Spineless!

Many thanks to the Happy Booker for noticing a trend in decorating that has to be stopped: white pages on bookshelves, as in books turned backwards in these Pottery Barn photos:



Even Mitchell Gold got into the act in one of their ads.

If you like the spines out design, but are unsure what books to place on those shelves, here's an answer Dummy Books.

Our faux book products have graced everything from television and movie studios to the finest homes, hotels, yachts and restaurants. ...supplied in approximately one foot sections, to any length required, the book spines are manufactured in England from resin material which is handpainted, gilded and polished to simulate in authentic detail the look of time worn handcrafted leather books.Our essence is to allow the eye to feel that it is seeing real leather bound books.

I love to see real book spines on book shelves with their differing heights and colors. Of course, I just love the smell of a new book and I'm always curious about what's under the dust jacket, always hoping there will be some great secret.

There's this wonderful book Mike and I read recently, Shadow of the Wind.

Young Daniel's father runs a used bookstore in Barcelona; his mother died when he was 4, and he misses her desperately. One afternoon in 1945 the older Sempere informs his not quite 11-year-old son that he is taking him to The Cemetery of Forgotten Books. "You mustn't tell anyone what you're about to see today." They wander through narrow winding streets, then finally stop before "a large door of carved wood, blackened by time and humidity. Before us loomed what to my eyes seemed the carcass of a palace, a place of echoes and shadows." Inside "a labyrinth of passageways and crammed bookshelves rose from base to pinnacle like a beehive woven with tunnels, steps, platforms, and bridges that presaged an immense library of seemingly impossible geometry." Daniel's father tells him that "according to tradition, the first time someone visits this place, he must choose a book, whichever he wants, and adopt it, making sure that it will never disappear, that it will always stay alive." Daniel chooses -- or perhaps is chosen by -- "The Shadow of the Wind," by Julian Carax.

Don't you just want to hug your favorite book to your chest and hope you find another as good...soon?

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Yahoo Search Marketing

Where do you put your online advertising dollars?

According to a recent comScore report focusing on Internet Yellow Pages searches, 68 million U.S. Internet users performed an Internet Yellow Page (IYP) search online in July.

This represents a 46 percent increase versus year ago. When analyzing the total share of IYP searches, which by their nature have local intent, comScore's data reveals that Yahoo! Sites and Verizon SuperPages garnered the largest share, with 23.9 percent and 20.1 percent, respectively. Google Sites ranked third in IYP searches, capturing 12.5 percent, followed by Yellowpages.com with 12.0 percent.

Landfair Furniture advertises on Google and Verizon's Superpages. When I saw that Yahoo has a 23.9% share and I don't advertise there, I immediately "Yahoo"ed Furniture Portland Oregon. I had to search many pages to find us. We now have a Yahoo account for a reasonable amount of money per month and I can find Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery.

After I signed up, Yahoo designed my ad based on our web site and then Tara Ramachandran, Inside Sales Representative for Yahoo called me and walked me through all the reports. They are there 24/7 to help me make Yahoo work for us.

Why not give Tara a call at (503)615-3784 for Yahoo Search Marketing?

Bev and Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

The Next Hot Thing In Furniture

INFURNITURE has an article about "the newest furniture and hottest style directions taking shape at the fall High Point Market Show. Landfair Furniture is proud to carry some of the furniture and accessory lines singled out.

Resort Redefined:



PALECEK has one foot in the office and the other in the sand with the Metro swivel chair in woven abaca with chrome legs.

Real Mods Have Curves:



CALLIGARIS offers the Jam dining chair that pairs a chrome base with a seat available in 18 colors.

Understated Explorer:

SHERRILL offers a tall 8 drawer chest in a variety of rich wood finishes and golden metallic detail (see the catalog in our showroom).

The Emperor's New Ohs

In this category JD CHAMBERLAIN was featured offering a tailored, but exotic new sideboard (in the style of this rattan server cabinet:

Savoir Faire Never Sleeps:

HAMMARY goes back to the scroll in a striking bed with rubbed through black finish.

Downtown Truly Brown:

BERMANFALK launches the Parisian Sleeping and Living collection by Joel Dessaule that includes this six-drawer dresser.
(hit the "zoom" link to see a larger picture)

Gotta Getaway:

LEGACY LEATHER in a new move debuts the Tack Room collection that includes a hearty credenza with leather fronts on the doors.

Stop in to Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery to see other new styles for fall, all of course Chosen by Beverly.

Bev & Mike

PALECEK CALLIGARIS SHERRILL JD CHAMBERLAIN HAMMARY BERMANFALK LEGACY LEATHER
Bev & Mike

The Pinnacle Design Achievement Awards.

Congratulations!

Stone Sculptures by Yuri Zatarain for The Phillips Collection took top honors including Capital Balcony by Jodell Clark for Global Views
in the The Pinnacle Design Achievement awards.

The Pinnacle Design Achievement awards were created in April 1995 by the Board of Directors of the American Society of Furniture Designers (ASFD) to promote better design quality and encourage the recognition of furniture designers within the retail home furnishings industry. As such the awards are intended to celebrate designs that are produced in large numbers for sale to customers through retail stores.

About the Stone Sculptures, the judges praised Zatarain for the his novel use of ceramics; artistic interpretation of human form; saying it was interesting, and a delightful conversation piece.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is delighted to offer accessories from these two vendors.

Bev & Mike

Accent Chairs

From FURNITURE Today,

For consumers looking to dress up a room, accent chairs remain a viable and often affordable alternative. The style mix continues to expand as well, giving them plenty of options to choose from when selecting a piece.

