Rug Talk

I traveled to Chicago last Friday to venture into the renowned rug retailer, Oscar Isberian Rugs. When I walked through the door I was greeted by Brian Rojanasumaphong, a rug buyer and merchant for the company, travels the world in search of the crème de la crème of Rugs.

He mentioned that his trips to Turkey have been a magnificent adventure. While there, he tours rug weavers’ shops and villages in order to guide them on the changing American tastes. It’s the buyers who tell the weavers what colors might sell best in the states, and what type of rug people buy more often. This dialogue is one of the most important in the rug industry. He gave me a tour of the Oscar Isberian store near Chicago’s mecca of interior design, the Mercantile Mart, where the dark grey, industrial feeling walls made the hues of the antique carpets come alive. There were rugs that would suit any fancy with varied colors of tans, peaches, to bright greens.

Here we can see Brian standing next to a Knotisse Rug.

Knotisse is the rug manufacturer we plan to visit while on our trip. Knotisse recycles rugs by finding or buying old ones, unweaving them, rewashing and re-dying them, and later creates a new design to hand weave a reborn rug into. According to Brian, Turkish rugs are big sellers in the Chicago land area. We will find out more on how he buys them when we meet him again in Turkey.

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About Lauren Stewart

Lauren Stewart is a curious, go-getter with a passion for people and their stories. She is a University of Illinois student and a May 2012 graduate. Lauren has always dreamed of becoming a journalist. Before she could write, she would interview her grandparents and fill an entire legal notepad with their answers; when the interview was over she would proceed to tell an intriguing story based on her scribbled notes. Having become more mature, she still pursues this passion for details and exploration. Her love for story telling has been paired with a need to seek adventure around the world. Her goal is to one day become an International Reporter and cross her goal of “touching every continent” off of her bucket list. In order to prepare for global expeditions, she immerses herself in different cultures. She has attended global Leadership conferences enhancing her love for diversity as well as connecting with diplomats and young world leaders about changes they wish to see in their countries. Leadership and understanding are key in making progress. She contributes to the United State's progress by helping student leaders. She works as a facilitator for an annual national diversity conference. The leaders she has met along her journey inspire her with their stories. She hopes to bring them to light through the all platforms of journalism. Her skills have been in enhanced by internships in newsrooms such as ABC-7 in Chicago, IL, USA and WCIA-3 in Champaign, IL, USA. She learned the value of virtual connection during her time as a social media executive at CheekyChicago.com. Her resume can be viewed through the "website" link. Lauren is elated to have received the opportunity to enhance her desire to widen global perspectives with this trip to Istanbul. She is excited to dig deeper into Turkish delights as well as broadcast voices that often go unheard in the Muslim community.