines. Ket, a native of Laos, has lived in the United States for quite some time, is totally in charge of washfloor operations and knows what to do when. We really rely on him. Upon his return as we were cleaning up the truck, we noticed there was about a half inch layer of cruddy lint gook stuck to the front of the radiator (cooling system) of the truckmount unit and attempted to remove it with a little gentle brushing and the tank vac. Apparently, this snotty lint was the only thing holding the radiator together and the Prestone began to flow everywhere. The diligent guys at AC Automotive promptly determined that the entire insides were kaput and a new core was the only remedy SOOOOOO.....hopefully we'll be re-installing it tomorrow (Tuesday).

As a result, we were at work Saturday over an hour before opening and an hour after closing. Sunday was a "day off" involving the moving of firewood up to the house and the dead battery of our '77 BMW project car (here in its ideal condition - not OUR car), dogs and housework. Monday, back to work till 1PM so I guess it was sort of a day off.

On a fun note: Barry O'Connell was at the shop on Saturday trying his hand out at video filming and we spent some time looking at Chinese rugs - a good time, as we have some Persian pattern Chinese rugs both open and closed back. He also interviewed Homaioun Rahmati of Rugs and Arts of Asia (who has his rug sales floor in our shop) and scanned some of my collection of Central Asian embroidered pieces for the heck of it.

On positive note for those wishing to visit Iran, e-visa's are now available!

I'm hoping to be invited back to Kish next year and will look forward to trying out the new system!

While visiting us, Barry relayed a greeting from another Armenian rug family, the Keshishian's of Chevy Chase MD. Thank you for remembering us! You are an inspiration to us all.

Thea

2008-11-15T20:40:00.000-08:00

What a long day today. Lots of rugs in and out and only one minor mishap.....

One of my on-location trucks had a truckmount radiator clogged up with dirt and lint (poor maintenance, eh guys?) and in my efforts to spit polish the inside of the machine, the thing developed a leak and dripped antifreeze all over the place. The radiator was subsequently removed and taken away to the repair place where it is spending the weekend being boiled out and patched so I can spend Monday (my day off) making sure it is reinstalled. What a thrill...

My good friend Barry O'Connell stopped off today with an interesting little video camera and we tried making a sample video about some Chinese rugs at the shop. When I get a link, I'll post one here!

I hope to do a longer posting tomorrrow.....

Thea

More about sand.....and one of my favorite blogs #2

2008-11-12T19:10:00.000-08:00

While sand is a known abrasive (ie, sandblasting & sand paper) it's a pretty interesting subject by itself. What is sand and what does it consist of? There's "rough" and "smooth" sand, even "singing or "booming" sand. Check out these cool sand sites and learn a little more about that pesky stuff we track into the house and go crazy trying to get rid of.

Here in the Seattle area, most of our yards are either based on clay (compressed fine silt) or sand from being on the bottom of Puget Sound. Mine's the sand variety with about three or four inches of pine needles so when it's wet out we get a double decker treat. Today I received the lovely indoor and outdoor mats I ordered from Consolidated Plastics. I liked the oriental look ones, but wasn't prepared to pony up the price and got the basic ones. Even for wall to wall carpet most wear happens in the first ten feet of an exterior entrance and proper walk off mats are important to protect your home's interior. Mats can be brought in to the shop, pressure cleaned and be ready to go home in about a three day turn around time. Cleaning is inexpensive compared to having to fix damage later. If you decide on mats get two sets so you can have one on the floor and one in reserve. We can do your car and truck mats as well!

On a wet, dark, dreary evening check out Tea and Carpets for a real treat. More than just rugs, it's like a visit to a literary salon. Always interesting and a fun read.

Thea

OOOooooh, I'm on Youtube!

2008-11-12T09:34:00.000-08:00

My friend, Steve (Dusty) Roberts just sent me a Youtube video where he mentions our rug morning on December 6th! I've never been on Youtube before so this is very cool.

Weather and rug cleaning in Seattle

2008-11-11T18:37:00.000-08:00

There's an old joke that it only rains twice a year here in Seattle: Once for for 182 days and once for 183. Happily this is untrue and we do get lots of lovely sun, but when the grey days set in they seem to last forever.

No surprise that business is fueled by both. When the sun's out clients notice how everything needs to be cleaned, when it rains even the cats and dogs don't want to go outside and accidents happen. You can even check out flea activity on the weather channel. All that wet stuff gets tracked inside as well. Did you know that one grain of sand can have up to 24 cutting edges and when that stuff gets into your rugs and carpets it's like a bazillion little hacksaws making your floor coverings prematurely old? Tan wall to wall carpet can hide up to one pound of sand per square foot and a Chihuahua can urinate five gallons of urine a year. Of course if you don't want that urine in your carpet, you can use it decrease your risk of heart disease......that you get from lack of exercise in Seattle when it's raining. Just checking to see if anyone out there has a sense of humor.

It's a wonder to me how some rugs last hundreds of years and some look like ICK in two or three.

We have high wind warnings through tomorrow with four to eight inches of rain expected in the "higher elevations" with possible flood warnings. I expect that rug and carpet cleaning will keep us busy in Seattle.

Textile Museum in Canada

2008-11-10T20:19:00.000-08:00

Did all of you Northern cousins realize that you have your VERY OWN Textile Museum? I sure didn't and it gives mea whole new reason to want to go to Toronto!

How much advertising can you believe?