Sam Moore's Grasshopper club chair is a modern-style chair, here in a raven finish. It features exposed wood arms and legs shaped like a grasshopper. The fabric shown here is a faux animal skin in a blend of polyester and acrylic fibers. It retails for $799.

Sam Moore Furniture is doing well with traditional-style leather club chairs. But it, too, is seeing the market shift more toward transitional and contemporary-style frames.

"That's a big category for us," said President Mike Moldenhauer, noting that wing chairs only represent 7% of sales, down from 19% a decade ago. "It seems like when we introduce a new style, it does well for us."

Its line of 300 chairs is mostly sold as proprietary products for various retailers, at retail price points ranging from $399 to $999 per chair.

Sam Moore still produces 80% of its line in a 400,000-square-foot factory in Bedford, Va. That domestic operation allows it to customize orders, with 500 fabrics and 100 leathers. It also has 30 custom finishes, all of which also are offered by suppliers in China and the Philippines for the remaining 20% of its line that's imported.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is pleased to carry Sam Moore.

Bev & Mike

What Not To Serve At A Dinner Party

Back in June we quoted from an article in House Beautiful by the Barefoot Contessa about Tips for Entertaining at Home. A recent issue has an article entitled What Not to Serve at a dinner party. The Contessa has read my mind.

1. Appetizers that require two hands! You know the party. You take a napkin or a little plate and help yourself to crudites with ranch dressing, some meat balls, maybe those little cocktail wienies and a fork. There you are with a drink in one hand and your napkin and the plate in the other. In order to eat or shake hands you must put your drink down.

2. Beets or red wine! We never serve red wine in our showroom. However, we do have several overturned wine glasses with acrylic red wine that makes a frightening gift for use on a light sofa or light carpet.

3. Three rich courses!

If you're serving a rich main course, start with a salad and end with some fruit and a delicious cookie. Your friends will thank you.

4. Garlic and raw onions! Mike and I always ask, Are you eating onions?

5. Spinach! No one wants to ask if they have spinach between their teeth.

6. Corn on the cob! (See Spinach.)

7. Two fish courses!

8. Offal! They always looks so good, those bacon wrapped somethings. I take a big bite and it's liver! Gag me. Contessa says same goes for "tongue, tripe and sweetbreads."

9. Nuts! Skip dishes made with nuts as ingredients. People may be allergic.

10. Blowfish!

Here are a few of our own:

1. Skip the dip that consists of a brick of cream cheese and some green or red sause poured on top.
2. Skip serving grapes with seeds or cherries.
3. Make sure any meat you serve has no gristle.
4. Avoid low quality non-alcoholic beers.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Elegance in Furniture Design

From Home Accents Today an article on Accent Furniture - The Chic Corner by Tracy Bulla

Elegance reigns with tailored, sophisticated styles that draw on both European and Asian influences. Graceful curves and flowing lines add to the impression of welcoming hospitality.

An example of graceful curves is this piece from J.D. Chamberlain with a slight scalloping that lends a sophisticated edge:


Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to carry the furniture of John and Dori McKearn founders of J.D. Chamberlain.
Read "Sharing a company and a life together" on their website and experience their call to distinction and quality.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Tracy Bulla Accent Furniture J.D. Chamberlain Bev & Mike

Top Designers of 2005: Interview with Donya Wiland

Resuming our interviews of Top Designers for 2005, we are pleased to speak with Donya Wiland / Twilight Design. You know it is going to be an interesting interview when your subject arrives in a white 52 MG TD. Donya’s hair is in a kerchief like you would see on one of those bikers we saw traveling through Yellowstone in August. She’s the type of woman who could wield a wrench one day and belly dance, her hobby, the next day after a manicure.

LF+DG: Donya, thank you so much for making time to answer some questions about your design practice. Tell us something about your background and what are your credentials?
Wiland: You know, I just felt that I had a knack for interior design, but I needed training, so over six years ago I went to the Heritage School of Interior Design and graduated with an ICD.

LF+DG: You are one of the savviest marketers of your services? Tell us about how you get clients.
Wiland: The best sources of new clients are referrals. I also teach seminars at the Home & Garden Show twice a year. Topics include:
# Seven steps to interior design. Before you start spending money and the science behind it.
# Quality vs Price
# Proportion and Scale
# How designers work
# Where do you start, how to implement a design and how to finish.

I believe every one can use a designer to save time and money. My motto is: “Maximize the outcome, minimize the investment.”

LF+DG: Who or what has been an influence in your design?
Wiland: Communication is important with clients, especially when a couple have different views. I use the same communication style as Michael Payne the host of Designing for the Sexes. We share the same skills. He’s a nice guy.

LF+DG: How do you define good design?
Wiland: It’s not what you spend. It’s how you spend it

LF+DG: If I were to hire you to decorate my home, would people who visit say, "Ah, this is a Donya Wiland home?"
Wiland: No, it’s my job to pull together the look the client wants.

LF+DG: Do you come up with a presentation board?
Wiland: After the free consultation, I do a complete design book, which includes the client concept, design suggestions, color palette, color shopping card, floor plan with measurements, paint map and helpful hints.

LF+DG: How do you charge for your services?
Wiland: After the free consultation, my fee is $95 per hour. I pass on any designer discounts to my clients and will go shopping with them. Shopping is a sport for me. I love to win for my client. I believe one should never pay retail!

LF+DG: What other creative things do you do?
Wiland: I am involved in Yoga for fitness and I meet in a Mid-Eastern restaurant to belly dance with a dance troupe. I love to travel and I love cars. I am currently helping my husband Craig restore a 1957 Chevrolet Nomad. And, and, I watch Storm Large compete in Rock Star: Supernova.

