-- Home Textiles Today, 1/29/2001 12:00:00 AM

Each year AmericasMart Atlanta recognizes the showrooms and displays of permanent and temporary area rug exhibitors who take creative merchandising to championship levels. Independent judges, each with years of visual rug display experience, vote on the winners for each category.

Here are the winners for the January 2001 market:

Visual Display Awards for outstanding visual merchandising:

1. 6th floor: Capel

2. 5th floor: Tibet Rug Co.

3. 4th floor: Safavieh Carpets

4. 3rd floor: Karastan

5. Market temporaries (on 2nd floor): Noonoo Ramezani

America's Magnificent Carpets Awards for design excellence:

1. Hand-made, under $649: Kas Oriental Rugs Inc.

2. Machine-made, under $100: Home Dynamics

3. Hand-made, $650-$1,250: Aura Rugs

4. Machine-made, $101-$200: Scotia Design Group

5. Hand-made, $1,251-$1,900: Safavieh Carpets

6. Machine-made, $201-$400: Feizy

7. Hand-made, $1,901-$2,500: Neman International

8. Machine-made, $401-$1,000: Nourison

9. Hand-made, $2,501-$3,000: Noonoo Rug Company

10. Machine-made, $1,000-plus: Karastan

11. Hand-made, $3,001-$3,500: Art Resources

12. Hand-made, $3,500-plus: Nalbandian Rugs

13. Antiques: J. Nazmiyal

14. Best Contemporary: Woven Art

15. Rug displaying most innovation: Masterlooms

16. Best Rug, as voted by retailers: Feizy