2008-11-10T09:59:00.000-08:00

First of all, I'm going to be off work for the next couple of days. I stopped to get my annual flu shot yesterday and, since I hadn't had a pnuemonia shot in the last 8 to 10 years, got my booster there too. Apparently, the formula of the carrier for the dead virus in the shot has been changed since my last shot and I very rapidly developed a raging allergic reaction that precipitated a late night run to the emergency room with a right bicep that looked like a body builder, itchy, hard as a rock and bright red. Oh yes, and I couldn't turn my head. Today I'm home keeping company with Percoset, Benadryl and steriods.

Just some personal observations: I was noticing in the phone book the other day how many rug and carpet cleaners advertise themselves as "the best", "superior" or "expert". They all have "state of the art " equipment, etc. How does the consumer know how to choose? While there are many dedicated, well educated cleaners out there (yes there are classes in all kinds of cleaning and national certifications available) who take great pride in their profession, the truth is that absolutely anyone can go buy a machine and - with no training - put advertising in the yellow pages and start cleaning! Are you sure this is who you want in your home?

Ask anyone that you are considering to clean your valued furnishings about their system, how long they have been cleaning, whether or not they belong to a national certification agency and have taken any educational classes and/ or how much training their company provides.

Ask for referrals. Do they have any warranties or guarantees? Bonded and insured?

Don't take certification for granted. Do your homework, go with someone you feel comfortable with. Ask for a written estimate if you are unsure, don't let anyone pressure sell you.

Price isn't everything. Many offers that have low price up front may have hidden charges. Remember that ultimately, you get what you pay for and the cost to repair work that was done incorrectly may outweigh the cheap price.

Don't wait till the last minute to book a cleaning. Everyone else does that too and peak cleaning times - like the upcoming holidays - are often hard times to get appointments.

Emmanuel's isn't the fast food of rug and carpet cleaning and I like it that way. Life's too short for bad food, cheap beer or just simply not having a job done well.

Happy Veterans Day tomorrow!

Thea

Possible "Rug Morning" on the horizon and other ramblings

2008-11-09T08:13:00.000-08:00

I found my good friend Dusty Roberts post to my blog and thought I'd post the link to the web album of the trip to Kish to share. It was so awesome and really the trip of a lifetime. My deepest and most sincere thanks to Dr. Khosrow Sobhe for facilitating this for me.

Dr Sobhe, in addition to his many other talents, has a rug showroom and cleaning facility in Los Angeles, CA. I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Sobhe in person and hearing him speak this July
at The Oriental Rug Retailers Association meeting in Atlanta GA. His personal blog pages are a great inspiration to me.

Possible "Rug Morning": On the East Coast is the wonderful Textile Museum in Washington DC.
One of their most fun activities is the "Rug Morning" where anyone can bring an interesting textile or rug pertaining to the theme of the day and the TM staff will tell them about what they have. Doesn't that sound fun? Barry O'Connell has been in Seattle for work and has kindly offered to help me put on a few "Rug Mornings" starting December 6th! I will post more details as they come up.

Yesterday at Emmanuel's we were fairly busy with rugs coming in. I hope that this is a positive economic indicator and not just the result of all our rain.

Rug cleaning can get you into hot water.

2008-11-03T15:37:00.000-08:00

This morning our ten year old, 120 gallon hot water tank rusted out and a river of boiling water went through the edge of our downstairs showroom. Thankfully no rugs or people were injured during this stunt, don't try this one at home.

We hand wash rugs with cold water and use hot on the fringes after the rugs are dry to make them really white without having to use bleaches which will eventually corrode the material.

Speaking of being in hot water: Part of the fun thing with Oriental Rugs is what goes into making them. Michelle Whipplinger and her delightful, well educated staff run Earthues - a studio dedicated to natural dying, textiles and education. If you've ever wondered if the hot pink or orange in your rug could EVEN be natural, this is the place to find out. Check out their schedule!

Thea

My favorite oriental rug sites #1

2008-10-30T20:58:00.000-07:00

After a day at Emmanuels Rug and Upholstery in Seattle enjoying our liquid sunshine and cleaning oriental rugs, it's nice to chill in front of the computer with a few good websites about -
Oriental Rugs, of course! I'll list a few in several postings. My all time favorite is
Spongo Bongo, the opinions of Barry O'Connell about Oriental Rugs, history and other subjects.
Barry is a delightful person and very knowledgeable! Very extensive pages and too much information to even begin to explain.

Have fun,

Thea

Seattle rug cleaner in Iran

2008-10-25T18:02:00.000-07:00

After cleaning rugs for a long time, I decided to take a vacation to the homeland of - you guessed it - Oriental Rugs. This is the exhibition of Handknotted Oriental Rugs in Kish, Iran held in April/ May 2008. While I had a wonderful time
and the people were very warm and hospitable I was glad to get back to cleaning rugs in Seattle at Emmanuel's.

Thea

Cleaning oriental rugs in Seattle

2008-10-25T17:40:00.000-07:00

These are the musings of a fourth generation, woman rug cleaner in the scenic Pacific Northwest.
Our business has been in Seattle since 1907 and we specialize in the cleaning and restoration of handmade oriental rugs but clean and repair all kinds of rugs and carpets. I'm the current President of Emmanuel's Rug and Upholstery Cleaners at 1105 Rainier Ave So, Seattle WA 98144 Call us at 206-322-2200 or check out our webpage at www.emmanuelsrug.com
Since I spend so much time at work and see lots of interesting rugs and people I thought I'd share some of our experiences.

Check back for updates!

Thea