FAQs

A vase is a visual pun for peace. A flower-filled vase woven into a rug represents domestic harmony and brings peaceful energy to the household.

These motifs symbolize peace and freedom. Stone bridges represent the transition from the busy world into a private sanctuary, while pavilions and temples signify wisdom, spiritual grounding, and elevated points of view.

In Chinese iconography, the bat is a direct homophone for happiness and acts as a joyous omen of luck. The dragon is a benevolent force of nature that represents strength and imperial nobility.

In the Nichols Tientsin factory, designs were traced directly onto the cotton warp threads with specialized red ink before weaving. If a rug has wear revealing the foundation, faint red or pink stains serve as

While both were titans of Chinese Deco, Nichols rugs are known for crisp lines, deep 3D incising, and maximalist color saturation on a rigid foundation. Fette rugs tend to have a softer, more pliable foundation

Authentic Nichols rugs are famously heavy with a thick, hand-knotted pile on a rigid cotton foundation. They feature a highly lustrous pile, deep 3D incising, and sometimes carry a stamped “Made in China” mark in

The Palace Factory was Nichols’ legendary flagship establishment in Peking. He converted the former palace of a Manchu Prince into a grand showroom and weaving facility, allowing him to market his rugs as being literally

The Nude series refers to rarer, highly sought-after minimalist Nichols designs featuring solid fields of camel, champagne, and taupe with tonal or subtle contrasting accents.

Nichols incorporated a Botanical Calendar into his designs where specific flowers represented the seasons: the Peach Blossom for Spring, the Lotus for Summer, the Chrysanthemum for Autumn, and the Narcissus for Winter.

Nichols viewed the harsh chemical wash as a stress test. He believed that if a rug’s pile and colors could survive the saturation and chemical reaction without bleeding or degrading, it was proven to last

A standard 9×12 Nichols rug took a team of four master weavers an entire month to complete. After weaving, the pile was meticulously hand-cut at an angle around the motifs, a technique called beveling or

Nichols Blue is the signature, deeply saturated indigo blue used in many of his rugs. Nichols insisted this color be dyed in the wool to ensure a uniform shade that would never show streaks.