the beautiful shelter

I first discovered Mansour Modern's exquisite area rugs in Architectural Digest and was even more impressed once I visited their website. Despite the old design school phrase that "the ceiling is the fifth wall", I love it when interest is placed on the floor. It's like a blank canvas begging for art - the weaver's type.

Mansour Modern offers such original, bold patterns with Mediterranean, eco-friendly and tribal influences that I envision entire rooms with just the glimpse of an 8x10' rug. Although the thought of dishing out a small fortune for an area rug sometimes leaves people feeling queasy, I think that if it's approached as a piece of art (not to mention, you can pull a colour scheme from it, anchor furniture in a room and add warmth), those feelings may subside. If your husband or significant other still needs convincing, throw in the "investment" and "family heirloom" words. Or bake them some palmiers.