Michael Bargo’s Beni Rugs Collection Brings Laid-Back Coastal Style to Your Home

Interior designer and antiques dealer Michael Bargo has turned his personal summer ritual into a new design collaboration with rug brand Beni. Known for decorating stylish New York homes, Bargo spends every summer at the same cottage in Amagansett, New York, where he transforms a simple, plain interior with what he calls his “beach kit”: three large Rubbermaid containers filled with textiles. He drapes them over furniture, lampshades, and artwork to make the space feel more personal and relaxed, allowing him to step into a carefree, bohemian alter ego.

That beach-side approach inspired Oak Lane, Bargo’s first collection with Beni, a Morocco-based made-to-order rug company founded by Robert Wright and Tiberio Lobo-Navia. The collection, which launches June 11, includes six rugs and Beni’s first woven floor pillow. It is designed to capture a sense of summer brightness, ease, and playfulness.

Bargo’s kit is built from years of collecting vintage beach towels, table linens, woven tapestries, and Japanese textiles. Those layered materials shaped the mood of the collaboration, which aims to feel lived-in rather than overly polished. Wright and Lobo-Navia said they wanted the rugs to echo vintage pieces worn down over time in markets and homes. To achieve that look, Beni developed two new weaving constructions for the collection: Safaa, a looser take on the brand’s flatwoven Zahara weave that reveals colors usually hidden in the warp, and Rif, a thinner weave inspired by old knotted rugs. Both are meant to be versatile enough to drape over furniture, reflecting Bargo’s textile-heavy decorating style.

The partnership also reflects Beni’s broader design philosophy. Wright said Bargo’s work captures a slightly unrefined, individual approach that fits the brand’s interest in creative expression and uniqueness. In an era dominated by mass production, Beni wants each rug to feel distinct, with small differences from one piece to the next.

Color selection for the collection was guided by one simple idea: joy. Bargo said he did not want the pieces to feel serious or formal. Instead, he drew inspiration from the bright colors and graphic energy of vintage beach towels, including 1970s and 1980s designs by Pierre Cardin and Yves Saint Laurent, as well as 1990s surf towels with bold stripes. One standout piece, the “Donny” rug, combines contrasting bright colors with a lightning bolt motif. Bargo said he imagined it as something a teenage boy might want in a bedroom, though he was surprised by how strongly designers and editors responded to it.

The collection also marks a shift for Beni, whose customers have often favored neutral, calming tones such as “Oat” and “Natural Wool.” But the Oak Lane line brings more color and energy, offering what the brand sees as a needed dose of fun. Bargo and Beni are already discussing a future collection for city apartments, extending the collaboration beyond beach house style.