High Point Market - Day 2

High Point Market - Day 2

Okay, I know, it's actually day four, and I'm two day behind. Read on and see why!

First stop Currey & Company, maker of interior table lamps, chandeliers, and sconce lighting, which is available at both the Santa Barbara and Mill Valley Cabana Home Stores.

Most interesting find: An elaborate shell encrusted Console Table, with a similarly fantastic Mirror with flanking Shell Sconces, all finished in flat black paint. I must say this was one of the most interesting interpretations of shell encrusted furniture I’ve ever seen.

Was it good? Yes, it was good!

Next, a chandelier made of Sea Urchin Shells that had been strung to create the shaped into a multi-tiered chandelier. The shells natural finish is like honed marble, with faded colors of pink, coral, crème, brown, and a touch of black. Fabulous!_______________________________________________________________

Other new introductions that were noteworthy:

The Natural Bamboo Bench with exposed natural occurring root finials, shown left; and the Glass Bubble Chandelier Series, shown right, a modern offering for the normally conservative Currey.
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We missed the debut party for Celeb Interior Designer Thom Filicia’s new line of furniture for Vanguard Furniture, and the launch of his new Book, “Thom Filicia Style”.
Filicia, an alum of the television show “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy”, and currently star of his own show on the Style Network, “Dress My Nest”. The invitation for last night’s party arrived last week at our store in Santa Barbara, with a copy of the book attached to it! What an invite!
Okay, am I a heel since I kept the book and didn’t go to the party?…But the book came unsolicited!

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Oh, did I mention that we also missed the debut party launching the twenty eight piece Candice Olson Collection, at the showroom of Revco International, a moderate priced maker of casegoods.

We reviewed the line this afternoon, and according to the California sales rep from Revo, Ms. Olson of HGTV’s popular “Design on a Dime”, was mobbed by the crowd.

In that case, can’t say that I was sorry that I missed it.
Instead, we were at the Baker Furniture party for the launch of their new collection.

Photo's:

Above: Canadian born Candice Olson.

Below:

Left: Olson's Fitzgerald Desk in Mango wood, trimmed in faceted Nambe-type metal alloy decorations.

Right: The Chantelle Nesting Tables, in Mango with beveled mirror tops.

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We finished our day with that ever so chic Baker party, arriving on the Market “Red Line Bus" (a far cry from yesterday’s chauffer driven Buick that we had hopped a ride with).

One of Baker’s star designers, Thomas Pheasant, refers to the influence on his personal design style of the late Andre Arbus.

In homage to Mr. Arbus, two rooms were staged with Arbus furniture designs which was great fun to see.

I loved a quote by Mr. Arbus that was stenciled on the wall:


To be an artist is to invent and choose…
It is through the knowledge of the past
that one gains a spirit “Avant-Garde”

My research of the French born André Arbus (b.1903-d. 1969) on the Internet revealed his sense of the aestheticism that he wanted to give each of his objects. It was purely material, yet also a spiritual search, achieved by adding charm and a humanistic touch to all of his executions. His designs, as if established by an architect, are logically equipped with bases, facades, entableture's, sculptural ornaments and painting all of which re-heighten the eloquence of his vast selection of cabinetry. So too is the design of Mr. Pheasant.

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Mr. Pheasant considers the Bracelet Cocktail Table (shown above, left) as one of the star pieces of his collection, with its unique apron, finished in gilt, is an abstract fretwork design based on a carpet by 20th century artist, Andre Arbus.

Thomas Pheasant is best known for the iconic Villa Sofa (shown above, right)

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Newel Antiques (www.newel.com), owned and operated by 3rd generation family member Lewis J. Baer, specializes in the sale of Andre Arbus furniture, including the table they currently offer at $32,500..

Photo:
French 1940s sycamore 5 legged table, with gilt rope stretcher (glass top included at no extra charge), available at Newel, New York.


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Also notable at Baker:

The incredible mix of fabric and leather and texture in this vignette. The sofa upholstered in pale grey leather on the back and sides; the top of the arm and the seat and back cushions upholstered in pale grey pure wool crepe; and throw pillows in pale grey velvet with appliquéd pale grey satin stripes.

