In April 2013 I went to Istanbul. It was such a beautiful and vibrant city and that trip is one of my favorite memories. I wish my budget at the time had allowed me to buy one of the gorgeous rugs available from the Grand Bazaar, but it wasn’t an option then. Luckily though, a lot of vintage Turkish rugs are available online. There are wonderful U.S.-based shops that curate the best options with minimal damage that have beautiful online storefronts. However, these tend to be pricey as someone else is putting in the work of sourcing great options in great condition, cleaning them, taking high quality photos of them, storing them, maintaining the website, etc. If you want to score a vintage rug at a reasonable price, Etsy is my favorite option. However, this does require more work. On the flip side, I’m unsure how, but every time I order something from Turkey it is delivered FAST. And most sellers will ship for free.
I knew that I wanted a Turkish Oushak rug for my apartment, but I will be the first to admit that searching Etsy for a rug can be daunting. There are a LOT of rugs and sellers on the site (and the styles are of course not limited to Turkish), and handmade vintage rugs tend to be non-standard sizes. It’s a lot to sift through. The prices also vary greatly based on condition, size, desirability of both the pattern and color, and also how established the seller is. It can also be intimidating to make a big-ticket purchase based solely on pictures without the option to return (although you have to check the seller’s policy). Most sellers do post a lot of different angles and point out flaws, but the pictures aren’t professional photos taken in a studio the way they would be for a traditional online retailer. You need to be mindful of the lighting conditions of the photo (normally outside in bright light which differs greatly from indoor lighting, or even stark warehouse-style rooms) and in general you need to read seller reviews and be discerning about the purchase.
So how do you even begin? Even though these rugs are all non-standard sizes, I still search for the closest standard size I’m interested in. For my search, I entered ‘8×10 vintage Turkish rug’ into the search bar, knowing that the size wouldn’t be fool proof. For instance, that will also turn up things like 5’8” x 8’10” rugs and the dimensions will often be quoted in centimeters instead of feet or inches, so you’ll need to read the full description to make sure you’re getting the approximate size you’re searching (and may need to Google centimeter to inch conversion if you’re anything like me). But typing in the size will give you a starting point, and you can dig deeper on sellers, etc. from there. And most importantly, after looking at the first page or so of results, you’ll get a general idea of pricing for rugs the size you’re looking for to set expectations on cost vs. quality vs. style.
I knew based on my size I would probably have to sacrifice a little on condition to get something I loved, which I was happy to do. There are some worn spots (that were well photographed by the seller), and fading on one side. I like that this rug had a whole life across the world before it landed in my home. I was careful to choose one that simply looks well loved, but is devoid of any tears or holes*. I know that all vintage rugs will be worn to some degree, but there are certainly ones that are in better condition than mine that would have cost more. I love that the age gives the piece a little life, and I like that it’s not cookie cutter. Only I have this rug. But I also understand that handmade vintage rugs can get expensive fast, and vintage isn’t for everyone.
I mentioned in this post that I also recently purchased a rug from eBay. It’s not vintage (although they are available there too, the search is similar to Etsy!), but it’s another great option for keeping the costs down on a rug. You can easily search by size and cost and you can definitely find some good deals there. Finally, like I mentioned in that same post, do not sleep on Homegoods for rugs. A beautiful wool (and name brand) 8×10 rug costs around $250 at Homegoods. TJ Maxx even sells a few online. They’re pretty limited in the larger sizes (although they typically have a decent inventory of 5×8 online).
Of course there are plenty of other places to buy rugs online (Wayfair, Overstock, Rugs.com, etc.). And plenty of traditional brick and mortar stores to buy them too, these are just my current favorite places to source them. Turkey had a really wonderful impact on me, and I’m so happy I now have a piece of that rich culture in my own home.
Oh, and in case you’re interested, below are three different rugs that I was considering that are somehow still available on Etsy (all under $700). I came VERY close to buying the first one. I’m not normally drawn to medallion rugs (even though that’s the style I bought!) but there was something about the pattern/colors of the first one that I really love. (Please excuse the angles of the photos, I said they weren’t professional!). I love the vibrant colors of number two and the more playful pattern of the third.
*I recommend avoiding anything where the binding is starting to go (I think that’s a short road to unraveling, and not worth the gamble) and I personally wanted to avoid holes as that was more distressed than the look I was going for (although a very distressed rug is a specific category that I think could look very cool, especially if layered, you just have to be prepared that more damage is bound to happen through normal use).