Antique Rug Repair — Conservation-Grade Restoration for Heirloom Pieces
Repair and conservation for antique and heirloom rugs, carried out in our Skokie workshop. Our Principal and Master Conservator, Ghorban Ahmadi, has performed conservation work for the State Hermitage Museum, the Musée du Louvre, and the British Museum. The scope and price of each repair are set with you before any work begins.
Text (847) 440-1349 — estimate the same business day.
Three kinds of work on an antique rug
We sort the work on a rug into three classes. Repair is localized: one damaged area, such as a moth-grazed patch, a worn fringe, or a failing side edge. Restoration is the extensive version of that work. Conservation means stabilizing and documenting a rug with as little intervention as possible.
Antique conservation is on our repair and restoration list, and the work we do on an antique is conservation-grade. Each project is evaluated individually to preserve the rug’s structure, original character, and long-term integrity.
Existing damage and risks are communicated to you when we find them. If inspection shows that an antique needs rug restoration rather than a localized repair, we tell you, and any change in scope needs your approval.
Conservation experience behind the workshop
Our Principal and Master Conservator, Ghorban Ahmadi, performed conservation work for the State Hermitage Museum, the Musée du Louvre, and the British Museum from 1984 to 1993.
Ahmadi Rug is family-owned, with third-generation rug craftsmanship, and the family’s craftsmanship history dates to 1984. “Museum-grade care” is how we describe our approach to an antique; it is not an accreditation.
Before we quote an antique repair
Before we quote an antique repair, we photograph the rug on its face and on its back, map each area of damage, and test the foundation.
You receive those findings as a free written assessment before any work starts, and the scope and price are defined with you first.
An antique or heirloom piece also gets a personal consultation with us before we recommend any repair.
Every repair begins with cleaning the rug, and that cleaning is priced as its own line, apart from the repair. Where moths, pets, or water did the damage, the cleaning serves as decontamination before any reweaving.
When an antique is fragile, we stabilize it first, securing a failing foundation and brittle wool, so that the repair itself causes no new loss.
How the repair work is done
Replacement pile is built from yarns we keep and dye ourselves, matched to the rug’s original materials. Custom yarn dyeing and color correction are part of the work; we do not promise that a repair will match exactly.
We add nothing that is foreign to the rug: repairs are made in the materials it was woven from. Hand reweaving and foundation repair are both on our repair list, and on a silk rug we reweave the silk pile itself, not only the binding, rebuilding it the way the rug was constructed.
At the ends, our fringe repair stabilizes loose warp ends so the rug stops unraveling and rebuilds the end in its original construction. We use no glue and no serging; both are damaging shortcuts.
When an earlier repair needs to come out, such as a synthetic-yarn mend, a glued or sewn patch, or machine overlock, we remove it and redo the work. If you ask, a repair we have made can be reversed.
Once the work is finished, we inspect it against the intake photographs, and the before-and-after photographs come home with the rug.
Insurance and estate paperwork
When the repair is finished, you receive a written record of the materials and methods we used on your rug. It comes in addition to the free written assessment you receive before the work, and to the written summary that accompanies a restoration.
If your rug is part of an insurance claim, we can prepare the documentation for your claim.
A valuation is a separate service. Our rug appraisal report is used for insurance documentation, estate and inheritance, resale, auction, and collection inventory, and whether a report is accepted depends on the party receiving it.
What antique repair costs
Antique repair is quoted after inspection, since repair work varies with the rug, its age, knot density and materials. Across our rug repair service, repairs start from $65.
The preliminary estimate is complimentary. It is not a final quotation until we have inspected the rug, and a change in scope goes ahead only with your approval.
Bringing an antique rug to the workshop
Insured pickup and delivery is free within 5 miles of our Skokie workshop or our St. Charles location, and $75 round trip beyond. On larger orders and restoration projects we may waive the transportation fee; we tell you at estimate. Pickup and delivery are confirmed with you in advance.
You can bring a rug to our Skokie workshop by arrangement during business hours, or to our St. Charles location by appointment; we recommend contacting our team before visiting.
For what pickup looks like in your town, see our pages for Evanston, Skokie, Oak Park, Glenview, and Lake Forest.
Antique repair is one part of our rug repair service. For extensive work, see rug restoration; for a written valuation, see rug appraisal. Our guides to antique rug care and the antique rug restoration process cover the subject at more length.
Common questions
How much does antique rug repair cost?
Antique repair is quoted after inspection, because repair work varies with the rug, its age, knot density and materials. Repairs on our rug repair service start from $65. The preliminary estimate is complimentary and is not a final quotation until we have inspected the rug. The cleaning each repair begins with is a separate line, and any change in scope needs your approval.
Do you provide written condition reports?
Yes. Before any work starts you receive a free written assessment, drawn from photographs of the rug front and back, a map of each damaged area, and a test of the foundation. Before-and-after photographs are returned with the rug, and a restoration also comes with photographs taken during the work and a written summary. When the repair is finished, you also receive a written record of the materials and methods used. If the rug is part of an insurance claim, we can prepare the documentation for your claim.
What is the difference between repair and restoration?
Repair is localized work on one damaged area. Restoration is the extensive version of that work, and conservation is a third approach: stabilize the rug, document it, and intervene as little as possible. If inspection shows that your rug needs more than the scope we quoted, we tell you, and the change needs your approval first.
Is antique rug repair reversible?
Yes. If you ask, a repair we have made can be reversed. We add nothing that does not belong to the rug: the work is done in the materials it was woven from, with yarns we dye ourselves and match to the original.
How long does antique rug repair take?
It depends on the scope, the materials, and the workshop’s workload, and complex work can take weeks or months. You receive an estimated timeframe once the scope is set. Timelines are estimates unless a deadline is agreed in writing.
Serving Chicago and the North Shore
Ahmadi Rug provides antique rug repair for homeowners and interior designers across Chicago and the North Shore. We offer insured pickup and delivery from Lincoln Park, Gold Coast, Evanston, Wilmette, Winnetka, Glencoe, Lake Forest, Highland Park, Northbrook, Glenview, and Skokie — as well as western suburbs including Hinsdale, Oak Park, and Naperville, and the Fox Valley via our St. Charles, Geneva, and Batavia drop-off. Insured pickup and delivery is free within 5 miles of our Skokie workshop or our St. Charles location, and $75 round trip beyond.
Antique repair time rests on the scope, the materials it calls for, and the workshop's workload, and complex work can run for weeks or months. We give you an estimated timeframe once the scope is set.
To schedule a pickup from anywhere in our service area, call (847) 440-1349 or submit an estimate request online.
Start with photos of your antique rug.
Send photos and measurements, give us the details by phone, or arrange an inspection. The scope and price are defined with you before any work begins.