The industry-first Teatro Tappeti event at Paddington Town Hall celebrated Tappeti’s Italian heritage through traditions of opera, artisanal craft, fashion and community. More than 260 people came together for the occasion, including industry-leading designers, artists, family and some of Tappeti’s very first clients.
The evening also featured a spectacular fashion parade showcasing wearable art-rug editions of key designs and collections from Tappeti’s history. The presentation traced two decades of creativity, including milestone collaborations with YSG, set designer Kerrie Brown and First Nations artists Cara Shields and Lizzy Stageman.
In her speech, Karinna described the journey as “twenty years of relationships”.
“This is a community that has been woven together over two decades,” Karinna said.
That community stretches beyond Australia’s shores to include the artisans who make Tappeti’s rugs. Time-honoured weaving, knotting and tufting techniques, passed down through generations of artisans in Nepal and India, are at the heart of every piece.
A strong social ethos and commitment to environmental stewardship are woven into Tappeti’s practices. The simple, traditional tools used by artisans to loom, carve, tuft and bind rugs have a light footprint, celebrating the work of human hands rather than the output of faceless machines.
This elevation of artisan skills, and the value placed on human talent and making, was part of Tappeti’s original vision. Today, families have prospered through their work with Tappeti, enabling them to remain in their traditional homelands and villages while earning an income, sending children to school and building prosperity within their communities.
“One of the things I am most proud of after twenty years is the impact we have had through our maker communities,” Karinna said.
“When we speak about handmade rugs, we are speaking about human hands. Human skill. Human lives. A single rug passes through over 100 pairs of skilled hands before it reaches its destination.
“Spinners, dyers, weavers, carvers, finishers; the people whose names may never appear on a specification sheet, but whose craftsmanship lives forever in our work. Entire communities contribute to every piece we create.”
The expertise of Tappeti’s makers is evident in every detail, from the traditional pot-dyeing of yarns through to the final binding, carving and finishing of each rug.
“The result is a rug that is more considered, more beautiful and more meaningful. When you’re creating a space that elevates, your Tappeti rug becomes your first consideration – because a Tappeti rug has the power to lift a space,” Karinna explained.
The community Tappeti has served over the past two decades has itself become a connected network of people, places and custom-made creations.
“When I started Tappeti twenty years ago, I certainly never imagined our rugs would find their way into projects stretching from Perth to Singapore from New York to Saudi Arabia, and into some of the world’s most beautiful homes, hotels and public spaces.”
Karinna also honoured the family who supported her when she launched Australia’s first female-founded rug business as a sole parent: her parents, siblings and children, all of whom encouraged her and celebrated every milestone along the way.
Beyond simply specifying Tappeti’s handcrafted products, the company’s clients have become an integral part of its story.
Karinna acknowledged those who in the early years, “took a chance on us when I showed up with just my suitcase of samples and when it was just me, way before the awards and the international projects… before anyone really knew who Tappeti was, you trusted us, me and opened doors. And I have never forgotten that.”
Today, Tappeti rugs can be found in some of Australia’s most prestigious offices, public buildings, hotels and luxury homes, while the company’s reach has expanded internationally with the opening of its flagship Singapore studio.
Over the years, Tappeti has also developed significant artistic collaborations, including its First Nations collections featuring designs by artists Lizzy Stageman, Cara Shields, Angelina Nampijinpa Tasman, Gayle Napangardi Gibson, Elizabeth Napaljarri Katakarinja and Davinder Hart.
These collections translate the artists’ distinctive visual languages and stories into intricately handcrafted rugs, allowing their work to take on a new material expression while maintaining the integrity and meaning of the original designs.
Respect for storytelling, connection to Country and the rights of First Nations artists to receive ongoing benefits from sharing their work are fundamental to these collaborations. Every rug generates royalties for the artist, while the story behind each design is shared with its owner, helping to preserve the meaning, cultural significance and impact of these remarkable works.
Tappeti’s collaborative approach has also extended to Singapore. Recognising the city’s distinctive design culture, the Tappeti Designer Collective explores the dynamic interplay between architecture, interior design and artisan making. Created in collaboration with leading Singapore creatives Michael Fiebrich Design, Elliot James Interiors and Architology, the collection brings a distinctly Singaporean design perspective to the timeless artistry of handcrafted rugs and carpets.
Other notable collaborations include rugs created with YSG founder Yasmine Ghoniem and set designer Kerrie Brown. Together with Tappeti’s in-house signature collections, these collaborations create a multifaceted narrative of colour, texture and beauty grounded in enduring design, sustainability and ethical craftsmanship.
This is the essence of Tappeti: the making of art that brings delight, warmth, texture and vibrancy to interior spaces.
“Twenty years ago, I thought I was building a rug company, what I realise now is that we were building something much bigger,” Karinna said
“We were building relationships and a community. No company is built by one person. It is built by people who believe, people who contribute their talents, people who care.
“The rugs may carry the Tappeti name, but they carry the fingerprints of thousands of people, thousands of hours and twenty years of belief.”