LF+DG: Were you disappointed that she lost and Lukas won?
Wiland: No, I rooted for Storm, but Lukas will fit right in with Supernova. Remember, Craig and I and you and Mike have a date to see Storm perform next time she's in Portland!

LF+DG: Donya, where can people reach you?
Wiland: Bev, they can reach me at

Donya Wiland / Twilight Design
Visit my web site: www.donyatwdesign.com
or
Email me at: msmgdiva@yahoo.com
or
Call me at 480-247-2513

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Donya Wiland Twilight Design Top Designers for 2005
52 MG TD 1957 Chevrolet Nomad
Storm Large
Bev & Mike

Palicek Featured in HAT

From Home Accents Today Mirrors - Natural Instincts by Tracy Bulla

Shells, bark and bamboo update mirrors with a little sass and sophistication. The more decorative the treatment, the greater the visual pop.

Tiny iridescent squares of capiz form a chic mosaic tile accompaniment to Palecek's rectangular mirror.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to offer the full line of Palicek, distinctive furniture, lighting, and accessories.

Part of Palicek's distinction for years has been their ability to mix and weave natural fibers into unique statement pieces out of materials such as wicker, rattan, abaca, seagrass, leather, wood, and bamboo.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Mirrors Palicek furniture, lighting, and accessories
Bev & Mike

Kokanee Café in Camp Sherman

Saturday night we had dinner reservations for six at Kokanee Café in Camp Sherman. Kokanee Café is a fine gourmet restaurant since 1992, and Paul and Denise Mercer have managed this rare find for the last five years. My husband told me when we were done that the food at Kokanee Café was some of the finest he has ever eaten.



Here's a map to the restaurant and be sure to take your time getting there. The speed has just recently been posted at 35 MPH and go 47 MPH and a mustachioed sheriff will ask you your opinion of the speed limit and tell you that the restaurant will wait.



What's so special about the food?
We started with a house salad - crisp romaine, mixed field greens, dried cranberries, roasted hazelnuts with bleu cheese vinaigrette or marionberry vinaigrette. We had the bleu cheese vinaigrette. The salad was not too dry or too wet and chilled. The flavors were divine.

Connie had crab cakes and said they were delicious. The chef uses fin fish, fresh ginger lemon grass and fried lotus root. The presentation was excellent.

Bev had Idaho Rainbow Trout grilled in a pouch over an open flame combined with lemon verbina, basil and citrus curry butter, candied peppers and arugula salad.

Bill, Nancy Lou and Mike had a 8 0z. beef filet laid on a hill of mashed potatoes. The beef was smoked in a bleu black truffle butter combined with a fig demi-glaze and topped with a cherry compote. All dinners had a serving of brocholini which the men promptly gave to their wives. Mike ordered his steak medium rare or slightly pink. The steak was pink to just slightly red one one side however it was so tender and flavorful that the slight red didn't detract. Mike said he could almost cut it with a fork and the cherry and the mashed potatoes set it off beautifully. City Grill's New York steak in Portland is comparable in quality and price.

The menu has changed since the web site went up and Denise said it will change for fall this Friday. I asked what one menu item can't be missed and she volunteered, The Wild Escolar, a white pacific fish. It is prociutto wrapped and pan roasted served on a bed of squash risotto and piquillo peppers.

Did I mention the salt encrusted bread served with a pepper butter? Desert was heaven: Peach and Marionberry Cobbler with a dash of whipped cream and a scoop of Bill's ice cream.

Don't expect to just walk in at 5:30 and expect to be served. One party was told it would be a four hour wait. Be smart and call ahead.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Kokanee Café Camp Sherman Oregon Paul and Denise Mercer Fine Dining Bev & Mike

Clear Lake 0131

Clear Lake 0131
Originally uploaded by gily122000.

Mike at Mover Mike has posted comments about the Clear Lake trail loop we hiked with friends on Sunday.

For other photos of Clear Lake visit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11145551@N00/tags/clearlake/

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Wall Design Diva, Suzanne Gallagher, Seminar and Book Signing

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a treat for you.

Prior to her appearance on AM Northwest KATU Channel 2 on October 2nd at 9:00AM, Suzanne Gallagher, author of The Fine Art of Wall Design will be appearing at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery for her Start With Art seminar (Featuring ROMA Framed Art!) and Book Signing on Thursday, September 28th, from 5:00PM - 7:00PM. Refreshments will be served, but seating is limited.

In the words of Suzanne Gallagher:

Do you know where to start when tackling an interior decorating project? It can be a challenge. Don't design your room around the sofa... Start with Art! Art is the perfect inspiration for your décor. It reflects your personality, your style. You can determine the colors and style for your interior space from a piece of art that you love. Art is the glue that ties all of the elements in the interior space together. When the art image and color, framing design, and placement in your spaces work together, something terrific happens! It is called The Fine Art of Wall Design.

You Will Discover from the seminar and The Fine Art of Wall Design:

# How to select art images that work.
# Confidence in knowing where to find art.
# Basic understanding of art and value.
# The secrets to good classic art framing design.
# Simple design principles of placement.
# How to create PIZZAZ and "Ooh la la" in your interior spaces!

