Rugs to Riches: Guide to Buying Oriental Rugs

What I mean is, the book is full of vignettes that illustrate basic points about shopping -- AND EVEN ABOUT NEGOTIATING !! -- things that are obvious once you think about them, but which you might never have realized. My favorite example: Suppose you see a rug with a price tag of a certain amount, and you say to the salesperson, "The most I'd pay is [such-and such]" -- well, what you've really just said, without knowing it, is that the amount you said is THE LEAST you're going to pay, not "the most," because you've shown that you're willing to pay it and that you can. It's a useful kind of thing to be aware of for any deal you might ever be involved in, whether as buyer or seller. I'm sure you could get things like this from Donald Trump's books, but it's interesting that they're here too. The book gives an EXCELLENT overview of oriental rugs. The writing and organization are excellent. You'll learn about the main types of rugs, and how to recognize them -- and how to match and combine rugs. Even in the most elegant settings, we often see POOR combinations; this book gives good, easily-applied guidelines for doing a GOOD job of this. Some readers criticize the book's pricing guidelines -- but actually they're quite good and very useful, as long as you realize their limitations. Yes, they're simplistic, and the projected rates of appreciation were recognizably absurd even at the time the book was written. (By those formulas, most rugs before long would have attained the value of Fort Knox.) So, the author was a bit innumerate, and anyone who purchased rugs assuming infinite price appreciation has been disappointed. Blame the author? Maybe a little.

I first encountered Rugs_to_Riches when I was researching and planning the purchase of my Persian Rug. I found five books at my local library, one of them dated 1908, that covered the topic of purchasing and keeping oriental carpets. All of them, with the exception of Rugs_to_Riches stated that "the carpets you buy today aren't as good as the old ones available 30, or 40, years ago." This is basically balderdash!Rugs_to_Riches proved to be a refreshing exception to this nonsense. It was the best starting guide that a beginner like me could find as I searched out one of those beautiful treasures of the orient. The pricing guides are good for comparison of type & quality, but should not be relied upon for exact valuation of a carpet. Also, the old rule of "one man's trash is another man's treasure" applies here. Never ever purchase an oriental carpet because it may be valuable. If it doesn't match your home's decor, it'll end it's life as a moth-eaten rag in your closet. Make sure that you actually like the piece before you buy it. I purchased my carpet in a bazaar, not at a dealer's shop in Houston, New York, or even, in L.A. As a consequence, my purchase was *FINAL*! If you plan on purchasing a carpet with even the slightest chance of returning it, because it doesn't match your decor, then go to a reputable dealer. If you are sure of your taste in carpets, design, and home decor, then, grab this reference, and book a flight to the Orient for a haggle-fest.Finally, on the purchasing of "antique" carpets. Never buy one, unless you see a pattern that you definitely want & you can't get it in a "new" carpet. Most of the price of "antique" carpets is for the (mostly unprovable) antiqueness of the carpet. Only buy an "antique" from a dealer, if you are purchasing one for it's antiqueness. Never, that is, unless you are an "expert", or you can afford to be "taken". Have an "antique" appraised *first* by a reputable 3d party *before* you bid on it. Otherwise, just buy a new one, and remenber that your great grand children will have incontrovertable proof of their "antique" oriental carpet in about 100 years, or so.All in all, a good book for the beginner. I recommend it.