Rug story (From Living Northeast)

Rug story

12:35pm Tuesday 23rd February 2010 in

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The Moorland Rug Company in County Durham sells rugs from as far away as Kathmandu.

Ruth Addicott talks to owner Brian Sales about his extraordinary designs and local influences.

AS a bespoke rug designer, Brian Sales is used to coming up with elaborate designs.

One day he’s restoring an art deco rug at Eltham Palace in London for English Heritage, the next he has a German nightclub owner wanting an imprint of his private parts incorporated onto his carpet.

There is never a dull day at The Moorland Rug Company, in Stanhope, County Durham. The company, cofounded by Brian and his wife two years ago, specialises in contemporary and modern rugs. And while they import a lot of traditional rugs from India, Iran and Tibet, Brian has also found the local countryside in Stanhope a source of inspiration.

He got the idea for one design – Reflection – from the light reflecting off the water during a walk along the river. While the two Bark designs come from the pattern of the bark on a nearby tree.

“We are trying to do something a bit more personal and offer bespoke collections where customers can have a one-off rug,” he says.

One collection proving popular is the Momeni range.

Imported from America, the rugs feature art nouveau designs inspired by the Austrian artist Gustav Klimt.

Alternatively, the Kathmandu collection features exclusive rugs hand-knotted in hand-spun Tibetan wool and silk. The wool, from the backs of Tibetan Highland Sheep, has a distinctive texture and thickness and is highly durable because of the cold, harsh climate.

“We also have a limited edition collection we import from Nepal and a range of hand-knotted rugs from Jaipur,” says Brian.

Brian began his career 30 years ago working for Durham-based carpet manufacturer Hugh McKay. He worked his way up through the carpet trade to become head designer, before joining an independent design studio in West Yorkshire.

Thanks to the growth of the internet and international trade shows, the days of loading rugs onto a rickshaw in Marrakech are long gone. Brian keeps his eye on future trends by travelling to trade shows in Asia and Europe. He went to Shanghai last year. “That was a fascinating experience from a cultural and design perspective,”

he says. “The Chinese have a flair for the very finest detailing in their silk rugs, they are unbelievably intricate.”

The choice is vast, the oriental carpets cover an area the size of several football pitches and the shows are crammed with sellers jostling for business.

Prices at The Moorland Rug Company range from £250 per square metre for a bespoke design to £2,500 for a silk rug.

While a higher price tends to mean better quality, Brian’s advice to anyone thinking of buying a rug is to look for the guarantee mark to show it has been made from ethically-sourced products.

In the meantime, he has high hopes for the new collection, MRC UK, due out in the spring. “All the rugs are hand-made in the North-East using British materials,”

he says. “The designs will be bright, lively, geometric and unusual.”

Not quite as unusual as the German nightclub owner’s, let’s hope.

■ From the spring The Moorland Rug Company rugs will only be available through the website.

Tel: 01388-526454 or visit moorland-rugs.co.uk