Boujaad collectible rugs: Antique wool rugs with a bohemian character
There you are in your living room, dubious at the sight of this bare floor. Your head is still full of all those images of bohemian chic interiors from glossy decorating magazines. Elle Decoration, Modes et Travaux special bohemian issue, Le Monde Decoration, and other gypset interior magazines have saturated your mind. All you've retained is that you need a rug. You've seen the white wool Beni Ourain with black diamonds so many times, and that mompreneur blogger trying to convince you she crossed the High Atlas Mountains to find you a rug (straight from the Marrakech souk) is driving you crazy! But I totally understand! Here's a little article to share my passion for vintage Boujaad rugs and try to convince you that a vintage Boujaad is a thousand, no, a million times more chic and bohemian than a brand new Beni Ourain!
What is a Moroccan Boujaad rug?
The Boujaad is an ancient Moroccan wool rug. These knotted rugs are characterized by colorful patterns and geometric shapes. The wool is naturally dyed, and the most common colors used in Boujaad rugs are various shades of red, burgundy, carmine, or purple.
Boujaad rugs are generally thick and made of wool, but some have acquired a patina over time which has made them thinner in certain areas.
Boujaad rugs are generally quite large (2m x 3m) but it is possible to find smaller Boujaad rugs and even sometimes Boujaad rugs in prayer rug format which are less than one meter long and about fifty centimeters wide!
What is the price of vintage Moroccan Boujaad shoes?
When discussing price, most websites avoid the question. "It depends"; "They're all unique"; "Price is forgotten, quality remains," etc.
I'll try to avoid the usual jargon. Having spent years, almost a decade now, buying and selling rugs, I can let you in on a secret: the price depends primarily on where you buy it! A Boujaad rug that looks magnificent in a very chic Manhattan boutique will be listed at over $6,000, while its twin deep in a valley in the Ourika region will be negotiated down to twenty times less. I could tell you that the ones from Bohemian Chic Interior are the most beautiful and the least expensive among budget rugs. But would you believe me?
Therefore, I won't comment on my competitors' prices. With us, as with all vintage rugs, the price of a Boujaad depends on its size, its condition, but really, above all, on the price we managed to get it for ourselves! And yes, sometimes there's no point in looking for complicated answers where there aren't any. A vintage Boujaad in good condition (not too worn, not too many stains) will cost us between €400 and €1200, depending on its size. Expect to pay between €100 and €200 per square meter.
Caring for a Vintage Boujaad Rug
A Boujaad rug, like all vintage rugs, should be vacuumed regularly with a vacuum attachment (not the rotating brush head, which could damage the rug). Above all, avoid setting the vacuum cleaner to its maximum power! You vacuum the dust from the rug, not its fibers!
When a Boujaad rug is placed in a location with excessive sunlight, the ultraviolet rays can cause the rug's color to fade. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes, this slightly faded hue can lend a great deal of charm and patina to an antique rug. Observing the color of the base of the knotted wool fibers in an antique Boujaad rug can also provide a good indication of its history. If there is no difference between the base and the tips of the wool fibers, the rug is either new or has been recently sheared.
We love antique rugs like Boujaad rugs because they are rugs that have lived and will continue to live. There's no need to make a mountain out of a molehill; they aren't priceless collector's items to be kept in museums. We shouldn't be afraid to walk on them, to live with them, and to keep them alive.
Stretching and beating a Boujaad once a year is a good idea. And, as with all wool rugs, if you are lucky enough to have a garden and freshly fallen snow, don't hesitate to lay your rug upside down in the snow for a few hours.