Where are hand-knotted rugs made?
Hand-knotted rugs come from a small number of weaving regions, chiefly Nepal, India, Iran, Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan and China. Weaver & Loom rugs are woven in Kathmandu, Nepal, through our vertically integrated production system under Samten Dorje, using the Tibetan knot. Every rug is made to order, so a loom is dressed for your rug and nothing else.
Why are so many hand-knotted rugs made in Nepal?
Tibetan rug weaving found a second home in Nepal after Tibetan refugees settled in the Kathmandu Valley in the 1960s. They brought the technique with them, and the valley supplied what the craft needed next: access to trade routes, raw materials, and a growing international market. The result was an industry that kept the traditional method and adapted the designs.
The Kathmandu Valley had been a center of textile work for centuries before that. The Tibetan weaving tradition landed in a place that already knew how to make cloth.
What is the history of Tibetan rug weaving in Kathmandu?
Tibetan weaving began as insulation. At elevations above 4,000 meters, thick wool rugs served as bedding, seating and floor covering. The Tibetan knot, a looping technique distinct from the Persian and Turkish knots, was developed to produce dense, warm textiles quickly in hard conditions. Over centuries that functional craft became a refined one, and it is the method still used in Kathmandu workshops today.
What is a Tibetan rug versus a Persian rug?
The difference is in how the knot is tied, which is what drives everything else about the rug.
| Tibetan knot | Persian (Senneh) knot | Turkish (Ghiordes) knot | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it is formed | Yarn is looped around a temporary rod laid across the warps, then the loops are cut to release the pile | Yarn wraps asymmetrically around two warp threads | Yarn wraps symmetrically around two warp threads |
| Row structure | A whole row is looped, then cut in one pass | Knot by knot | Knot by knot |
| Typical character | Even, plush, well suited to modern and textural designs, and to carving | Fine curvilinear detail | Robust geometric detail |
| Where it is most used | Nepal and Tibet | Iran, India | Turkey, the Caucasus |
None of these is a quality ranking. A knot is a construction choice, and each one suits a different kind of drawing. Knot density, which is a separate question, is covered on knot count and quality.
Who actually weaves the rugs sold by luxury rug brands?
Often not the brand. Much of the industry is a chain of intermediaries: a design studio sells to a retailer, the retailer buys from an exporter, the exporter places the order with whichever workshop has loom space. The name on the label and the hands on the loom can be four steps apart, and the brand may not be able to tell you which workshop wove a given rug.
Our answer is that our rugs are woven by our own team in Kathmandu, through a vertically integrated production system under our co-founder Samten Dorje, who runs manufacturing operations. The same team photographs your rug at each stage of production, which is described on how a custom rug is made. A brand that can show you the loom is a brand that knows where the rug came from.
Where is Weaver & Loom based?
Weaver & Loom Inc. is the Canadian parent company. Weaver & Loom USA Inc. is the Delaware subsidiary, which is establishing the global headquarters in California. Designs are developed through our North American platform, and the rugs are woven in Kathmandu.
Weaver & Loom began in Toronto in 2010. Weaver & Loom Inc., the digital business, was established in 2021.
Are "made in Nepal" rugs actually made in Nepal?
Country-of-origin labels describe where a rug was finished, not necessarily where every step happened, and the label alone is not proof. The way to check is to ask for evidence rather than a claim:
- Ask who does the weaving, and whether the company employs them or buys from a broker.
- Ask for photographs of your specific rug on the loom, not stock images of a workshop.
- Ask how far the company can trace the rug back through its own production.
- Ask what the fiber is and how it was chosen for that rug.
The full list of questions worth asking any rug company is on how our rugs are made ethically.
Are Nepalese rugs good quality?
Nepal produces some of the finest hand-knotted work made anywhere, and it also produces cheap goods, because it is a large industry rather than a single standard. Origin tells you the tradition a rug comes from. It does not tell you the quality of an individual piece.
What tells you quality is the fiber, the density of the knotting, the evenness of the weave, the finishing, and whether the rug is knotted at all rather than tufted and glued. Those are the things to inspect, and they are set out on knot count and quality and hand-knotted vs hand-tufted.
What are the weaving communities in Nepal like?
Weaving in Kathmandu is skilled work and it is collaborative. A master weaver has typically trained for a decade or more, and the skill is often passed within families, with children learning alongside parents and grandparents. A single rug is usually woven by several artisans working side by side on one large loom, coordinating their rhythm so the tension stays even across the full width of the piece.
Our commitment is to fair conditions and to knowing exactly where a rug was made. What we can show for it today is traceability, direct oversight of production, and photographs of your own rug as it is woven, which is set out on how our rugs are made ethically.
Why does highland wool matter to a rug made in Nepal?
Sheep raised at high altitude produce a longer, coarser fiber with a higher lanolin content. Lanolin is a natural oil that makes the wool naturally water-resistant and resilient. It takes dye well and it wears well, which is why the Himalayan region's own wool became the fiber of the local weaving tradition rather than an import into it.
We weave in both Himalayan wool and New Zealand wool, including AAA New Zealand Merino, depending on the rug. More on fibers is on what our rugs are made of.
How do rugs get from Nepal to the United States?
Finished rugs are shipped to your door by FedEx Express, and shipping is free worldwide. Your shipment carries a tracking number, and you receive photographs and updates while the rug is still being made. Duties and taxes are covered on what a hand-knotted rug costs.
FAQ
Where are Weaver & Loom rugs made?
In Kathmandu, Nepal, by our own team, using the Tibetan knot.
Where is the company itself?
Weaver & Loom Inc. is the Canadian parent company and Weaver & Loom USA Inc. is the Delaware subsidiary, which is establishing the global headquarters in California. Weaver & Loom began in Toronto in 2010, and Weaver & Loom Inc., the digital business, was established in 2021. Our story has the background.
Are the rugs designed in Nepal too?
Designs are developed with the client through our North American platform, and the weaving is done in Kathmandu under our co-founder Samten Dorje.
Can I see where my rug is woven?
You receive photographs of your own rug at each stage of production. Requests to visit may be considered individually.
Is a rug made in Nepal better than one made in India?
Not automatically. Both countries have excellent workshops and poor ones. Judge the piece, not the border.
Does "hand-knotted in Nepal" mean the wool is Nepalese?
Not necessarily. Fiber is chosen separately from where a rug is woven, and a rug woven in Nepal may use New Zealand wool, silk, nettle or hemp. Ask which fiber is in the rug you are looking at.
How long does a rug take to make?
Approximately four to six months from approved design to completion, depending on size, knot density, complexity and sampling. Shipping time is stated separately.
Browse the collections, or write to us at info@weaverandloom.co with a question about a specific rug.