Global Inspired Decor: Beni Ourain Rugs

One day my dollars will stretch far enough for me to actually buy something as luxe and iconic as a Moroccan Beni Ourain rug. Fingers crossed! With every appearance of these hand knotted, wool beauties in design mags (both print and online), they've seem to go up exponentially in price. In fact, I've channeled my inner child, thrown my hands up over my eyes, and pretty much learned to ignore these rugs completely.

Nope, there's no way a $4,000 rug is gracing my floor...

 

...however mouthwateringly perfect they look paired with a suzani and oversized lantern.

 

Yep, they're subtle and exotic, adding just a hint of a global mood to whatever type of room you have. (And, yes, that's Eva Peron on the wall...be still my Argentine heart.)

...but I still can't justify the price. Unless someone with mad DIY skills can teach me how to recreate one, of course.

And since the talented Danika Herrick from Gorgeous Shiny Things posted her Beni tutorial, I've been a happy camper. Danika took simple ingredients-- an old shag rug, Black RIT dye, an empty spray bottle and IKEA cutting boards-- to create the stunningly simple criss-cross design of these iconic Moroccan rugs. Isn't the result lovely?

*From Gorgeous Shiny Things

The Beni Ouarain are actually a group of seventeen Berber tribes in the mountains of Morocco. And the rugs that bear their name are characterized by simple, borderless design woven exclusively with an ivory background and natural, un-dyed dark brown sheep wool on an abstract geometric motif.

 

I love that these rugs can be as traditional...

 

...or eclectic as your whim carries you.

 

Do you guys love these as much as all the stylists do? Sadly, I won't be buying one of these bad boys anytime soon, but definitely want to try my hand at Danika's tutorial. Wouldn't it be a great DIY as a simple throw rug? 

Psst...For more comprehensive details on the Beni Ourain tribe and weaving tradition, check out this great entry by berber-arts.com.

Sources: 1. via Atelier Abigail Ahern; 2. via Elle Decor; 3. via Elle Decor; 4. via Coco Pearl; 5. via Gorgeous Shiny Things; 6. Heide Lender via Desire to Inspire; 7. via Elle Decor; 8. via Elle Decor; 9. Living Etc. via From The Right Bank; 10. ATL Home Lifestyles via Sketch42; 11. Martyn Lawrence Bullard; 12. Morrocan Maryam via My Marrakesh; 13. Ondine Karady