High Point Furniture Market, High Point, NC: Day 1

Greetings from North Carolina, the “Furniture Capital of the World”!

I know, I know, I posted on the New York show yesterday, and today I’m writing from the High Point Furniture Market in High Point, NC. So, now that you know where I am, here we go!  

 

 

 

I’m going to start with the end of the day where we were introduced to the hottest design duo in the marketplace, Mr. & Mrs. Howard. This couple, really married to one another, is an interesting design team: She’s an interior designer, and he’s an architect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Their upholstered seating was “pitch perfect”! Not in the sound way, but in the way it felt, sat, or to use industry lingo “it had a great ride”.

Likewise the casegoods were beautifully proportioned and finished. The upholstery was shown in a soft color palette for their debut in the “Furniture Capital of the World”, which was indicative of the emerging color trend at this show: Fabrics in soft blush pinks, and grayed lilacs, soft grey, ivory lacquered casegoods with “dirty” silver-leaf details, parchment (leather) covered tables and cabinets, and gesso finishes, all in-line with trends here.

 

 

 

 

 

One of the most interesting things was the walls in the main salon. What looked like beautiful Gracie wall covering, turned out to be hand painted walls in the Gracie style. I talked to Phoebe Howard and she said she had her painter come up from Atlanta to do the wall painting. In another room he created the look of aged wood paneling, in paint! The work was fabulous!

 

 

 

 

 

The Howard's have offices in Atlanta, GA, Jacksonville, FL, and Charlotte, NC. but you can buy it as both Cabana Home stores beginning mid-December!

 

Okay, so now we will go back to the start of the day and our first appointment: Bennett Galleries. Rick Bennett is an art dealer and owner of a furniture store in Nashville, TN. He also designs and imports handmade furniture from Italy.

His furniture is truly some of the most wonderfully designed and made furniture that we sell. The waxed finishes include simple to complex wood inlays, ebony and blonde wood stains, and simple lines.

We talked about just how incredibly accurate the finishes were on the pieces that replicate antiques, and he said that some antique dealers by these pieces and resell them as antiques. That's how good they are.
Expensive?  You bet! Worth it? Absolutely!
See these newest acquisitions at Cabana Home Santa Barbara in mid- November.
 

Next was a mad dash in the Antique & Design Center. Here we bought a vintage wood surveyors stand made into a floor lamp; a large vintage wood gear wheel, which I will make into a cocktail table; huge rusted vintage chains made into a table lamp, and a pair vintage lamps made from dies, one etched with an Indian head and the other etched with an eagle.  we also fond a great pillow lady, who specializes in vintage Fortuny pillows. we bought several pairs of them and you can see them in about ten days at Cabana Home- Santa Barbara.

 

There were a few things that we found and liked, but passed on (you can’t have it all!). We didn’t buy a wonderful Cheese making table with the most beautiful burled wood top which had developed a wonderful old patina; and a glow blower who also makes lamps from old gears and then mouth blows the glass shades, he also builds tables from reclaimed steel factory equipment in combination with reclaimed wood.

On the way out of the building we stopped and bought a few mirrors from Carvers Guild. We met the owner/artist, who actually hand carves the original herself. See the mirrors picture below, and the detail picture. Beautiful work and we are excited to have found these mirrors and look forward to receiving them at Cabana Home Santa Barbara.
 

Also in the mirror showroom which was kind of random, was designer Sarah Canner who was showing her line of “day into evening” girly biking clothes, Vespertine. Her shtick is that her clothing offers reflective detailing, and was great looking. This is not biking clothing that you change into, this is clothing that goes from bike to the office. She may be doing for bikewear what lululemon did for work out clothes.

Picture above, one of the jackets in the line without any bright light on it.
Picture below, the same jacket with a flashlight shining on it.

We did a cursory walk through of another upholstery manufacturer who was showing some wonderful Moroccan textiles on ottomans, and Dining chairs. Really fabulous, not too organic, and great colors. They also showed a slip covered dining chair that had an exposed zipper in a high contrast color on the back of the chair; very electric and fun.   

 

        

Next stop was the hip Dwell Studio line, which showed some mid-century inspired leather furniture:

A leather clad cocktail table printed in a shagreen pattern, above; A chaise lounge with a channeled leather seat, and a great looking Chair and ottoman in channelled Grey leather.

 

Our last appointment was with a vendor who manufacturers a large line of casegoods. We’ve been feeling like we wanted to add more selections in a mid-priced line of furniture, without sacrificing either the styling or the quality (shown below). I think we found it, and you will love the pricing, and especially the styling. We found well priced and unique Dining chairs and tables, occasional tables, mirrors and even some great pieces for the bedroom. More on this later!

 

From The Old Wood Company (shown below), a great looking line of tables made from reclaimed and naturally fallen trees. The table, show here, had a “live edge”, and sits atop a tree truck base with exposed roots of cast metal.

 

WORST IN SHOW:

Okay, today was all in all a day in good taste! However, there is always at least one thing or person that makes this category and today we have one of each!

A very “done up” woman with jacked-up hair, severe eyebrows, and a sequined top that looked like it tangled with a weed eater, was in a showroom as a designer, assisting her customer with some selections. This woman had on Chanel everything (glasses, hand bag, brief case…), CFP (her heels), a black stud encrusted wide belt (aka an Elvis Belt), and about 50 bracelets on each arm… need I say more!

And then…. and then, as if it’s not enough that we have Restoration this, and Pottery that, chock full of reclaimed junk made into other things, this thing takes the cake: An army gas can made into a lamp! Neat. Really?

Obviously by the above entry, this has been a very long day. So much so that when we finished the last room in the last showroom that we worked, the sign read: “This is the end”, and I agree.

 

 

Good night moon.