Where:
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery,
6140 A SW Macadam Avenue, Portland, OR 97201
When: Thursday, September 28th, 5:00PM - 7:00PM
Registration Fee: Free

Call 503-245-4222 or email Bev for reservations

Bev@landfairfurniture.com

Daniel Masters Of Hekman On Quality Woodwork

We see a lot of interest in Hekman Furniture via Google web searches at Landfair Furniture (Blog) and our other sites. I want to share some consumer information that will help you navigate our furniture store and others stores you may contact when you begin to shop for furniture for various rooms in your home.

Daniel Masters is the president and owner of Hekman furniture. He is a 29-year veteran of the furniture industry. As an expert, he has written many articles that will help you in your shopping. Here he is on the topic of: How can you tell quality woodwork?

I think it is really important for a consumer to stand back and look at what you are going to buy. Back up in front of the piece of furniture and touch it in the following ways. Run your hands across the top, underneath the edges, and underneath the bottom. What do you feel? The top should be smooth to the touch. When you run your hands around the edges or the sides, there shouldn't be a rough feeling. Sometimes, you feel scratchiness, almost like stubble of a beard. Those are indications that the furniture was not sanded. Now after you have looked at that and gotten a feel for it, you want to stand up to the top, come up and look at the top and inspect the top of the furniture. How or what does the top of the furniture look like? When you walk up to a piece of furniture, you look down at the top and what do you see? Well, here are some things that you should see. Is the wood on the top of the furniture? Can you see small little pieces of wood formed together with little finger joints? That's called finger joint construction and generally speaking, it allows you to use more small wood parts that make it more affordable. When you finish that wood whether it is a light finish or a dark finish, you should be able to see those little joints.

Does the top run very uniformly? Do the edges appear to run at different grain directions? In other words, are they running across and all of a sudden you look at the edge and it is running up and down. That would indicate that this has been neared top. At that particular point you could have two different constructions on the edge. It could be a wood construction that's well done. Or it could be what they call a filled edge, and that is just basically where somebody literally painted on a veneered look, almost sort of like a plastic type of feel to that look. All of those things are determining what the sale price is because there is cost in doing more work to create a piece of furniture. So when you look at that veneer top or wood top, how does it appear to you in looking down at it? Can you sort of pick the edges off? Feel the flip edges of veneers and that type of thing. So at that particular point you should have an idea of what the construction of the material is, or the tops of the furniture you are looking at which is the most important thing.

Right now each of those various constructions are fine. They are all stable. What really happens now is that as your furniture ages, it starts deteriorating. This is a real thing. A piece of wood is cut out of a tree and the tree continues to live in some vague shape or form in your home. It absorbs moisture. When your house is humid, when your house is dry, it dries. It expands and contracts even though it is not a living thing. Over time and usage, the things that are better-built are going to last longer. And so are you buying heirlooms or you are buying things that you want to just give to your kids when they move out on you?

Now, let's move on. When you see the color, does the color look uniform across the top? When you walk around the table, looking down again at the color, can you see shifting light? This would indicate flip in the veneers which is something that the salesperson should be explaining to you. Light will hit the top of the veneered table and give you a different color from different angles. But the most important thing is that when you are looking at this color on the retail floor, is the color uniform from piece to piece? In other words, do you have dark spots and light spots?

As a consumer, when you get that in your home, it is going to age differently. Over time in a home, light will come in and out and the furniture will get either richer or warmer or start to get bleached out. If you are going to start with somebody delivering furniture to your house that is not uniform in color and appearance, it is going to age just like different people age.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery always has a number of Hekman pieces on our floor and we invite you to compare the quality and the price. Do the "hands on" tests that Masters suggests. Did we mention the furniture is beautiful, to boot?

Bev & Mike

Hekman Furniture Daniel Masters Interior Designe Bev & Mike

Rowe Companies files for Chapter 11

There's good news and bad news today from Rowe Companies. In a press release Rowe said they are filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Upholstery manufacturer and retailer The Rowe Companies, reeling from declining sales, import competition and lingering problems from a faulty enterprise resource planning system, said today it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and that it plans to sell its Storehouse retail division.

We expect no disruptions in service from Rowe at Landfair Furniture and there should be no effect on special orders.

Now for the good news. I looked at the Rowe site and discovered they are running a contest for a new sofa.

So, tell us a little about yourself and we'll put your name in the hat for a drawing to win a free sofa! The drawing will be held on September 29, 2006. No salesman will call and we will not share your personal information with anyone.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to carry Rowe Furniture as part of our commitment to provide a range of price points for designers, their clients and the retail public. While LF + DG specializes in working with the interior designer, we are open to the public and can provide as much design help as you may require. For those special projects ask about "referral to a designer" program.

Bev & Mike

Rowe Companies Rowe Furniture Upholstery Win a free sofa
Bev & Mike

Furnishings For Your Garage

A few years ago, Mike and I converted the detached car port into a garage that matched the style of the house. Since it was a one car garage, we wanted the space to be more than a place to park the car. We wanted a place to store used paint, gardening tools and fertilizer, the lawn mower and bikes. Like many people, we bought some of those shelving systems you can get at Costco and one of those metal tool benches. The tool bench has heavy particle board for the top and has since bowed from the moisture. The floor is the typical cement that gathers stains over time.

Designer Donya Wiland and her husband Craig have a two car garage and have three cars in it. An original Morris, a 1957 Chevy Nomad, which Craig is restoring and a red convertible Corvair. There is barely enough room to walk around the cars and Craig would love to have room for a shop.

At the dog park Helen and Joe are selling their home by Grant Park and moving to the South East part of Portland. Joe has a strong desire to have a multiple car garage with a shop. He figures if he doesn't restore the panel truck he owns, he never will.

Where am I going with this talk about the garage?

