CARE AND MAINTENANCE

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Have you just bought your Berber rug or are you planning to buy one, but the issue of cleaning is stopping you? We understand your concern!

A Berber rug is an investment and, inevitably, we don't want to see that investment ruined, by a wine stain on a festive day, or by mud marks on a rainy day. Well, you're wrong! Firstly, because depriving yourself of a wool rug means depriving yourself of natural warmth, of a unique decoration in your home... in essence, depriving yourself of a unique experience.

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Berber rugs are almost always made from 100% sheep's wool. In some categories, such as Azilal or Zanafi, cotton is mixed.

Thus, wool is a natural animal fiber that comes from the skin of certain animals. No suffering is felt by the animal because the wool is harvested by shearing, not as in fur manufacturing. We do not manufacture well-being at the expense of animal happiness.

Wool easily absorbs moisture and is therefore perfectly insulated from the outside. It will be the perfect fiber to keep you warm in winter. There are many qualities of wool, as well as many origins, but for rugs that have SOUL they come from the High and Middle Atlas.

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The different cleaning techniques

It is very important to maintain your wool rug regularly, with small care measures that will make all the difference. This is how you will maintain its original appearance for several years.

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Remove dust

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The vacuum cleaner in brushing mode

The first thought to clean the carpet is to vacuum it. You can do it, but BE CAREFUL! The vacuum cleaner must be used very gently to avoid pulling the knots out of the carpet little by little. Carpets are tough, but a vacuum cleaner brush used too hard will gradually pull the pile out of your carpet! That's why it's very, very important to do it gently. The brushing mode is not recommended on a new carpet.

The ideal is to place the vacuum cleaner on each part of the carpet. You will only vacuum the dust, but without damaging the carpet's pile.

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Shake the carpet

Ideally, this is the best method for cleaning carpets. This is how you will remove all the dust from your Berber wool rug in the most efficient way possible. In some cases it is difficult given the weight of some of the rugs! But the more you can do it this way in the regular maintenance of your carpet, the better you will be able to keep its wool intact.

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Turn the rug over

A good technique is to turn the rug upside down! Place it on the floor, upside down, and leave it like that for 2 to 3 days. Don't hesitate to step on it, the dust will naturally fall to the floor due to gravity! This is the best technique, without vacuuming or carrying a 20 kilo rug, to remove dust without the risk of removing hair with the vacuum cleaner.

 

Removing stains from my Berber carpet

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Biggest fear! We are among friends, we have just acquired our superb Berber rug, but one of our guests spills red wine on my beautiful white wool, recently arrived from Morocco. Don't worry. Wool can be cleaned very, very well with several processes that we explain here:

Hot milk method on wine stain

If the stain has just been made, add the warm milk as quickly as possible. Let it rest for 30 minutes, then rinse with soap and water. Magic! The stain disappeared instantly!

Method for a dried wine stain

1. Apply shaving cream to the red wine stain. Spread the cream over the stain with your fingers (no need to rub). Leave to act for 10 minutes.

2. Rinse with warm water

White wine and baking soda method

1. Pour in white wine so that the stain is soaked with red wine.

2. Cover the stain with baking soda putty (to make the putty, mix an equal amount of water and baking soda). Spread the mixture over the entire stain with a spoon.

3. Leave to act for 3 hours. Spray with water regularly to keep everything moist.

4. Rinse with warm water

5. Spray with textile perfume to remove the white wine odor.

 

Other stains

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For other stains, the solution we've tried most is Marseille soap and warm water. Nothing to say, it is an ideal method to clean stains from your Berber carpet in the easiest and fastest way.

For those who are outdoors and have the opportunity to dry the carpet in the sun, as is done in Morocco, you can, in the spring, clean the carpet thoroughly by hand and use water on its entire surface and rub it with soap. Marseille. Don't worry about getting the wool wet, it's a material that holds up very well, but you have to make sure you can dry the rug very quickly after getting it wet. Carpet fiber must be able to air, breathe and dry to return to its original beautiful shape and texture. Instead, wait until April through August for this type of cleaning.

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However, we highly recommend doing it once a year to maintain the shine of your Berber wool rug, and it can be a really fun activity.

For very embedded stains, we recommend carbonated water and rub gently with a damp cloth or sponge. Thirty minutes after this task, add some baking soda. When the powder is dry, gently vacuum it. Baking soda is a good product for cleaning wool rugs, in case of stubborn stains, don't hesitate to use this recipe.

And for an ideal scent, add a little tea tree essential oil to disinfect and perfume the carpet, risk-free!

 

Thank you for reading carefully and take care of the SOUL of your Berber rug.

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