According to the philosophy of Swiss carpet manufacturer Ruckstuhl, “the art of weaving – the creation of carpets and textiles from natural fibres – is one of the oldest cultural activities of the human race.” Not that we’d object, but to those who haven’t seen or understood the Frisian Wouw carpet by Claudy Jongstra, they haven’t experienced a truly artistic, sustainable product come to life.

Frisian Wouw. Designed by Claudy Jongstra for Ruckstuhl.

Designed as part of Edition Ruckstuhl – a limited edition series of twelve carpets by nine designers from canada and europe – the approximate 240 x 330 cm shape of this particular felt carpet resembles a fallen autumn leaf or perhaps a golden flake of paint from centuries past. Claudy Jongstra, the Dutch designer behind the weave of marigold-tinted felt, was trained as a fashion designer who found her calling in using felt back in 1994 after witnessing a Mongolian yurt (tent) on display in the Nederlands Textielmuseum. Since her discovery, Jongstra's textiles have been used by leading fashion designers such as John Galliano, Donna Karan, and Christian Lacroix. Since then, her work has been dedicated to creating the soft wool fabric with a combination of either silk fibers or transparent silk organza – something that had never been seen before.

From start to finish, Jongstra believes in pure sustainable wool and materials. Beginning with raw materials the entire process is built on an environmentally-friendly, cyclical process. In fact, she tends her own flock of rare Drenthe Heath sheep to make sure their unusual breed from the Netherlands maintains itself, and continues to produce the best wool. Additionally, her website describes that Jongstra “keeps her own hortus botanicus where national historic varieties of dye-plants grow.” Recently, she was awarded The Prins Bernhard Cultuurfondsprijs, a prestigious Dutch prize for applied arts and architecture.
With Ruckstuhl’s dedication to natural goods and quality, Jongstra’s Frisian Wouw carpet comes to life after the delicate processes from start to finish that set it apart from anything ordinary.