Our Visual Silence range of hand-knotted hemp rugs are making international strides and is being launched as part of the latest Spring 2010 Collection at ABC Carpet & Home. Pierre’s collection of African-inspired rugs is right on time as the world’s focus turns to South Africa and Africa for the Fifa 2010 Soccer World Cup.

Visit ABC’s Facebook page for an overview of the Spring 2010 Collection. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=153564&id=54199302825&ref=nf

Alternatively view some of the rugs as displayed at our Decorex Stand.   https://fibredesigns.co.za/fibredesigns/blog/page/3/

Thank you to all you joined us in our World Aids Day initiative at the end of 2009. We value your contribution. A percentage of all sales during December will be donated to the Nelson Mandela 46664 campaign, to help increasing awareness, fighting prejudice and improving education about HIV and Aids.

Today is World Aids Day. Many organisations take up the challenge to raise money, increase awareness, fight prejudice and improve education about HIV & Aids.

We at Fibre Designs Rug Gallery will also be making our contribution and will donate a percentage of all December sales to the Nelson Mandela 46664 campaign.

We will also gladly provide you with a discount should you consider purchasing a rug for an HIV/AIDS related non-profit organisation. There are many such organisations that can put a rug to good use.

We would like to encourage all our friends and clients to make a difference.

Just a quick reminder that Fibre Designs Rug Gallery and Antoine Persian Carpets Cleaning and Restoration Studio will close on Wednesday, 23 December and will open again on Monday, 4 January 2010.

You have organised the perfect party. Your guests are nibbling away at the scrumptious bites you prepared while enjoying a glass of wine from the Cape winelands. Aaah, there is nothing like a good festive get-together….until someone spoils wine all over your favourite Fibre Designs rug.

Fight those festive flops by taking the appropriate action. Listed below is a general spot removal procedure. If the origin of the spot is unknown, begin with step 1. If the origin of the spot is known begin at the appropriate step allocated in the list.

Never use a circular motion to remove a spot as this destroys texture. The final step should always be to rinse with clear water, blot dry and to put white paper towels over the damp area. Put a brick, or suitable weight object on the pad of towels to keep the pad in contact with the carpet. This allows any stain wicking up from the backing to go into the towels rather than remain on the carpet surface. Allow to dry, remove the brick and towels and brush up the pile.

List of Steps

Step 1: Unknown and greasy spots.
Remove as much of the foreign material as possible by blotting with a white paper towel or scraping with a dull knife. Apply isopropyl rubbing alcohol to a clean white cloth, white paper towel or cotton ball. If the spot extends deep into the pile use a blotting motion until the spot is removed or no color is transferred to the cloth. Do not allow the alcohol to penetrate into the backing as this will destroy the latex bond. If the spot is on the surface only, rub in one direction at a time. Stop if the spot is removed. If not, go to step 3.

Step 2: Water based spots.
Blot up as much of the spill as is possible. A wet vacuum is useful if a large quantity of liquid was spilled. If the spot has dried, saturate the tufts in the affected area with tap water (do not over wet). Allow to remain for about 1 minute and blot. If you are removing the spot with water, continue until the spot is completely removed. Blot dry and apply the paper towels. If it is not completely removed go to step 3.

Step 3:
Remove as much of the foreign material as possible by blotting with a white paper towel or scraping with a dull knife. Apply a small quantity of detergent solution to the spot. Use a blotting motion to work the detergent into the affected area. If the spot is being removed continue applying detergent and blotting with a white paper towel until spot is removed. Rinse with tap water using a spray bottle, blot to remove excess moisture, spray lightly with water, do not blot this time; apply pad of paper towels and allow to dry.

If there is still some stain on the carpet and blotting is not removing it, then moisten the tufts in the stained area with 3% hydrogen peroxide. Let stand for one (1) hour. Blot and repeat until carpet is stain free. Light will cause peroxide to change back to water so no rinsing is necessary. Apply pad of paper towels and weight down with brick.

A. Blood, ketchup, cheese, chocolate, cough syrup, mixed drinks, soft drinks, soy sauce, starch, toothpaste, water color and white glue.
Blot with white paper towel to remove as much of the stain as possible then neutralize with an ammonia solution. Saturate spot using spray bottle. Do not wet backing. Blot with a white paper towel to remove excess moisture. After neutralizing begin with step 3 of general procedure. All solutions for removing blood must be cool.

B. Beer, coffee, perfume, tea and wine.
Blot with a white paper towel to remove as much of the stain as possible then neutralize with the white vinegar solution. Saturate spot, using a spray bottle and blot to remove excess moisture. After neutralizing go to step 3 of general procedure.

C. Egg, excrement, urine and vomit.
Remove as much of the stain as possible by using a spoon or dull knife. Blot up as much of the stain as possible, then neutralize by spraying the affected area with the ammonia solution. Care should be taken to remove all protein matter. Blot to remove excess moisture and go to step 3 of general procedure.

