Dream weaver: discovering the joy of rugs with Jenny Jones

Jenny Jones is a self-taught creative. Despite struggling through school as a child due to undiagnosed dyslexia, Jenny has gone on to become one of Australia's most respected rug designers – although she didn’t discover this passion for design until later in life.

Jenny’s career story starts with a stint at Myer where she undertook an internal executive course that fast-tracked her into a buyer’s position within six months, a fantastic foundation that has served her well in her business endeavours since. However, her husband’s desire to travel cut her role at Myer short, a fortuitous twist of fate that led Jenny towards her true purpose and the adventure of a lifetime.

The pair spent years travelling around the world and immersing themselves in other cultures, traditions and art forms. They had four children, all of whom came along for the ride. It wasn’t until their eldest daughter was due to enter high school that they considered moving back to Australia.

“We’d just had our fourth child in Africa and had moved to Ankara in Turkey, where I had fallen in love with the Turkish village rugs sold in the Old City,” says Jenny. “The Turkish women were illiterate but expressed their life and emotions through the rugs they wove.” 

Jenny also discovered these women created treasure chests of designs and weaves saved for their wedding day, and Jenny felt a connection with them through a shared love of texture and artistic expression. “It just sang to my heart as I’m dyslexic myself. We had a common connection and understanding, and this was the beginning of my rug journey. I wanted to be a part of this and share it with Australians back home.”

In 1995 the family returned to Perth where Jenny established her business, Jenny Jones Rugs, importing rugs from Turkey and India. Her youngest child was just two years old and the demands of motherhood soon clashed with that of running a business. “I had to set up boundaries as my children were the most important treasure to me, and I didn’t want to get lost in establishing my business,” says Jenny. “My husband joined the business in 1999 when we opened our first showroom so I could always be home with the children after school.”

However, Jenny noticed a decline in the traditional method of crafting rugs. Turkey’s young people were moving into the major cities in search of employment and Turkish rug production was fast becoming mass produced, the hand-knotted rugs hailing from the country towns becoming little more than a memory. 

“There was a big swing in architecture and design, in the materials and colours being used. Traditional Turkish rugs, which were often red and blue, no longer complemented the beautiful new palettes of the changing trends,” says Jenny. Inspired to preserve this medium of artistry, Jenny set about starting her own collection using the age-old hand-knotting methods herself. “With my husband’s support, I set off for Nepal and India to start my own collection using different textures, and developing new colour stories,” says Jenny.

In 2001 Jenny brought her own rugs to market, pieces that used colour and composition so masterfully that they could only be described as pieces of art for the floor. Her take on contemporary rug design was well-received by consumers and industry professionals alike, and in 2012 she went to the Domotex flooring trade show in Hanover, Germany, where she won the Best Modern Design category, the first woman and Australian to do so. “Being acknowledged as one of the top three rug designers in the world rug was unbelievable,” says Jenny, who counts the event as one of her proudest professional achievements.

Jenny largely draws upon nature and culture for inspiration. “I am always surprised by nature, whether it’s birds, a florist full of flowers, landscapes, sunsets, rainbows, the bark of a dead paper tree, what people are wearing or doing – it never stops,” says Jenny, who managed to strike the perfect balance between business and family. All her children have enjoyed working with their mother at some point, and her son, Luke, is now a permanent rug expert and colour specialist for Jenny Jones Rugs. Luke says he is blessed to have such a wonderful design mentor for a mother.

“Growing up exploring the grand bazaars in Ankara and Istanbul in Turkey, and visiting places like Cappadocia to source traditional kilims and kazaks from old forts or village buildings infused me with a sense of adventure and encouraged my imagination,” says Luke. “Those foundations and seeing Jenny’s passion for producing only the best art pieces that she would be proud to have in her own home, has instilled a certain level of standards in me to follow and evolve from.”

Luke says working with Jenny is like working with his best friend. “We just get each other!” says Luke. “However, like any relationship, it takes continual humility, kindness, patience, courage and respectful love for the other to have a healthy balance when you're working with family.”

For Jenny, founding her own brand and being able to learn the language of design on her own terms has proved to be a fulfilling experience. “In my life I’ve had travel, adventure and design, and met new people and made friends around the world, and experienced challenges, yet I’ve been able to fulfill my most important roles as wife and mother,” says Jenny.

“All my rugs have a story behind them, an experience, expression of my emotions, a relationship or passion. These are not rugs, but art on the floor instead of a canvas. One rug may take up to nine months to make – just like a baby – and I've used a team of 180 hands to get the final result. Every stage is completed by human hand, heart and soul.”

Shop the collection of Jenny Jones Rugs on ArchiPro.