Hmah Rugs

Hmah Rugs is right here in Mohalla Ghoriana. It’s an old neighborhood and we’ve lived and worked here for a long time. The space is filled with rugs, some finished and some still being worked on. There is a specific smell to the wool and the dyes that you get used to after a while. We don't have a big storefront with lights. It’s more of a workshop where people can come in and see what’s happening. The floors are usually covered in scraps of thread. We spend a lot of time sitting on the ground or on low stools. It’s how it’s always been done in this part of town. My father learned it from his father, and now we just keep it going. Ghoriana is a place where everyone knows everyone. People stop by just to say hello or have a cup of tea while we work. The light coming through the windows isn't always great, but we make do with what we have. We don't use big machines for everything. A lot of it is just hands and patience. Some rugs take weeks to finish, and we just watch them grow inch by inch. It’s slow work and you can’t really rush it. We don't try to hurry because that’s when mistakes happen. It’s just us doing what we know how to do, day after day, year after year. There are piles of dyed yarn in the corner waiting for the next project. It's a quiet, steady life.