Houri Rug by Maman Rugs, New Zealand Wool, Racetrack Oval Shape, Hand Tufted

Maman Rugs was founded by Samira Gagné Ludwin in honor of her late grandmother Maman Houri who learned to weave carpets at a young age to support her family in her rural village of Jasb, Iran. She led many of the women in her village to do the same, teaching them her craft and artistry. Forced to leave due to the revolution, she spent the remainder of her life in America with her children and grandchildren. Samira spent most of her early years in search of creativity and awed by imagination. Through watching the handiwork of the people in her town in Equatorial Guinea, being inspired by the architecture and city-scape of Montreal, and the desert landscape of Arizona, she found her creative voice in New York City, where she studied design at the Pratt Institute. Samira has spent the past 15 years working as a product designer creating commercially successful product lines for mass retailers before venturing out on her own. Inspired and connected to her grandmothers’ story, she began designing carpets. She currently designs her rugs from her studio in Los Angeles, California and works with artisans from a family run business in Bhadohi, India that have been weaving carpets through multiple generations. Samira designs her rugs as a tribute to continue the thread of her grandmother’s tapestry. Her memory inspires each rug.