Global Textiles Influence Lifestyle Choices

Globally sourced textiles can be found in every niche of design. With the popularity of hand crafted items in the forefront, interior designers, apparel designers, and accessory designers are turning to exotic locales like Morocco, the Ivory Coast, and remote villiages in Asia and South America to source vintage and new textiles.
​photo: Johnny Was Clothing

The bedroom above showcases both new and vintage textiles. The African indigo on the bed is similar to many I have sold in my shop. This particular room is not for the timid as it boldly displays a variety of global textiles.  The live plants give the room a signature Bohemian touch.
​photo: la boheme house of the wishing tree

Global Textiles can also be combined in a very clean and sophisticated manner. The monochromatic pillows seen above are limited edition pieces created with a focus on maintaining traditional processes and ethical making practices. Ehren Seeland and Hecho are responsible for creating these beautiful natural fiber pillows and they exemplify the artistry found in the indigenous textiles of Mexico. We may only associate Mexico with bright colors, but the neutral palette is equally appealing.
Photo: Ehren Seeland

Global textiles like African mud cloth and kilim rugs can add soft color to a space if that is your preference. The room above by Rug and Weave fearures black and white African mud cloth pieces atop a linen sofa and vintage petal pink rug for a relaxed well designed space.
​photo: Rug and Weave

Latin American global textiles are known to be colorful and bright. The linens used for the table scape shown above nicely anchor the succulents and florals. This is a good example of using global textiles to set a mood for an occasion rather than a permanent installation.
Photo: Pinterest

Mixing textiles is an important part of creating a well developed global style. A Design mix may include items like beads, baskets and living plants. In selecting each item you are making a choice. It's worth taking your time to find the global textiles and trinkets that speak to you and reflect your taste. Above I placed an African basket and beads with a Mexican Otomi textile and black ceramic beads from Oaxaca. To me they look like they were all made for each other.
photo: Anita Morrissey

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