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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Design Under the Influence: Kilim Rugs

Hello again, it's Erika from small shop, bringing you an eighth installment of Design Under the Influence. Today is going to be a quick lesson, with emphasis on the eye candy! We're talking about kilim rugs, which I've been seeing everywhere lately, have you? What I've really been loving are the fresh ways these rugs have been incorporated into interiors lately — seems to me like they add a dash of boho, making any space suddenly hip.

"Kilim" rug weaving is said to be a tradition that migrated with the Turkmen tribes to parts of present-day Iran, Turkey and Afghanistan in the eleventh century A.D. But archaeological evidence of kilim woven textiles from 7,000 B.C. have been recovered, making kilim one of the oldest and longest held design traditions in the world.

Not exactly sure what makes a kilim a kilim? Two easy differences between a traditional Persian rug and a kilim rug are:

And now for the fun part:

[ Commune Design ]

[ via The Lonely Wife Project ]

[ via Apartment Therapy ]

[ via Apartment Therapy ]

[ via Apartment Therapy ]

[ Fran Ugarte via Nuevo Estilo ]

[ David Cafiero via Lonny ]

Tough to tell if these are all flat-woven rugs like a kilim. But nonetheless, mixing them into white contemporary interiors softens up an entire room, don't you think? Makes it feel more well-traveled and vintage-y. Do you have any kilim rugs in your home?

Images on my LDV Pinterest board, although I had a lot of trouble finding the original sources for many of these. If you happen to know that, please let us know!

19 comments:

Karena said...

Erika I love kilims and the image in the bath is a delight!

xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena

Stacy CUrran said...

Omg that one in the bathroom is AMAZING! Best image I've seen today :)
Stacy

Michelle said...

My eyeballs just did a 180...love. Especially love the runner, what an idea! I hope oh I hope to have stairs some day.

Peak Rainey said...

ummm... this images are sooo terrific. i am totally obsessed with these kilims. we have a pink antique moroccan rug at the office and i want it to live in my house :) thanks for the post!

www.styledesignlife.blogspot.com

Elizabeth said...

I don't know how she always finds the best pics to illustrate her posts, but these are all gorgeous!
-e (modern24seven)

The Peak of Tres Chic said...

I have always been drawn to Kilim rugs. I adore the last image, especially! Great work Erika.


XO,

Sam
www.ThePeakofTresChic.com

bevy said...

thanks for sharing the history of these rugs, very interesting!

i really like the look of 'em in these photos.

Janet Saucedo @StudioBlueJewelry said...

I totally love kilims. I even made a woven jewelry line of bracelets with them in mind. They make every room so genuine and friendly. Thanks for the post. Beautiful photos.

xoxo
Janet

www.studiobluejewelry.blogspot.com
please come and visit my blog :)

Kristy @ I Design Love said...

Love to hear about the history, very informative. Kilim rugs are amazing, they add so much color and pattern to a space.

www.idesignlove.com

Unknown said...

oh, these rugs are just so gorgeous!!! now i am going to be obsessed! XO brynn

Unknown said...

I love your post! and of course , great pictures! Kilims add so much color, and they are fun to go off course a little from the match-matchy look and add some wow to a space.
I did try Kilims one time for pillows on a sofa, and they were so scratchy I ended up returning them!

Nancy
PowellBrower.com

Lindsey said...

Great post! I would love to do this in my kitchen. What a fantastic way to bring some color and geometric pattern to a room.

Gaby [The Vault Files] said...

I love their look so much that I'm seriously considering updating my living room one once I get back to Toronto. Great images for inspiration Erika!

Jackie said...

I love these posts! I'm really liking the rugs after reading this. I think it looks fantastic draped over the white chair in the pic from Apartment Therapy. They really do give a great pop of color and a cool, well-traveled, boho vibe.

erin said...

Great pictures. Kilim.com is also a great source about kilim rugs. They have a beautiful collection and a good source for learning about them.

Unknown said...

What a great modern way to use Kilims dahhling! great photos.

Emily said...

Love that office #2! That marble and white makes for a dreamy combo.

Claudia Juestel said...

I love the context in which most of these kilim rugs in the photos have been used. Contrasting with more modern and bright design they really stand out beautifully.

Cheers,

Claudia

oriental rug cleaning NYC said...

I love all these beautiful kilims. It is very hard to find those gorgeous kilims.