The adjacent club chair was fully upholstered in the same pale grey leather; both the sofa and chair were detailed with bronze nailhead trim; between them stood a floor lamp covered in pale grey Shagreen (pronounced sha-grin, which is Stingray) with pale grey lacquered grey shade.

This was one of the most beautiful and subtle combinations I’ve ever seen.

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Other finds of the day:

This glazed ceramic Italian floor lamp, in high relief, which stood five feet tall; at the old guard and stalwart Chelsea House, known for their traditional styled lighting and accessories.

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Okay, time for another kind of observation here at market. As usual, it only takes a day or two to collect photo’s that qualify as "worst in show", or at the very least "most interesting of the day".

And, the first two day’s at this market have been no exception!

I overheard this lady say, in a charming Southern drawl, “That's just so beautiful I could just cry”, when discovering an seven foot tall chartreuse green upholstered headboard.

So could I.

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Pictured:

Five foot diameter ceiling medallion, from which to hang one of the even more elaborate, sparkling crystal chandelier's in the background.

So Beverly Hills, that I wanted to cry.

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This ornately carved bathtub of solid marble gives new meaning to the phrase, “getting soaked”.

The water spout is actually the carved marble Nymph at the end

of the tub, who dumps water on you from her vessel.

Sorry, towels, shown on side of tub, not included.

Also avaialbe from this vendor: A pair of ten foot tall Lion statues, available in bronze or white marble; no Photo avaialbe of these, though they were in the vendor's market booth but I couldn't get far enough back to get the photo in the frame of my camera!

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Photo's:

Left: A Hershey's Kiss wrapped in crystals.

Right: Caroline enthroned on the Flower Petal Chair.

We saw these chairs in the showroom, Asia Minor, owned by a very nice Belgian family. However, I could not figure out the relationship between the Asian name, these Las Vegas style chairs, and the Belgian owners, who were so lovely, they offered us a taste of their Belgian Dark Chocolate.

Something just doesn’t fit here.




Well once again it’s very late, and I have a huge day tomorrow. As you may have figured out by now, I’m a day behind on my market reports, but rest assured I will catch up!

Good Night Moon

High Point Furniture Market October 2009-Day One

Day One-High Point Market (NC)

Day one at the High Point (NC) Furniture Market was long and tedious, but not without its rewards. Beginning at 8:00 A.M. this morning, we walked out of our last appt at 8:00 P.M. Deciding that your now famished at that hour is not such a good idea considering that the town of High Point is a city of around 100K people, whose population swells by 85,000 visitors during market week. To say the least reservations for dinner are difficult to obtain, and the pickings are slim. We ended up at Liberty, a local Steak and Brew house at the towns biggest mall. Seems like the owner’s favor a patriotic decorating scheme, with walls covered in photos, paintings and even sculptures of Lady Liberty. I began to think that perhaps the gift from the French had ulterior motives, to sabotage the American asthetic! Here I think they may have succeeded. The food was excellent, I had a filet, and Caroline had Shrimp Grits. Both entrée’s were darn good, but maybe anything would have after today’s non-stop schedule.

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ABOVE: The beginning of the 12 million sq. feet that we will attempt to cover, starting Day One!

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­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­First exciting thing: Lee Furniture’s upholstered outdoor furniture. Look at the pictures, below, and see for yourself: White Linen Dining Chairs fully upholstered in a outdoor solution dyed acrylic fabric; A Sofa upholstered in Taupe Velvet made from outdoor solution dyed acrylic, and an upholstered Ottoman/Cocktail Table in outdoor solution dyed acrylic, trimmed in outdoor nail head trim. This was an incredible feat by Lee, a market first and one that we can’t wait to have in our stores. The outdoor furniture is now available by special order.
We also liked the High Dining Bench that was with the High Dining Table from The Old Wood Company (see below); the new Upholstered Dining Arm Chair with a floor length skirt; a pair of Swivel Chairs in a leather slip cover (yes, a leather slip cover) in a light shade of olive green Leather.

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Also at Lee we met the owner of The Old Wood Company, www.theoldworldwoodco.com, maker of a fresh line of indoor Dining and occasional tables made from reclaimed lumber, finished with non-toxic finishes. The collection is a fresh take on being green without sacrificing design or scale. The case for green product is definitely enhanced with this line.
A favorite was the Iron Scissor High Dining Table (shown with Lee High Dining Bench, above) made of American Chestnut hand Planed with Natural Steel base, the Parlor Round Occasional Table in Oak Weathered Grey, and the Woodie Dining Table in White Oak Fumed+Oil.

