# How come no-one picks up all those used oriental carpets? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 14, 2012, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505 "2012-01-14T15:50:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/1 "2012-01-14T15:50:23Z")
My hobby is browsing Goodwill stores. And I’ve noticed that lots of them now have the most gorgeous oriental carpets. Wool, hand dyed, hand knotted. Carpets that used to cost many hundreds, even thousands of dollars. Most of them show wear and tear, and all need a thorough cleaning. But all of them would look magnificent with a little care. Carpets like that only get more beautiful with age, and are made to withstand use. Much like antique wooden furniture. But you don’t find much of that in Goodwill stores, and what is there is swifly cherrypicked out by antique dealers. I get it that such carpets are, apparently, out of fashion at the moment. But they are bound to get back in fashion someday. If my husband wasn’t allergic to wool in our home, and if I had more time on my hands, I might even start a business picking up and rescuing oriental carpets. I even bought a little one with the idea in mind that I might find a seamstress or craft person that coul make one into an [original carpet bag](http://www.google.nl/search?q=carpet+bag&hl=nl&safe=off&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=DKQRT5XXJNHqOfzs9ZsD&ved=0CEoQsAQ&biw=1680&bih=959) for me. Those also sell for hundreds of dollars, and it only takes a five dollar used oriental rug to make one. I hope I gave someone a business idea. It almost pains me to see such carpets used as feet wipe mats in the Goodwill stores, simply because noone there appreciates them for the valuable antiques that they are. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/2 "2012-01-14T17:08:11Z")
I’ve never seen such carpets in Goodwill, but if I did I’d sure take them! I love the look of them, the intricacy of the patterns. I have a runner down my hallway that’s imitation Persian carpet pattern, and even that looks good. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/3 "2012-01-14T17:21:58Z")
Are you sure they are hand knotted wool carpets? I’ll start going to Goodwill to look as I would love to get some for $5 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/4 "2012-01-14T18:10:23Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > I get it that such carpets are, apparently, out of fashion at the moment. But they are bound to get back in fashion someday. Buy all you find now, and store them for the coming trend! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/5 "2012-01-14T18:12:11Z")
Goodwill hunting! ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/6 "2012-01-14T18:19:59Z")
Probably for many of the reasons people are hesitant to buy any used soft furniture–stains, smells, and bugs. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/7 "2012-01-14T20:20:00Z")
You mean you don’t have them in goodwills in the US? I’m in the south of the Netherlands. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/8 "2012-01-14T20:21:13Z")
> [@China\_Guy](#): > > Are you sure they are hand knotted wool carpets? I’ll start going to Goodwill to look as I would love to get some for $5 Yes, I know a bit about carpets and I can tell. Besides, they often have the label still on them in the back. ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/9 "2012-01-14T23:54:02Z")
I would love to find some nice oriental carpets or rugs in good condition at a thrift shop. Most of the carpets/rugs I find have significant damage, are stained/dirty, and not made of wool. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/10 "2012-01-15T00:33:38Z")
I’ve also never seen rugs in good condition. I love thrift stores and I would happily buy nice rugs if I could find one. I do buy lots of sheepskin from thrift stores. Mostly its in good shape and not smelly. Maybe its regional? ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/11 "2012-01-15T00:38:31Z")
I’ve never seen any in the Goodwill stores around here. I wish they did have them. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2012, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/12 "2012-01-15T01:37:34Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > You mean you don’t have them in goodwills in the US? I’m in the south of the Netherlands. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/13 "2012-01-16T14:38:13Z")
In the city center I would guess one might come across a decent wool rug. Old rugs in the country get used in dog pens and hunting shacks. I did buy a small oval wool rug at the antique fair once. It was a little dirty, the seller gave me a great tip for cleaning it. Requires snow, but put the rug outside on a snowy day or just fill it up with snow, roll it up and leave it set for a little while outside like that. The snow extracts the dirt, it sticks to it. Really works. When old darmah the cat peed on that same rug, I put it outside packed it with snow, and the the urine cameout in a frozen clump of snow! Completely cleaned, seriously… ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/14 "2012-01-16T14:46:58Z")
> [@Toucanna](#): > > I would love to find some nice oriental carpets or rugs in good condition at a thrift shop. Most of the carpets/rugs I find have significant damage, are stained/dirty, and not made of wool. ☹ How much would you be willing to pay for a real nice old/antique oriental rug that is cleaned, photographed, put on ebay, and shipped abroad? Just establishing a business model here… ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/15 "2012-01-16T17:33:14Z")
Matt Paxton of the show _Hoarders_ noted that once a smell got into an Oriental rug or carpet, it never really got out. So if the previous owner was a smoker or burned incense or had incontinent cats, that smell would stay in the rug, defying even a thorough cleaning. You might not even be able to smell it in the store, but once it spent considerable time in your home or got wet, the odor would be released. So, buying a used rug or carpet can be a real gamble. ---
**Author:** ![FlyByNight512](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/82dd89/32.png) [@FlyByNight512](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyByNight512)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/16 "2012-01-16T18:44:42Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > You mean you don’t have them in goodwills in the US? I’m in the south of the Netherlands. Nope, must be a regional thing. The only rugs I’ve seen in second hand shops in the US (both coasts) are bad quality and hideous. I’d snatch up a good one in a heartbeat, dirty or not. Of course, I’ve only been in two or three houses that had nice oriental rugs, it may be that we just don’t have many to make it to the thrift stores in the first place. (Well, my grandparents have one, but it’s silk and hangs on the dining room wall. The family’s going to fight over that one when they’re gone.) ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/17 "2012-01-16T19:21:43Z")
> [@FlyByNight512](#): > > Nope, must be a regional thing. The only rugs I’ve seen in second hand shops in the US (both coasts) are bad quality and hideous. I’d snatch up a good one in a heartbeat, dirty or not. Of course, I’ve only been in two or three houses that had nice oriental rugs, it may be that we just don’t have many to make it to the thrift stores in the first place. (Well, my grandparents have one, but it’s silk and hangs on the dining room wall. The family’s going to fight over that one when they’re gone.) Seconded - even on craigslist, the halfway decent ones (even good quality machine-made, not to speak of hand-knotted) cost hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. I don’t know that it’s something I’d buy sight unseen, but if I were in a thrift shop in the Netherlands and ran across one in good condition, I’d sure try to find a way to get it home! ---
**Author:** ![Mdcastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/958977/32.png) [@Mdcastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdcastle)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/18 "2012-01-16T20:04:07Z")
Are oriental rugs maybe more popular in general in Europe than the US? Once in I while I’ll see one at an estate sale but I don’t own one and I never met anyone that did. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/19 "2012-01-16T20:36:18Z")
> [@Mdcastle](#): > > Are oriental rugs maybe more popular in general in Europe than the US? . I suppose so, and this is one of those windows of time that all the old homes get rid of them while modernizing, while there is not yet a new market for them. Anyone would like me to photograph rugs and put them up on ebay and make it worth my while to pack them up and send them? BTW, smell is important for me. I have smelled the carpets that were sold hanging, not the ones laid down. The ones hanging up didn’t smell bad. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2012, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505/20 "2012-01-16T21:17:03Z")
Well, I just called my mom, who is retired and has time on her hands. She is also a real oriental rug afficionado. We decided she will drive over to me next wednesday and go on a rug hunting trip with me. We will pick up the two best ones (her small car can’t carry real large ones). She will take them home, clean them and have them photographed. I’ll put them up on Ebay. If the first two get us us a profit worth doing it for, I think I found my mom a new hobby. 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-come-no-one-picks-up-all-those-used-oriental-carpets/609505.md?page=2)