Staff Pick – Checkers

With thousands of custom design styles in our repertoire, ranging from abstract to architectural, sometimes our more subdued carpets miss their well-deserved spotlight. This week, we will be featuring this lovely neutral 8’ x 10’ carpet titled Checkers. From its simple, two-toned design to its pure wool pile, continue reading this week’s Staff Pick to learn more about this geometric and minimalist carpet.

Checkers utilizes a traditional Persian-style weave to craft its luxurious pile. Vital to the weaving process, high-quality wool shorn from the Persian Fat-tailed sheep must be utilized. Wool from the Persian fat-tailed sheep is ideal for carpet weaving due to its naturally high level of lanolin. Lanolin acts as the carpet’s natural stain-repellent while allowing the wool to remain soft and luxurious. Once shorn, the spinning team takes the loose fibers and hand-spins the wool into yarn, creating a durable thread that will also provide the striations within the design. Dye-masters then move the yarn into vats to be dyed. For Orley Shabahang Carpets, weavers prefer organic dyes for their bright and fade-resistant hues. The heaps of yarn are washed in natural spring water and baked in the sun to set the patina in the wool. Once dried, only then can weavers begin the weaving process.

Pulling inspiration from the Orley Shabahang Architectural & Minimalist collections, Checkers bears a repetitive and geometric design detailed in light cream and rich brown wool. Woven on a cotton warp and weft foundation, weavers followed a strict design guide when creating the repetitive and rectangular pattern. The versatility of Checkers comes from its overall pattern and how it conforms to any interior. When placed within the desired space, the checkered pattern softens and transforms into a texture for the room. Aiding most color palettes, the neutral tones of cream and brown wool only allow this piece more functionality. The nearly un-dyed color palette helps Checkers match virtually any interior style, ranging from coastal to Mid-Century Modern.

Considering the effort that goes into every hand-knotted Orley Shabahang carpet, the most surprising part about this piece may be its price. To complete this 8’ x 10’ Checkers carpet, weavers utilized the Orley Shabahang Gooneh weave. This weave requires larger knot sizes, allowing the weavers to craft this piece in less time. As a result, this piece is priced at just $7,840. If you found Checkers captivating, check out the rest of our Architectural and Minimalist collections at orleyshabahang.com. And for the chance to see even more Orley Shabahang carpets, peek at our digital showroom at 1stdibs.com!