Well, there is a new company in town, Vault, led by Chad Haas that offers "An Ultra-Premium Line of Furnishings For the Dream Garage."



And you should see the color palette. In addition Vault offers flooring. To quote their web site

Every element of your home is a reflection of your lifestyle, including your garage floor. So, if you dislike coming home to an unattractive and dirty garage floor, we have the perfect solution. Our Garazzo™ flooring system will transform an ordinary concrete garage floor into a decorative statement that is difficult to stain and easy to clean.

Take comfort in coming home to the cleanest and nicest garage on the block.

Vault has broadened its product offerings to include carriage-style doors, flooring products, wall treatments and period furnishings – to put it more succinctly, everything needed to outfit the dream garage.

Now all the men I know will soon be saying, I want a bigger garage. I want a Vault garage!

Chad Haas is in Beaverton, OR and can be reached Toll Free at (866) 828-5810.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

"It isn't easy being green."

Kermit the Frog, in his latest commercial says, "It isn't easy being green." Bridget A. Otto in the Thursday Homes & Gardens section of The Oregonian sympathizes:

Consumers like the idea that bamboo grows so quickly, thus being sustainable. But, ...some companies in China are pushing the bamboo bandwagon off a cliff by selling products made from plants harvested at three or four years. If left to grow 10 years, bamboo's density improves, giving it the characteristics that make it as durable as hardwoods for flooring....

So, if you have to replace that dented and scratched bamboo floor sooner, is your use of a sustainable product for naught?

If you buy furniture made from reclaimed wood, is it still green if it's been trucked here from North Carolina?

It's about balance, says Alisa Kane with Portland's Office of Sustainable Development.

"For me, it's making sure that what I was purchasing was durable, and the resources were respected and the people involved were respected," she says. "Ask the question: Where did it come from; why do I need it; will it last?

We know at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery that being green is more than a color. One of our many encounters with "green" came in an interview with interior designer Marcie Harris in which she said:

My interpretation of Green Design is that designers and architects need to be educated about the 'lifecycle" of the products they specify. This is not only the recycling capability of products, but thinking about what it took to make the product in the first place. Obviously we can't evaluate everything - but if more pressure were put on manufacturers from designers and architects regarding "green design", I believe the industry would react accordingly. I have a client with a child that came down with environmental sickness after they moved into their new home. The off-gassing of VOC's from the various products (osb board, carpet glue etc.) was enough to keep her out of one whole year of high school. This was 8 years ago and things are improving - but it is still a huge concern.

Bev & Mike

Green Bridget A. Otto Interior Decorating Design Bev & Mike

New Home Decor Blogs

Every week it seems that new blogs are springing up dedicated to interior design, furniture and accessories. Here are a few of our latest finds:

MoCo Loco - Modern contemporary Design.
Take a look at this hand truck/chair:

Is this for the co-worker not pulling his/her weight?

Funfurde - Funky. Furniture. And. Design.

Design*Sponge - Design*Sponge features store and product reviews, sale and contest announcements, new designer profiles, trend forecasting and store/studio tours. In addition, Design*Sponge features a unique section dedicated to covering student design, national and international design shows.

Trendir - Trendir is an online magazine about the latest Home Decor Products and Trends. We cover High-End Luxury products. Think of us as having both style sense and the ability to identify new and cool things. Just take a look at this most unusual kitchen sink:



Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Furniture Home Decor Interior Design Bev & Mike

New Textiles From Phillips!

From Phillips Lumalive a new fabric for clothing and furniture.

Lumalive textiles make it possible to create fabrics that carry dynamic advertisements, graphics and constantly changing color surfaces.

[...]

Lumalive fabrics feature flexible arrays of colored light-emitting diodes (LEDs) fully integrated into the fabric - without compromising the softness or flexibility of the cloth. These light emitting textiles make it possible to create materials that can carry dynamic messages, graphics or multicolored surfaces. Fabrics like drapes, cushions or sofa coverings become active when they illuminate in order to enhance the observer’s mood and positively influence his/her behavior.

It's not in the showroom yet, but count on it coming in the near future. You just need to be creative in how you use it.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Phillips Lumalive Light Emitting Fabrics Textiles Home Decor
Bev & Mike

Jimmy Choo

So what do the stars wear when they walk on the red carpet?
If you said Jimmy Choo you are correct. Many, like Charlize Theron who wears ‘Paris’ a satin sandal with ornate jewel detail set in antique gold, choose Jimmy Choo for the walk.

The mere mentioning of the name Jimmy Choo has women worldwide drooling. The Chinese born, London based shoe designer is at the very top of brilliant shoe fashion.

Now you can browse his collection and dream, dream, dream.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Jimmy Choo Fashion Shoe Designer Bev & Mike

Bridget Otto Thursday on Saturday

Bridget A Otto had a beautifully illustrated article, Mirror Mirage, in Thursday's Homes & Gardens section in The Oregonian.

Our mirrors remind us of who we have become, but

A strategically placed mirror won't make you look younger, but it might lighten that dark corner near the entry or make the small guest room appear larger.

You can even create the illusion of a window.

We learn from the article that Suzanne Gallagher's new book is out: "The Fine Art of Wall Design" (Alta Press, 2006).

Bridget quotes designer Patti Marvitz.

A reflection doubles what's in the room, so you'd better like what you see in the room.

Gallagher notes

And just as that mirror in the bathroom has a practical purpose, so does the pretty one in the front hall.

That way you'll never end up saying, "I didn't know that was sticking to my skirt!"

The Bridget Otto article also has some practical advice for hanging those heavy mirrors on drywall (see pdf).

