Foreign Accents International Furniture and Imported Oriental Rugs

Paul Cathers travels the globe, from Europe to Asia, with the sole purpose of bringing back souvenirs. As owner of Basalt’s Foreign Accents- a store brimming with the multicultural furniture, accessories, and rugs- Cathers combs some of the more obscure corners of the world for his wares. I go to developed and undeveloped areas firsthand to find original pieces that aren’t flooding the market,” he says. “By making the trip myself, I can cut out the middle man, directly import the goods, and maintain a lower price point for my customer.”

While exploring the more remote regions of Asia, including Pakistan Cathers faces language, technology, and access barriers, and although the logistics are challenging, the off the beaten path treks have yielded some of his most rewarding finds, Traveling in Nepal, Cathers developed his new line of “Habitat” rugs, which are made in Nepal by Tibetan weavers and appear in his 12,000 sq foot showroom alongside other rugs in warm, richly inviting colors. His wool Pakistani Chobi rugs are handspun and colored with vegetable dye. “I select what I’d like in my own home-people are essentially buying a piece of me,” says Cathers. “Here in the mountains, we like to put up our feet and relax, and my rugs complement the mountain atmosphere. They’re comfortable and timeless, and if they feel great today and they’ll feel great in 20 years.”