Join our armchair safari. It’s your chance to win a Butterfly chair.

Do you dream of traveling to Africa?  Want the well-traveled look in your home?  You don’t have to wait for that once-in-a lifetime adventure to surround yourself with the beauty of African style. Safavieh’s African-themed designs celebrate the Dark Continent’s flora and fauna, luxury safari camps and the hand-crafted textiles and work of African artisans.

The first in a series of blogs on the global influences on rug design today (as well as rug weaving cultures and traditions from around the world) Safavieh will be sharing inspirations for our rug collections on Facebook and safavieh.com.

Think of it as an armchair vacation, as we fly you off on our magic carpets to the most beautiful destinations on earth.  AND—TO GET YOU COMFORTABLE—WE’LL AWARD THE BEST COMMENT ON OUR AFRICA POSTS WITH ONE OF OUR LEATHER BUTTERFLY CHAIRS.

Today, we celebrate the majestic and truly adorable giraffe in its natural habitat. Our love for the species began with a story on Giraffe Manor in The Hotel Book by Taschen, a publisher of art and architecture books. Imagine an intimate Scottish style hunting lodge with its own resident herd of rare Rothschild Giraffe.

Giraffe Manor is set in 12 acres of private land within 140 acres of indigenous forest just 20 kilometers from Nairobi. Built in the 1930s, this luxury boutique hotel has maintained all the charm of the era , but truly famous for its “giraffe experience” with the animals literally poking through the windows of guest rooms, peeping through doors at breakfast—the best-ever fun for kids of all ages.

Here is an interpretation of giraffe hide that harms no animals:  a beautiful hand-tufted wool rug from Safavieh’s Soho Collection:

And from our licensing partner Martha Stewart Rugs, Arusha, a design evocative of the grassy plains of its namesake national park in Tanzania. Arusha is a highly stylized abstraction of giraffe hide, artfully hand-tufted of 100-percent premium wool with a contemporary palette.

Let us know what you think of these rugs in your Facebook comments.

Next stop: South Africa

And enjoy these beautiful safari photos of giraffes