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Next stop was at Bennett Galleries, a Knoxville, TN based importer of reproduction Italian antique furniture made in small workshops throughout Italy. The owner is a veteran of Italian furniture importing and manufacturing, and the prices were amazingly fair considering the dollars continual slide against the Euro. We loved the wonderful inlay and waxed finishes that lend an authentic patina to this collection.

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Another exciting discovery, actually a re-discovery, was of the venerable Kindel Furniture Company, the last remaining high-end, independently owned furniture manufacturer in Michigan. Some of you may know that at one time, prior to the early 1930’s, Michigan was the furniture capital of the United States, and with production that far outweighed the production of the new furniture market start up of 1909 in High Point, NC.

We hadn’t intended on stopping at Kindel Furniture, I thought they were just another of the stodgy old guard furniture companies awaiting their eminent death. But as we passed by in our chauffeur driven Buick, complements of General Motors, I spotted a stylish Dorothy Draper style chair lacquered in Orange.
Hummmm…that’s interesting!

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We stepped into the showroom hoping to avoid attention any lurking sales persons, and were immediatley met by, well, a sales person, Marc Roberts, who could not have been more charming. Marc, formerly of the stylish home furnishings store Seaside Home (www.seasidehomelajolla.com) in La Jolla, CA. Marc, a stylish man himself, was well informed not only on the late Interior Designer Dorothy Draper, but he enthusiastically espoused the new direction of Kindel and The Dorothy Draper Collection for Kindel, a new collaboration with Carleton Varney (Ms. Drapers former understudy), the current president and owner of Dorothy Draper and Co. in New York.

Photo's: Carlton Varneys Collection of reproduction Dorothy Draper Furniture for Kindel Furniture.

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A brief history on Ms. Draper taken from the Kindel Furniture Web site:
“From the 1930’s to the 1960’s, Dorothy Draper was the most famous decorator in America. A pioneering businesswoman and expert colorist, she used her trademark cabbage-rose chintz and neo-baroque plasterwork to create innovative and dramatic interiors for apartment houses, hotels, restaurants, theaters, department stores and private homes.” “This collection is versatile in its offerings of painted and wood finishes. The articles of furniture are reproductions adaptations and inspirations from the Draper’s corporate design work at such institutions as The Greenbrier Hotel, The Mark Hopkins Hotel, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Hampshire House.”

“The world of Dorothy Draper is one that combines old-world glamour with a current lifestyle and a wink of reverence for the past.”

Photos: Dorothy Draper, and her iconic chest commissioned by the Government of Spain.

Wow! In many ways, in her work we could see her influence on our own design philosophy, and we love this collection. Some of you not as familiar with Dorothy Draper may have unwittingly seen her trademark Chest in the background of a scene from a Sex in the City episode when the show’s star, Cary Bradshaw, was in the Editors office at Vogue in NY. The black lacquered pair of signature Chests was originally designed by Ms. Draper as a commission from the government of Spain.

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Kindel is cool and getting cooler! They also represent the luxe mattresses manufacturer, HYPNOS, Ltd. (www.hypnos.ltd.uk). This line of handcrafted mattresses from the British royal mattress maker, is priced from $5,000 to $8,000, with the top of the line bed going out at $20K.
Hästens may serve the Swedish royal family, but Hypnos is the proud holder of the Royal Warrant of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Hypnos has long supplied ultra-mattresses to the British royal family.
The company claims the late Queen Elizabeth slept on the same Hypnos mattress for 67 years, and that it required only minimal re-stuffing the one time it was refurbished. Cool-i-o!

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Almost finished, but a quick cocktail party and launch of furniture Designer Jiun Ho collection at Bolier and Company (www.bolierco.com). Bolier, founded by Christian Plasman, the former President of Baker Furniture who was responsible for bringing in well known designers to create their signature namesake lines for Baker. Ho, the fast rising designer from San Francisco created a line of occasional tables. The Indoor tables were topped with lacquered red tops over wood bases trimmed in steel or with gold leafed metal. Outdoor tables were powder coated and styled to work in multiples, with stacking and connecting tables alternating “inny” and “outty” table shapes.

