craving kantha

Hello abode lovers and hooray for making it to Friday! Go ahead, give yourself a pat on the back... I am. It's been an exciting week over here at abode love with the opening of the shop, Laurel Dawn-- but I'm excited for the weekend! It looks like I'll be working on a super big commission this weekend, I can't wait to share more about that! Anyhow, last weekend I had the pleasure of going to a baby shower for Mister Husband's sweet cousin Kim from Modern Austen.... after the shower I showed all of the girls my paintings and Mister Husband's super stylish aunt had a ton of kantha textiles--- she brought them out to see how they looked with my paintings and we all kind of loved the combination!

Kantha is super hot right now... thanks to good ole wikipedia, I learned that Kantha is a type of embroidery popular in Bangladesh in West Bengal, India. The use of kantha is popular for saris-- love that. If you are like me and LOVE layered pattern and bold color, you will LOVE these kantha pieces. Since drooling over them last weekend I've been stalking all kinds of kantha tapestries and quilts online....

To me, this bedroom is pretty close to perfect. I adore the mix of patterns on the bed. The kantha textile at the end of the bed is really nice with the glamorous pink, tufted headboard. This is an eclectic space at it's best! 

Here is another great use of a kantha textile... LOVE the calm serene space and bedding with a pop of color. This is a GREAT way to use kantha if you're a little more timid about mixing patterns. 

Here a kantha textile is used as a runner for the dining table. 

Another space with a gorgeous kantha bed covering... 

Here are a few combinations of Laurel Dawn originals with gorgeous anthropologie kantha chairs! Anthro is typically pretty pricey, but these chairs are on SALE for a limited time-- they're 30% off and you get free shipping if you spend $100--- so the chairs are $138.60! I think that's pretty darn good.  

I love the Flowers for Hannah original with the Overdyed Terai Chair, Turquoise $138.60 I love that the blue of the kantha chair is pulled out in small touches in the painting. As you can see-- this mix of pattern is not for the weary... you've got to love boldness and color (and ya'll KNOW I do!)

This combinations speaks to me... big time. So much so that I'd love to go out and buy a set of those chairs to sit in my dining nook! Goodness.... furniture is such a ridiculous weakness of mine. Anyway, I love the mix of the gold metallic and spots of deep plum and pale purple in the Flowers for Katie original... Am I crazy or is this combination just crazy good?!? The Overdyed Terai Chair in purple is a really great look- I love the touches of periwinkle in the seat of the chair.

Now, the chair above would certainly work beautifully with the maroon & mint flowers original- but I really love the Overdyed Terai Chair in Orange with this piece! I love the soft pumpkin orange used in the seat of the chair as well as the touches of deep maroon in the ikat pattern. 

Here is a gorgeous vintage kantha quilt via Etsy. I LOVE how different each side of this piece is... the contrast is just so darn pretty and completely unexpected.

Here's a pretty kantha pillow and little  baby blanket that I would totally use as a throw in my living room.... 

If you are all of the sudden diggin kantha as much as I am, search Ebay and Etsy for KANTHA and you will get eye candy out the whazoo at GREAT prices.... you will die. So- is anyone else loving all of this bright and bold pattern as much as me??? What are your thoughts on this Indian textile? Have a GREAT weekend abode lovers!