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Fads or Trends?

The Sacbee has an interesting article about fads and trends entitled
Can you separate the oh-so-trendy from the tried-and-true timeless?
By Alison apRoberts.

...there are ways to identify style trends that are likely to have staying power.

Two current themes promise to wear well. One is the Arts and Crafts style, which hews to the traditional, yet its simplicity and use of natural materials make it feel up-to-date and timeless.

...the other style du jour as "sleek, modern urban loft design." Again, simple designs and natural materials can keep the style from looking dated.

I liked this idea

"The shell of your home is like your body and the furniture is like the clothing, and the accessories are like the jewelry...

To avoid fads buy a few pieces of quality furniture that is timeless and change small things around it; throw pillows, wall colors, accessories.

Then apRoberts remembers the fads and trends of the past and what is fashionable today

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Art Glass: Contemporary Assessories

From Home Accents Today, Art Glass: Avant Garde Art Glass by Kara Cox

With art glass maintaining its contemporary appeal, these colorful pieces add a touch of eye candy to the mod mix. Abstract designs grab your attention in electric hues of red, blue and green or with graphic touches of black and white. Art glass is an easy way to update the home with a touch of modern appreciation.

Global Views' tall oval bowl in a fiery orange hue has a playful iridescent touch.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to carry Global Views.

Bev & Mike

Art Glass Contemporary Interior Design Mover Mike

Swan, ID and Square Scoops

Yellowstone 056
Originally uploaded by gily122000.

Bev & Mike traveled over 1000 miles to see and taste the ice cream at Rainey Creek in Swan, ID.

The story is: In 1943 the owners decided to expand into selling ice cream and Gracie ordered an ice cream scoop from back east. When it arrived it was a square scooper and she was very upset. Her husband said why don't we try it. That happy accident and some great flavors like Moose Tracks, Cotton Candy, Play Doh and Huckleberry & Cream have attracted visitors from all over. The present owners may go through 30 tubs of Huckleberry & Cream a week, and some are so taken with the flavor that they will walk out if their favorite is out.

Swan can be reached on the road from Jackson Hole, WY to Idaho Falls. The Swan Valley is one of the prettiest we saw on our road trip to Yellowstone.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Yellowstone 055

Yellowstone 055
Originally uploaded by gily122000.

Bev in front of Rainey Creek in Swan, ID, home of the square scoop ice cream in a cone. She has been to Yellowstone and Jackson Hole and is on the way home.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

San Gimignano Is Under Siege

One of our favorite cities is under siege. Three million tourists come to San Gimignano each year (compare that to two million visitors to Jackson Hole) and they come in fast, take a quick picture of themselves against a tower and whisk out to another city in the triangle.

“Some people, jokingly, say that we have to get out of the ‘Bermuda Triangle,’ a reference to the hordes of tourists in sandals and shorts who migrate between St. Peter’s in Rome, the Uffizi in Florence and Piazza San Marco in Venice,” said Francesco Rutelli, deputy prime minister and culture minister.

In 2000, when Mike and I went to Italy to celebrate my 50th birthday, we flew into Venice, spent several nights there, drove to Radaa and spent a week there driving to the Uffizi in Florence, San Gimignano, Siena, and many of the towns in Tuscany, then we drove to Rome for another week.

If you have the time, I would encourage you to get to know these medieval towns, enjoy lunch and dinner there, sit in the sun and sip a cup of coffee, enjoy the Gelato, talk with the Italians, practice your limited Italian and marvel at the ancient buildings and the light.

“The problem is hit-and-run tourism, which doesn’t create wealth or guarantee the preservation of a beautiful but delicate city,” said Sabrina Benenati, the town counselor responsible for commerce and local productivity. “If all you want to do is get photographed in front of a tower, I’m sure there are computer programs that can do the same thing with no damage to the town and without spending much money.”

Don't be a hit-and-run tourist!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Do you love Watermelons?

Are you frustrated with the fruit because they roll around when you are slicing them? Do you hate it that they roll around in your fridge? Well Brazil has come up with



Square Melons!

Tesco exotic fruit buyer Damien Sutherland: 'We’ve seen samples of these watermelons and they literally stop you in their tracks because they are so eye-catching.

'Melons are among the most delicious and refreshing fruit around but some people find them a problem to store in their fridge or to cut because they roll around.

In Japan they sell for about $75 a melon. We'll wait until the price comes down.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Square Watermelons Watermelon Bev & Mike

Is it time for wallpaper again?

Pure Contemporary thinks so in We're Stuck on Wallpaper all over again!

Button Up from Tracy Kendall is a bespoke look with buttons (large or small, plain or detailed, delicate or chunky) and their holes sewn into plain or textured wallpaper.

Caroline Kooshoian writes

...wallpaper's surging toward a comeback, and it’s left the brash, fussy and fuzzy behind.

[...]

It gets bold with stark geometric prints, fun with abstract flowers and artistic in hand-painted sheets. But it's the organic warm looks in cork, wood, grasscloth, textiles, even mother of pearl and glass, that have helped lead wallpaper manufacturers to almost $8 billion in sales last year, and showed the faux finishing crowd that walls can shine with luminous depth sans telltale sponge marks.

Exciting isn't it?

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Bridget Otto Thursday

Can we get a hooha! for Bridget Otto Thursday? Hooha!

Her latest article is in today's Oregonian Homes & Gardens section entitled Pattern Recognition. She writes

Decorating with patterns takes an even hand and a trained eye.

Designers with the magic touch talked with me about what it takes to pull multiple patterns together to make one fabulous room, and I'm here to pass along their wisdom.

