Dad's Rug

I received an email from a lady that lived in the Washington D.C. area who had a 10' X 15' braided rug that was made by her father 40 years before. Her dad was 47 when he braided the rug and he passed away in 1975. The rug had been in storage for 8 years and she wanted it repaired so that she could use it in her home and also have it as a rememberance of her father. She planned to visit a relative in the area and wanted to bring the rug up so that I could look at it.

The rug was in bad shape. The first thing we decided to do was to reduce the size of the rug to 9' X 14' so that we would have the material to make repairs. The reverse side of the rug was in better shape than the "right" side so we decided to use it as the "right" side. This made the project more difficult for me because everything had to be done in reverse...the lacing, the butting, the tapering...but it was our only alternative.

Below is the pictorial story of the project. When it was finished I had a tremendous feeling of accomplishment that I was able to restore a badly worn 40 year old rug to usefulness and to bring happiness to my client who now had her heirloom..."Dad's Rug".. in her home where she could enjoy it every day.

Step 6: Repair of center portion complete

"...Please accept my thanks now for your delightful surprise. Your work looks gorgeous and it was fascinating to see how you got it done. The book is a lovely momento of your labors, which, in turn, have so beautifully brought back to life my father's labors. Truly above and beyond the call of duty. I am more than happy to pay for the extra four hours beyond the estimate...your instincts were correct to make the work as close to perfect as you could"...Washington, D.C.