Enkay Rugs & Accessories - Simple Luxury Woven By Treasured Artisans
Fashioned in the finest natural fibers, with a sublime and sensory feel, Enkay celebrates the ancient craft of rug-making with the launch of their premier collection, Origins, on September 13th, 2021. As the world moves into the future, works by hand remain a touchstone connecting to the past.
Featuring 23 different styles, talented weavers based in their home villages of India have lovingly produced a range of top-quality, unique, and distinctive designs under the auspices of Enkay. These hand-made works of art will now be available to collectors of fine home furnishings nationwide. Styled for modern living, Enkay has one simple, noble intention: to make hand-made, high-quality rugs attainable. Retail price points start at $500 and will be available through its e-commerce site.
The inaugural collection houses a variety of subtle and sophisticated neutral tones and a mix of textures to adorn inside spaces and beautify any home environment. Born out of the intense desire to honor centuries of workmanship, Enkay artisans use only the finest materials like un-dyed New Zealand wool and employ the technique of using hand carding, hand knotting and hand finishing. Enkay brings warmth to rooms and texture to life, with understated color gradations, high/low pile contrasts, refined geometric patterns, and exquisite craftsmanship.
Asha Chaudhary, CEO, and Co-Founder of Enkay, daughter of the legendary N.K. Chaudhary of Jaipur Living, India’s largest manufacturer of hand-knotted rugs, proudly carries on the legacy of her father’s devotion to respecting and supporting makers, weavers, and designers whose creations have passed through generations. Enkay, as a woman-led business, has intensely focused on empowering women and their families to secure the future of hand-made rugs, as well as creating her aesthetically driven, direct-to-consumer luxury brand.
“Weaving is an ancient art. In creating Enkay, we have connected customers with artisans practicing these timeless skills in villages across India. We connect directly with makers and remove complexity from our ecosystem, ensuring each person in the chain is paid fairly for their contribution. We can ensure the highest ethical standards are upheld through this model, and a totally fair value exchange occurs. Weavers and their communities thrive. Additionally, by investing in these communities, through skills training, education, and health initiatives, we’re able to support these vital crafts and the people who practice them, making them sustainable for generations to come,” Chaudhary says.
Enkay is designed for modern living, bringing welcome texture into any home, and making it possible to see a classic design with fresh eyes. The hand-woven rugs are fashioned in jute or ultra-soft wool and are virtually stain and water-resistant making it easy to live with for kids and pets, handcrafted for life. In addition, Enkay’s rugs are an environmentally conscious way to incorporate naturally beautiful elements into the home, as synthetic rugs contain toxic dyes and emit harmful VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Colorways include bright whites, soft creams, pale beiges, and subtle greys.
Some highlights from the Enkay Origins collection of rugs include:
Sarvan
Sarvan is inspired by the individualism of a rug worked on by multiple weavers using multiple yarns on a single piece. In Sarvan, the tonal variations of undyed wool combine with yarns woven at different tensions to create a textured piece that’s both casual and cosmopolitan. Hand-woven from hand-spun and carded Afghan wool, Sarvan retains the wool’s prized length, strength and luster in the finished rug. Sarvan is ideal for adding a bit of luxury to modern life.
Adras
An undyed, natural palette, braided fringe, and contrasting, high/low pile makes Adras feel like modernity meets Moroccan style. Crafted from lustrous, hand-carded wool, Adras is hand-knotted then hand-trimmed with shears to create a subtle texture that evokes a field of diamonds. Taking just under three months to make, Adras is form without formality, ease without edge—providing a perfect backdrop to a casual contemporary home.
Tigaria
Tigaria is an updated Moroccan style. The variation in color inherent in natural sheep’s wool creates a delicate linear pattern, with no two rugs the same. The soft pile and easy design make it a perfect backdrop to a casual contemporary home. With a natural sheen to the wool and a contrasting high/low pile, Tigaria’s boho style makes it a natural complement to a modern space.
Sarnic
Sarnic echoes the tribal patterns woven long ago in the Kars region of modern-day Turkey. The difference is in its palette. Rendered in neutral shades rather than the rich hues of tribal carpets, Sarnic trades traditional boldness for calm classicism. Sarnic is noted for its especially solid, lush feel, which is created by a complex knotting technique that produces a flat-woven feel from a cut pile.
Enkay’s Origins collection is a statement of intent, crafted to express enduring subtlety and effortless luxury. This foundational collection has been shaped using the lightest touch. It imbues understated design with the depth and movement inherent to natural materials. Origins embraces contrast and the character of the rugs emerges in the space between design and making. It draws on tradition but lives just outside of time.