She interviews several designers including our friend Jim Yockey and finds that while rules can be restictive, there are themes:

"The first is scale," says Jim Yockey, showroom manager at Linde Ltd., a to-the-trade-only designer showroom in Southwest Portland. Especially when mixing patterns. If every pattern vies for attention, the designers agree, it's like a room full of toddlers all screaming at once. No one gets noticed.

Another friend of Landfair Furniture is Kimberly Jaynes:

"The eye wants rhythm and bounce," says Kimberlee Jaynes of Kimberlee Jaynes Interior Designs Inc. "What's interesting in the room is the play off one pattern to the next. If there isn't contrast, then it all becomes one big mess."

Sharon Tjader has some input about rhythm:

Contrast can come in solids, too. A solid-color wall or carpet, or even the tiniest muted print that looks almost solid, provides needed contrast when you're working with patterns, says Sharon Tjader of Design Concepts of Oregon. It also provides a place for the eye to rest. Or as Tjader says, a pause in the rhythm of the room.

"Design is all about rhythm," she says.

Bridget devotes the rest of the article to the use of color and explains a color wheel:

If you work within the colors of the feature -- or dominant -- fabric, then your guidelines are readily set.

But, if you want to cross over to harmonizing colors or contrasting colors, then you need to understand the all-important color wheel.

As usual Bridget gives us much to think about as we look at pictures of decorated rooms in magazines or tour places like the Street of Dreams this next month.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Bridget Otto Jim Yockey Kimberlee Jaynes Sharon Tjader
Bev & Mike

To Market, To Market!

Bev is off to Las Vegas tomorrow, Wednesday, for the Home Furnishings Market. "I am excited to see Dinec'," she says. Dinec' is relaunching the company at market after seeking court protection and then being sold to Bermex in April.

Dinec' will be offering three new bedrooms and 10 new dining chairs. Apparently they have simplified their offerings and stress that they are one of the most personalized manufacturers. In addition, they are broadening their focus from purely contemporary to a mix of offerings, by adding some traditional.

She's excited about leaving with her sister Carol Brandis , but first she and I get to celebrate 14 years of marriage tonight with dinner at standing room only Nuestra Cocina at 21st and SE Division.

Bev will be visiting Hekman, Palecek, CBK, Mirador and many others. Speaking of Mirador, they will unveil more than a dozen TV cabinets some able to handle 60 inch flatscreens.


She will have all the "dish", when she returns to the store on Saturday.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

ASID IP Focus: Merridy Gerlach

IP Focus
By Mike and Bev Landfair, Allied Member ASID

This quarter the IP focus is on Merridy Gerlach of Tufenkian Artisan Carpets. The interview took place in the Tufenkian showroom on 21st and W. Burnside. When we walked in, two golden retrievers greeted us. Henry is the lighter colored golden, ten years old, and Lucy is darker and eight years old. Merridy is a beautiful, tall blond, co-manager, who has been at Tufenkian’s for nine years. She stays fit by moving carpets around, walking her dogs and gardening.

Merridy has been an IP member since 2003. She has been highly involved with ASID, and was on the board last year as the IP Representave to the Board. She was in charge of the planning of last years's Vendor Fair in Ashland. She also regularly attends member meetings and has been a great support to the Chapter.

We discussed Tufenkian and discovered that there are three Corporate showrooms in the country: Manhattan, Los Angeles and Portland. There will soon be one in Dallas, Texas. Our first question was “Why Portland?” Tufenkian Carpets has been an established showroom in the Portland area for over 25 years, originally carrying carpets from all over the world. When David Tufenkian prepared to retire from the showroom in Portland in 2002, James Tufenkian, who is the Founder of the Tufenkian Corporation based in New York, realized that the Portland Showroom was such a fixture with the designer community that the relationship was too important to disrupt. The Tufenkian Showroom is now focused on the carpets that Tufenkian produces. The complete collections of the Tufenkian Tibetan and Armenian Carpets being made are displayed on racks, which makes it very easy to review the selection.

The carpets are magnificent, hanging on the walls like fine art. Still made in Nepal and Armenia the time-tested way by citizens who benefit from Tufenkian’s business philosophy. Special training, higher wages, work places with modern amenities, health programs and schools for local communities and a ban on child labor are hallmarks of the Tufenkian way of doing business.

“It is a wonderful place to work”, says Merridy. “Not only do I get to be a support system for designers, using my creative abilities as much as are needed, but I know that Tufenkian is supporting the people that are involved with our product. We feel passionately about making a difference in the places where our carpets are made.”

When not working, Merridy spends time with her husband Doug and their families which both live in the Portland area, gardens, travels (she would love to visit Nepal and Armenia) and reads. Two of her most recently read books are Sight Hound by Pam Houston and Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston.

In addition, Merridy is a Tellington Touch Practitioner. The Tellington Touch is a holistic approach to helping animals get back in balance physically and emotionally.
We mentioned that we have a golden named Ralph that we rescued and live in Merridy’s neighborhood. In Merridy’s case, dog people are good people!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Merridy Gerlach Tufenkian Artisan Carpets
Quarterly ASID IP Focus Bev & Mike

1.25 Million Coming to Portland

We are going to need all those condos according to David Nielsen of the Home Builders Assn.. In New Home Monthly, a special advertising section of The Oregonian, he writes

Contrary to those who thought that Metro's growth projections were inflated and thus no Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) expansion was needed in 2002, Metro now acknowledges that they underestimated how quickly the million new residents would come to Portland.

