Every hard floor needs a nice area rug – but what about walls? Did you know that there are many places in the world where rugs are hung on walls for decoration? One of these places is Russia. Can you guess why?
If you guessed the reason was for insulation and warmth, you’d be right. If you ever visit Russia and are invited inside people’s apartments, you’ll notice that many if not most apartments have oriental rugs hanging from the walls. Up until the country’s recent transition to a capitalist economy, most apartments were built by the government – out of thin concrete. This kind of building gets very cold in Russia’s winter climate. Many Russians were at the mercy of the state for their heat, so they ingeniously hung large wool rugs or wall hangings on their walls to keep that heat inside. The walls tended to be very thin as well, so rugs kept the noise from traveling and allowed families a bit more privacy.
Parts of the Soviet Union, including Tadjikistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, were places where rug making has been a tradition for millennia. As in the rest of the world, rugs were something only rich families could afford to decorate with until modern times. Hanging rugs or tapestries was also common in castles and large estates for the same reason as in Russia. There was no central heating in castles either, and they got very cold.
There are other reasons to decorate your walls with rugs or tapestries besides warmth. Many rugs are art, and we already hang art on our walls. Rugs can be a surprisingly affordable form of art too, especially compared to original paintings or sculpture. Fabric crafts like rug making have become far more popular among young people today, and our walls are a great place to display our own efforts and masterpieces. For couples on a budget, a rug can double as a headboard for a mattress and a box spring.
Another reason walls are great for rugs is because walls are far less dirty. For truly valuable rugs, a wall is a much safer place than a floor. People who love rugs but also have small children may want to display their treasures on the walls until their kids have passed the age where spilling is a constant problem. Pets can be incredibly hard on rugs too. If you have a pet with a health or bladder issue, hanging a rug up is a great way to keep using your rugs until the problem is resolved.
Of course, whatever your rug needs, Bond Products has the materials you need to keep your rugs maintained and repaired. If you find a beautiful rug with a torn fringe in a thrift store, we can help you. If you want to bind the rug you made yourself from remnants, we have products for that too. Call Bond for all of your rug related issues whether you plan to use it on your floor as furniture or hang it on your wall as art.
