Nestled in the picturesque town of Bellingham, Washington, is a gem of a textile mill that goes by the name of Auda Sinda. There you will find a team of local artisans who meticulously hand weave the most gorgeous rugs from carefully sourced, domestic materials. These rugs are woven with a commitment to traditional methods and continuing experimentations.
One of the most enjoyable components of collaborating with Auda Sinda on a project is being a part of their custom colorization process. It is not about selecting a specific color but instead attention is on the overall palette and how it blends in with the room's other design elements. Various colors and shades, that are often a mixture I would never imagine, come together to result in a harmonious blend of texture and color. I often compare creating a custom color rug to painting a watercolor. It's a sort of “slow dance” of the fibers, and the Auda Sinda artisans have mastered this technique.
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A quick look at the weaving process for our curious craft enthusiast readers.
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Above, one of Auda Sinda’s artisans weaving the Darby rug on an American made 12’ wide loom! The weaver alternates one row of the background color with one row of the pattern color. She hand-tosses a shuttle of yarn between the warp yarns that are then threaded through the loom. When the yarn packs down, the different rows are indistinguishable and the pattern rows blend to create solid shapes.
The technique in this photo is called “scalloping”, which adds extra slack in the wool weft. The wool will largely cover the cotton warp yarns that create the foundation of the rug. This extra yarn tightly weaves together to create a dense and durable rug.
Auda Sinda is known for their complex color combinations. Amy’s background as an artist and painter comes in handy in the color selection process. Amy and her team love to create multidimensional works by playing with the juxtaposition of warm colors and cool colors, as well neutral tones and strong tones.
Sometimes a cute drawing does just the trick at connecting the dots. Here's our weaving cheat sheet in case you need a visual.
Auda Sinda is always innovating and updating classic styles. Vellum Stripe (shown above in Painted Desert) is affectionately known as “Piano Keys” by their team of artisans. The original version of this design was inspired by the bold use of pattern in the long hallway of a custom project. The Painted Desert colorway is an all time favorite among the Auda Sinda team.
Vellum Stripe shown in a variety of colors, Lilypad, Snow Line, and Painted Desert (shown from left to right).
Shop Auda Sinda
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Left: Columns in Sleeping Bear; Right: Hopscotch in Bronze
Left: Tenino in Bluebell; Right: Vellum in Pinpoint Cream
Left: Talara in Cherrywood; Right: Twisp Twill in Evergreen