Photo's: Boiler and company showroom in High Point; Designer Juin Ho; and Mr. Ho's outdoor occasional tables.

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Last stop: To meet the venerable, and still living, decorator Lillian August at the Hickory White Showroom. Ms. August was a gracious party host and took time to personally show us the line, and her current and previous fabric and textile designs. We hadn’t seen this line before, and we were favorably impressed. In addition to the line for Hickory White, Lillian August designs lighting for Currey & Co., and fabrics for Robert Allen and Fabricut, all of which are carried at Cabana Home Stores.

Photo, below: Ms. Augusts Antiquaire collection for Hickory White Furniture

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All for now, I've got to get to market!

Part V of VII: My Sonoma Wine Country Tour

Part V of VII: My Sonoma Wine Country Tour, without touring one vineyard or tasting a drop of wine—what a concept!

On the way to the town of Sonoma we passed a number of "Chateau's". The main building of various winery's was most often a grand attempt to recreate the main house in a French vineyard. But in this country, the building is not a home at all, but a tasting room, shops and offices.

So much for Palais Royale!

While these buildings are imposing, some of them are good, and for some it is apparent that there was little reference to authentic, historic architectural details of a French chateau.

The Chateau at Domaine Carneros had the most authentic French architecture, while the hybrid-Chateau at Ledson Vinyards was...well...not.

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Okay now!

Here we are, finally in the town of Sonoma, and it took me four blog "posts" to get here!

Heck, we drove faster than this blogging thing could be done, and I thought the Internet was supposed to be lighting fast!

We took the main road directly into the towns square. So incredibly charming, the square was adjacent to the courthouse/town hall, a historic stone building, surrounded by leafy oak trees.

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Above: Sonoma City Hall, and the Town Plaza.

Below: The Historic Building Sebastiani Building; the Sebastiani Theatre

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Where to Shop:

Chateau Sonoma - 153 W Napa Street (http://www.chateausonoma.com/).

Located in a painted brick building with black and white striped awnings and expansive rear garden.

Artfully arranged and presented unique antiques, architectural artifacts, upholstered furniture and accessories for home and garden.

What a great lamp and shade! We had seen a similar lamp and shade in the Design Center in Laguna Beach a couple of years back, and bought it for the store. And, we haven't seen one since.

The lamps are one of a kind, and are made from antique or vintage statues, artifacts or architectural fragments.

Topped with a parchment shade, made from antique English Indentures (remember when we thought it terribly smart to hang over the fireplace an authentic English Indenture, complete with its original wax seals?)

I photographed this wonderful English club chair that was in the front window, featuring a unique upholstery detail. Below is the Chair, featuring French knots tied at the corners of the arms and the chair back.

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H Frank - 28 W Spain Street.

(not to be confused with the "K Frank" store in Santa Barbara, with the sign of the same style and similarly named store).

Find top of bed Linens, throw pillows and an upholstered headboard, featuring metallic printed coat of arms/royal imagery on Velvet.

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Harvest Home - 107 W Napa Street (North side of The Square). Manned by a knowledgeable and helpful staff, I was assisted by Lauren.

I was intrigued with these occasional tables, pictured below. Designed by the stores owner, Craig Miller, these tables feature an iron base and a stone top with hammered edge.

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Where to Eat:

girl & the fig - 110 W Spain St (South side of "The Square"). This restaurant was recommended to me by several people, and I fully intended to eat there.

So, though I haven't personally experienced it, I'm sure its damn good. Give it a try and let me know what you think of it. If its good, then I'll try it!

Sunflower Cafee (not a typo) - 421 1st St West (East side of "The Square"). This is where we had lunch, not fancy, but fast. Time was of the essence as we still needed to make Healdsburg before dark. Enjoy great lattes (they said it, not me), open for breakfast (try the chef's specialty--homemade Frittata), lunch and dinner (save room for the the bread pudding, another of the chef's specialty's). Fairly priced sandwiches, soup, salad's and even an outdoor wine bar. Art by local artists line the the walls of the cafe. The Sunflower Cafee is home to "The Singing Chef", Chef Curtis Dorsett, whom the current owners inherited when they purchased the cafe. Can't say I heard the singing chef, maybe on my next visit.

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Okay, done with Sonoma and finally off to Healdsburg!

Good Night Moon