D. Candle wax or other types of wax.
Spread brown paper (such as grocery bag) or a terry cloth towel over the area and iron with the setting on “warm.” The wax will be absorbed into the paper or towel. Remove any traces with alcohol or dry cleaning fluid.

E. Chewing gum.
Freeze the gum using an ice cube. Shatter the frozen gum with a knife handle and vacuum. Some citrus based products have been demonstrated to break down the stickiness of gum so that it can be removed.

H. Nail Polish.

Remove as much of the nail polish as possible using a spoon or dull knife. Apply a non oily nail polish remover to a clean white cloth and gently rub (in only one direction at a time) or blot the spot. Continue until spot is removed. Do not allow nail polish remover to get to the latex backing. Go to step 3 to remove nail polish remover.

I. Soot, graphite, copier material.
Vacuum using crevice tool of vacuum cleaner to remove the soot. If all, or most, of the soot has not been removed, call a professional cleaner. If vacuuming has removed all particles go to step 1 of general procedure to remove any traces.

Stains That Can’t Be Removed
Acid toilet bowl cleaners, acne medication, alkaline drain cleaners, chlorinated bleaches, hair dyes, iodine, insecticides, mustard with tumeric, plant fertilizers and stains of this nature cannot be removed as they have permanently altered the carpet’s color.

If in doubt, call Antoine Persian Carpet Cleaning & Restoration Studio at 021 418 1054.

Walking down Jarvis Street in De Waterkant you will notice that a lot has changed, except one thing. Our beautiful Bougainvillea tree is always there.

Back in full bloom, she exudes colour, joy and excitement and has become a landmark in this creative little part of town which is seemingly fast becoming a popular hot spot with the new Cape Quarter extension taking root.

The Bougainvillea is a rapid growing tree and a popular ornamental plant, grown for the display of its flowers. Another rapid growing plant that can also add aesthetic value to a home is the jute plant. The use of the bast fibre of the jute plant is one of the most exciting developments in the rug industry.

The application of this natural, eco-friendly fibre has seen drastic improvement over the short period that it has been introduced to the market.

Earlier this year Pierre introduced this exciting fibre to the world at the Domotex Rug Fair in Germany. The Visual Silence range has received much attention and has been ordered by reputed companies such as ABC Carpet New York, the largest retailer of rugs and carpets in the world. In synergy with Fibre Designs’ philosophy, ABC also believes in bringing the essence of nature to the foundation of a home.

A good example of bringing the outdoors indoors is that of a rug just recently woven for a client in Franschoek. This beautiful, densely hand-knotted item incorporates the flora of the surroundings into the sophisticated country style home.

Choosing the right colour for your Fibre Designs bespoke hand-woven rug plays a vital part in creating the specific mood that you’ve chosen to live with. It evokes emotion and stimulates the senses.

To help you choose your colour consult our ARS Wool Colour System or alternatively the Pantone Colour Reference System. You will be able to write down the relevant colour code to easily refer to the colour you have chosen for your rug.

Click here to access the ARS Wool Colour System.

Click here to access the Pantome Colour Reference System.

Use this guide to assist your colour selection and specification process. This chart is a reference guide only. The  colours on computer screens may vary slightly based on the graphics card and monitor used in your system. For true accuracy, it’s ideal to use the Pantone Colour Publication or ARS Wool Colour System.

Design Time School of Interior Design student Clement Spalding recently visited us for three weeks as part of a job shadowing initiative. The school places students at various organisations to help them implement and apply theory that they learnt during their studies.

Clement soon learnt that job shadowing is more than just “standing in an inconspicuous corner out of everybody’s way”. “What a well rounded experience,” says Clement. “From back of house, meaning the weaving in India, to front of house, meaning PR and all its manifestations.”

“Three weeks is not a sufficient amount of time to spend at any business and know all about it when the time is up. It is, however, sufficient a time to start asking questions and finding answers. I wondered, why have a carpet or rug as apposed to any other floor finish? Different thoughts became apparent. Just as the primary function of a house is to provide shelter, a rug’s primary function is only achievable indoors. Ground becomes floor and here you can design the floor you walk on, giving a strong psychological fulfilment aspect. I feel that a personal need is being fulfilled when choosing a carpet or rug.”

“Perhaps it is a physical expression of something grounding in an unpredictable world and therefore comforting. When an existing concept needs a ‘tying together or holding element’ in the room or if there is a no concept approach, is the carpet then an accent or central element in the room? Not forgetting that function and aesthetics will make their usual appearance in the decision making process. And rightly so. Weaving all these thoughts together, it is clear that at Fibre Designs, your needs and individual decision making process will thus in the process of weaving become manifest.”

Visit Clement’s link off DesignMind.co.za to see what he is up to.

We thought you might enjoy this YouTube video clip of our jovial Tibetan rug weaver.

Isn’t it just amazing to see at what pace he works? The art and skill of rug weaving is often passed on from one family member to another. Many weavers also sing traditional tribal songs as they go through their daily activities.