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Archive for March, 2011

  • 03.25.11 

    Inspired by a Chinese garden

    We are surrounded by artwork and inspiration everyday and sometimes inspiration for a new rug comes from unlikely places.

    Co-Founder Walter Chapin frequently travels to India and China to visit our factories. It is important to Company C, our dealers and customers that the quality of our facilities and their working conditions are as high as the quality of our products. During his visits, Walter tours the factories currently producing Company C products as well as potential factories.

    It’s not all work though! One of Walter’s passions, and his idea of colorful living, is cooking and dining on local cuisines. So he takes these opportunities to soak in the culture, tour the cities, and dine at the most authentic restaurants. On a recent trip to China, Walter was amazed by the incredible beauty of the stonework in the garden pictured below. Stones of varying size, shape, color and texture were pieced together to create a beautiful mosaic path in the garden.


    Upon his return to the office, Walter shared the details of his trip with our design team. They were inspired by his pictures of the mosaics featured in the beautiful Chinese garden. Our design team set to work creating their own stone path! At the time they were working on the new Colorful Outdoors collection. The Mediterranean color palette had been decided but the designs were still being finalized. Inspiration from Walter’s pictures and stories combined with the colorful Mediterranean color palette, was just the motivation they needed to create our one of a kind Mosaic rug. Varying shapes and ocean colors create whimsical medallions and swirls of cool blues, aqua, greens and yellow.

    We can’t think of a better way to color your porch or patio than with a colorful Mosaic!

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  • 03.11.11 

    The inspiration behind our Zulu pillow!

    Twice a year, after months of researching color stories and inspirational ideas, our Design team introduces creative new collections. Here is a rare behind-the-scenes look at one of their latest inspirations for Spring 2011: the Zulu pillow, named after the beautiful handmade Zulu baskets of South Africa.

    On the northeastern coast of South Africa lies the province of KzaZulu-Natal (“Place of Heaven”). Here the art of basket making is alive and well.

    In the 1800’s, the Zulu men were known for their basket weaving expertise, but when they went to work in the mines it became necessary for women to learn and carry on the tradition. By the turn of the twentieth century the Zulu people replaced basket trading with tin and iron, and the skill of basket weaving was all but lost by the 1940’s. Twenty years later a missionary started a workshop with three elderly Zulu women who still remembered how to dye the materials and weave the baskets. From these workshops the art of basket weaving was reborn; the craft was refined until it reached the pinnacle of quality that we see today.

    The Zulu craftspeople favor symmetry, precision and organization in their basket designs and each design element has a different meaning. Triangles are masculine, but on a wedding basket they represent the number of steers/cows that were paid for the bride. Diamonds are feminine, while double diamonds or double triangles mean marriage. Checkerboards, whirls or circles mean good news, a new baby or a plentiful harvest. These rare, highly valuable baskets will differ based on the craftsman, the inspiration, the event or the use.

    We have created our own unique design in the Zulu pillow. Symmetrical diamonds stretch across its width. Many Zulu designs have been dubbed “modern primitive,” an apt description for our pillow.

    Regretfully, the art of basket weaving may be lost again due to the Zulu people’s migration to cities and the spread of AIDS throughout South Africa. Zanzibar Tribal Art Gallery is working in conjunction with the non-profit Tribal Art organization to ensure that the weavers are paid Fair Trade prices for these works of art. This allows the women to support their families and, if necessary, purchase anti-viral drugs. To learn more about their efforts, click here.

    Reference Sites (history and images): http://www.zanzibartribalart.com/AboutZuluBaskets.htm

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