Rug Shopping with Grandma Jeannie

When my mom saw our newly-renovated guest suite, she commented on how the current rug in her living room would look PERFECT down there. She said that she'd be happy to give it to me if I would do her the honor of going shopping with her for a new one. SURE! 

It was funny, because I took her to the pits of Worcester to a store that sells handmade imported Pakistani, Turkish & Oriental rugs for cheap. What was funny is I didn't tell my mother where we were going...only that we were going to a "store that had a lot of high-end rugs for cheap."  "Oh, like Macy's or Pottery Barn?" she asked.  No, not exactly, mom!  ;-)

The store had a large selection, but mom and I had to fold through the rugs ourselves since they were all stacked on top of each other. This was trying with Joni strapped to my back, but also kind of fun at the same time. A workout to say the least!

When we were halfway through pile number 1, we both paused and exclaimed in unison: "Oh my goodness!"  Our excitement came from the fact that we had stumbled upon not only something wonderful, but something we never expected to see again!  A rug that looked nearly identical to the one-of-a-kind kilim rug my parents had bought when they were married and had given to me when Ben  and I bought a house. It adorns my living room floor and is one of the nicest, most durable things I own. It was clear from the patterning and the dyes that this rug was made by the exact same tribe as the one in my living room purchased by my parents many years ago!  

Grandma Jeannie was generous enough to purchase the rug for us, so now my favorite rug has a "sibling!"  These rugs are hand woven and are so sturdy. It will last forever, and today's experience will make a great story for us to tell for years to come!

Here's a photo of the kilim rug in my living room purchased by my parents many years ago...

And here's the one we found today!

Here are some shots of the rugs next to each other (you can click on the photos to enlarge them)...

Thank you Grandma Jeannie!  I never ever imagined I would find another rug to "match" my favorite piece of decor in my house! Glad I took you shopping in "the pits" mom!

My mom was debating between 2 different rugs for her living room. The one below (as pictured in her living room) was the one we liked best, but we worried that it would be too light and that it wouldn't be bold enough to bring out the other colors...so we almost went with another one we didn't like quite as much, merely because the colors were bolder...but when mom got home and put down the rug in the living room, she realized that the lighting in the store was very poor, and she was pleasantly surprised to see how the rug brightened up the room once it was in her space!  

Doesn't it look stunning?  Like just out of a magazine?  See the shoes I have to fit in!  

The Manager of the store liked our story so much that she gave us a free bottle of bubbly and gave Joni a free toy because she was so "good" while we were shopping!  :-)