Hooked Rugs
The materials used in hand made hooked rugs are chiefly wool or silk. The hooked rugs foundation that the knots are tied on can be wool, cotton, silk or even goat hair. Cotton is used extensively as the preferred foundation due to it sturdy properties - it does not shrink in different weather conditions, it maintains the shape of hooked rugs and lies flat, it is finer and more compact than wool.
Wool and silk are most often used for the hooked rugs knotting, but they are sometimes used for the warp and the weft. The breed and age of the sheep, the season when sheared, the climate and surrounding environment are all factors that determine the quality of wool defined by its thickness, texture and color for hooked rugs.
Sheep from mountain regions have a longer fleece; winter fleece produces thicker and heavier wool, while spring fleece is softer and finer for hooked rugs. Lambs aged 8 to 14 months produce some of the finest wool for hooked rugs, called cork.
This kind of wool, very thin and silky, was used in England and eventually found its way to Persia. The Persian lamb is known for its superb wool for hooked rugs.
Live wool is wool sheared from living sheep. Good live wool is durable and soft, it retains its lanolin and essential oils giving the hooked rugs resilience. Good wool captures the light and diffuses it amongst its fibers. If good wool is used, over the course of time, the natural oils come to the surface producing wonderful hooked rugs. In fact, older hooked rugs sometimes look as though it is made of silk instead of wool.