The Care and Cleaning of Moroccan Rugs: A Quick and Easy Guide

You’ve admired the beauty of Moroccan rugs for as long as you can remember. The handwoven design is breathtaking and requires special skills and techniques to craft these rugs.

You’ve finally got your hands on your dream rug after all this time. You are probably wondering how you should keep your new investment clean?

How can you safely take care of your Moroccan rug and protect it from everyday wear and tear?

First, you’ll need to start with the proper cleaning methods for the delicate fibers of your rug.

Keep reading to discover the best and most effective way to keep your Moroccan style rug spotless and as vibrant as the first time you brought it into your home.

Types of Moroccan Rugs

The history of Moroccan rugs is more detailed and wide-ranging than you originally thought. The concept of the hand-woven Berber has first conceived around the Paleolithic Era. 

Wool rugs made by semi-nomadic Berbers have become especially common in Morocco. These tribal peoples have traditionally avoided urban areas as herders and fishers, and their weaving represents their freedom. It is untouched by Middle Eastern models’ classical symmetries, choosing instead unruly, improvisatory forms.

The design in question is known as Boucherie (pronounced boo-shay-REET), derived from a Moroccan-Arabic phrase for broken and reused clothes. It defines carpets made by women for household use, which affect the modest rag rug’s perception, but without modesty.

Many carpets have a moderate amount of pile and are closely knotted and smooth. A few aren’t knit but are rather tied together. Sheets of plastic cut from grain transport bags or packing materials often use an anchor for stitched rugs, which are actually embroidery types.

Many of the carpets contain sprouted loops of yarn and ribbon-like fiber lines, forming a shag-rug effect whether knit or stitched.

Since they are produced by various Berber tribes in North Africa and the Sahara, traditional Moroccan rugs are also known as Berber rugs.

Every tribe has its own style, which is influenced by local access to natural plants, flora, and minerals for dyes, knotting patterns, and the area’s environment. The patterns on these Moroccan Berber rugs are centuries old and have been handed down through generations.

How to Clean Moroccan Rugs

Once you are a proud owner of your Moroccan rug, you will need to learn how to take care of Moroccan Berber.

First and foremost, you must consider the sort of Moroccan rug you have. A rug with a low pile or a flat-woven rug is naturally easier to scrub than a Boucherie rug. Cleaning a Moroccan carpet can be made easier with the following general guidelines.

The many different variations of Moroccan rugs require different methods to clean their fibers and hand-tied knots delicately. Once you own one of these exquisite pieces of art for your home, you’ll want to approach their maintenance to prevent damage. 

Removing Dust

You will never go wrong with beating your rug to remove dust, whether you have a low pile rug, a smooth kilim, or a shaggy Boucherouite. When beating shaggy rugs, be vigilant because it’s very to disengage a part of one of those beautiful hand-tied knots. These knots keep your rug together and all of its fibers in place, so be gentle.

Spills and Stains

If a liquid spill, such as coffee or tea, has spilled on your rug, or if a spot stain has emerged, you must soak it up right away. Begin by dabbing a paper towel on the region where the liquid leaked. Then sprinkle baking soda on top to extract as much liquid as possible.

Baking soda is only effective on simple stains. If you have a deeper spot, add baking soda to vinegar to break down the stain. After applying the baking soda combination, wait a few minutes before vacuuming the surface.

This mixture, when added through a spray bottle, can be used to soak the stained area. For a more optimal and uncomplicated outcome, make sure you’ve saturated the wool with the mixture. After that, carefully clean the area with a soft-bristle brush and leave it for 10 minutes before blotting out any remaining liquid with a clean towel.

For a Deep-Cleaning

Certain tribal Moroccan rugs, such as the Beni Ourain, are made of natural colors that make them easy to clean. Authentic Beni Ourain carpets have only the real colors of the sheep’s wool used in their production, primarily black and white or cream and white, with no artificial dyes or colors.

To clean them, first beat the dust, then hang the carpet against an outside wall and spray it with water. After that, you should use baking soda to spot clean the stains before rinsing the carpet.

Even if you disinfect conventional Berber carpets yourself, you should take them to a specialist cleaner every two to three years. This will ensure you have a deeply cleaned rug and a well-maintained collectible. 

How to Take Care of Moroccan Berber Rugs

Moroccan rugs are patterned rugs made of natural materials, like wool, by many native tribes in Morrocco, know as Berbers. These tribes have an exquisite demonstrated in the construction of these rugs.

If you are thinking of buying a Moroccan rug for your home, you’ll need to learn how to clean your investment. First, you want to browse for many examples, and you’ll want to view these authentic Moroccan rugs

If this sparks your interest, visit our blog to discover more home and garden projects.

Sudarsan Chakraborty
Sudarsan Chakraborty

Sudarsan Chakraborty, an adept blogger and writer, navigates the digital realm with finesse. His passion for storytelling drives him to explore diverse topics from Home Improvement to Business. With clarity and authenticity, Sudarsan captivates audiences, offering unique insights and fostering a community of engaged readers on his blog.

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