OUR MISSION
In an eco-friendly environment, to produce the finest quality of hand-spun and natural-dyed woolen yarns for the creation of exquisite hand-woven rugs, as well as for the restoration of antique Oriental rugs and tapestries. THE SCOPE OF OUR BUSINESS
For over a decade, the hand-woven rug production in Armenia has been striving to reach new heights in quality and in design based on the
centuries old rug-making-tradition of Armenia. Especially, beginning from the 1870s and onward, the Armenian rugs had become the most sought after decorative art — under the generic name of Caucasian Rugs — in Europe and in the United States. Currently, the trend is to reproduce the updated versions of those antique rugs in the highest possible quality, which entails expert artistic workmanship, intricacy of design, and overall tactile feel and durability of the finished rug. That is exactly where we have begun to play a major role with the yarns we produce to achieve the overall tactile feel and durability of the hand-woven rug. After a year of intense research and trials, we have developed methods and recipes to produce and dye the highest quality of hand-spun woolen yarns, naturally. Our entire production is eco-friendly and absolutely natural. On the one hand, we have been collaborating with like-minded farmers, who take their sheep to graze in alternating pastures throughout the spring and summer; and, feed them naturally nutritious hay during the fall and the winter months. The farmers supply us with the best quality of sheared wool available in the area. On the other hand, our customers are the weavers of exquisite hand-woven rugs; they know full well that the quality of the yarns used play a crucial role in the overall value of the rug. The woolen yarns we produce are also ideal for the renovation of antique Oriental rugs and tapestries. Each artisan who meticulously repairs Oriental rugs often encounters a major challenge in finding the matching quality and color of the yarn that was originally used to weave the antique rug so that the repaired area cannot be detected. Currently, we have been renovating antique rugs for a few collectors. We will be gradually expanding our repair-shop capacity to serve all of our valued customers. We are also committed to training the new generation of weavers. We have several master rug weavers, who have been passing their extensive knowledge and experience in rug weaving to aspiring young women. In this aspect of our business, our ultimate goal is to create the master weavers of the future who will be producing heritage-quality rugs based on the multitude of traditional Armenian designs tracing the history of the hand-woven rugs throughout the centuries. OUR PRINCIPLES AND METHODS OF YARN PRODUCTION
While the sourcing the best quality of sheared sheep’s wool is the first important step, the principles and methods of processing it into a finished yarn are the most crucial aspects to distinguish our product as superior to any other mass-produced yarns. The Woolway motto: “everything is natural” encapsulates our commitment to eco-friendly sourcing, hand processing, and hand dyeing of the wool to obtain the most desirable yarn in our business. The Sourcing of the Wool
We source our wool from a few select farmers who share our principles in caring for their sheep. They make sure that the grazing of their sheep in the lush pastures is a natural process by avoiding overgrazing. Daily trips to alternating pastures keep the sheep healthy and well-fed. The farmers make sure that the sheep are also sheltered in a very clean environment during the winter months. Undoubtedly, filthy conditions would have made the wool of the sheep worthless. It is also important to know that it is the same shepherd, who takes care of his flock, shears the sheep’s wool with utmost care during the summer. As the winters are very harsh in Armenia, the sheep grows a thick and long fleece every year. Naturally, shearing that heavy coat of fleece benefits the sheep during the very hot summer months, while providing us with their precious wool. The Sorting and the Washing of the Wool
The short-fibered wool is separated for other uses and the long-fibered wool strands are chosen to be processed into yarns. For the hand washing of the wool, only the optimal amounts of water and mild natural soaps are used. Nothing is wasted. Our meticulously washed wool is air dried. Hand Spinning of the Wool
The hand-washed and air-dried wool is spun by hand in small batches, as it had been done for centuries. This primitive-sounding method actually gives the spinner the most effective control in producing evenly-weighted continuous yarn for our intended use. Hand Dyeing of the Wool
The hand-spun yarn is naturally dyed in small batches to produce the exact variation of the desired colors. Our research and experiments have brought us to a level where we can reproduce any color we want to replicate the matching color of the original antique rug to be repaired. Moreover, the desirable muted or vivid colors of antique rugs can now be replicated with our yarns in modern hand-woven fine rugs. Natural Dyes
The dyes we use are strictly plant based and natural. We do not use any commercial chemical dyes. Again, the method of obtaining multitude of colors and their variations is based on centuries-old tradition. Although it is a tedious process, we prefer to prepare our own dyes, which gives us the greatest control in obtaining the exact colors we intend to create. A MESSAGE FROM HAYK OLTACI
Dear Friends and Valued Clients,
My first love for Oriental antique rugs began in Istanbul, and flourished into a professional passion, which stuck with me while I lived and worked in Strasbourg, France; then, in New York City, U.S.A. It is a wonderful feeling to pursue your passion in your professional life. As an avid restorer and seller of antique Oriental rugs and European tapestries for well over 40 years, I have lived many deeply-felt uplifting moments when my clients expressed their gratitude for the repair work I had done for them, or the exceptional rugs I had helped them to buy, with which they are still in love. However, I had to resolve many difficulties to provide satisfactory results for my loyal clients. Among those, the yarn to be used for the restoration of a given rug had nearly never been readily available on the market. First, I had to find the right quality of wool after a long search. Then, dye it myself to perfectly match the antique colors of the rug under repair. During my visit to Armenia in 2018, I discovered the revival of hand-made rug weaving tradition in full swing. Moreover, the preferable trend was to use yarns produced by traditional methods. When I returned to New York City, that experience stayed stuck on my mind. I dreamed about the possibility of producing my own yarn in Armenia. What was once a dream, has now become a reality. Woolway is an established company and on its ascend…
My initial guide has been Ruzanna Torozyan, the President of WINNET Armenia Association of Women Resource Centers. In one of the centers, she introduced me to the microcosm of hand-spun and hand-dyed woolen yarn production, as well as the hand-woven fabrics, rugs, and decorative pieces made with the same yarns. My right-hand in operations is Mariam Nalbantyan, who has immense knowledge and experience in virtually every aspect of our business. If a client thinks that the yarn we provide or the rug we sell is produced in perfection, Mariam is the major actor behind that success with her meticulous work, attention to detail, and inspirational mentorship to each artisan in our company. I feel both lucky and proud for having collaborated with Mariam Nalbantyan and Ruzanna Torozyan. Lucky, because they accepted to join forces with me. We formed a dream team: Woolway. Proud, because they are on my team. And gradually, all of our employees have also become a member of our team. In fact, this team approach to our employees transcends our company and extends to our suppliers and clients, too. The foundation of our business is built on the principle of creating a mutually desirable win-win business transaction for everyone, every time. We are all on the same winning team. Sincerely,
Hayko
President of Woolway