The numbers now say that the population increase expected in earlier estimates will be here 10 to 15 years sooner (emphasis added)

Here are Metro's projections:

1.25 million more people in the Portland Metro area
700,000 new jobs, increasingly service-sector jobs not manufacturing

That is equivalent to squeezing an additional 450,000 households, or two cities the size of present-day Portland, into a metropolitan area that is already 80 percent developed.

And you thought traffic was bad.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Portland David Nielsen Urban Growth Boundary Bev & Mike

New Condos in Portland are Green

Today, New Home Monthly, a special advertising section of The Oregonian, is an interesting article about the lengths designers and builders are going to make "Green" the South Waterfront condos in Portland.

South Watewrfront Condos reach for the sky but design favors the Earth by Jeff Kuechle tells us soecial roofs of dirt, gravel and plants capture as much rainwater as possible before it reaches the river.

"Anything up to a heavy rain will be absorbed," said Kelly Saito of Gerding/Edlen, co-developer with Williams & Dame of the River Blocks at South Waterfront, a project that includes The Meriwether, John Ross and Atwater Place condominiums.

Kuechle tells us that is just the beginning of the green amenities.

"The doors and cabinetry have agrifiber cores, a type of fiberboard made from wheat straw or sunflower-seed shells and formaldehyde-free binder, covered with a thin veneer of hardwood," said architects Bruce Brown and Kyle Andersen of GBD Architects.

Other features include floors made from sustainably harvested, golden-brown merbau from Brazil. Floor-to-ceiling windows have high-performance glass that limits solar gain while admitting as much natural light as possible, cutting down on the need for electric lighting and helping to keep the units cooler in the summer.

Bottom line the condos are expected to use 30 percent less water and 35% less energy. You can read the whole article here.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

South Waterfront Portland Condos Jeff Kuechle Bev & Mike

Casket Furniture

Browsing the net, Mike found this unusual and possibly "green"idea:

At CasketFurniture.com, our products can last you a lifetime, and still be the perfect vehicle to carry you to the great beyond. Whether it's a couch, shelf, or end table, our products are designed to blend effortlessly into most contemporary interior designs. Every product can also be transformed into a high-quality casket at your time of need.

Extremely contemporary design combines metal and wood to create this timeless masterpiece. This sofa will always provide you with the ultimate place of rest, whether its taking a load off, or doing the final send off.

It almost takes your breath away!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Casket Furniture Green Furniture Bev & Mike

A Wooden Severance Agreement

Hat Tip to Footnote.org for this furniture related item: a strange severance agreement that includes the office furniture.

The former chief legal officer of Mannatech (MTEX) asked for — and received — her office furniture as part of her severance agreement. That’s in addition to a consulting agreement that will pay her $10K a month for the next year. Oh, and there’s also her company car thrown in for good measure. But both of those are pretty standard compared to the office furniture, which the filing very specifically spells out as consisting of "the executive desk, executive chair and two side chairs".

Don't forget her computer. What's next?

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Severance Agreement Mannatech (MTEX Office Furniture Bev & Mike

Adding to the Blogroll: Article Dashboard

We added another resource to our blogroll Article Dashboard.

Article Dashboard is an online article directory for both publishers and authors. Formed in August of 2005, ArticleDashboard.com strives to become a leader in the world of online publishing by providing syndication services to website owners, ezine publishers, and more.

Here are a few of the directories:
Arts & Entertainment
Fashion
Food & Beverage (including Recipes and wine)
Health & Fitness
Home & Family (includes Interior Design)
Product Reviews (includes Book and Movie Reviews)

The Interior Design section has an article entitled Why Heavily Scented Candles? – Preserve The Aroma In Your Home

There is a difference between heavily scented candles, richly scented candles and triple scented candles. Many people believe that all three mean that the candle has a strong scent that will last until the candle burns out completely. For the most part, heavily scented candles means that a larger than normal amount of fragrance has been added to the wax in the candle making process. In general, one-half ounce is the normal amount of essential oil added to the melted wax. In heavily scented candles, this amount is tripled so that one and a half ounces are added.

There are many interesting articles and you can be an author for this or any other section. It is an excellent way to get name recognition. For fun Google your name or your interior design business. Many of you will find that you are not well known. You know who you are! This is an expensive way to communicate with potential clients.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Adding to the Blogroll: Home Decorating Reviews

Here's another new resource for interior designers, their clients and homeowners: Home Decorating Reviews (HDR).
What is special about HDR?

Home Decorating Reviews.com is an online magazine on interior design projects.

With detailed product reviews on a wide range of attractive and creative decorating products and accessories.

One of the first freebies we found at the site was this report

free with a free subscription to their newsletter!

The report covers care tips for Bamboo, Hardwood, Tile, Marble and Vinyl floors. I found much of the report informative with many useful tips to save us money. If you are like us, with too busy schedules, we have a house cleaner come in every two weeks.

Do our housecleaners know that using oil soaps on clear coat hardwood floors should be avoided because leave behind a streaky residue that can build up a dull the shine? Better to use mild pH balanced (ph7) household cleaner in a spray bottle.

Do our housecleaners know that vinegar, which is acidic, in water can etch or bleach our marble floors or counters; that removing gum from marble with something hard can scratch?

Do our housecleaners know that some harsh or abrasive cleansers can eat away at the finish of vinyl flooring?

For us, we feel this report is important enough to print and give to our house cleaner. Hopefully, all this information was included in her training. What? You say you don't know what kind of training she had. All the more reason to print a copy.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Adding to the Blogroll: DesignTalk

We are working on our Blogroll and investigating new resources on the web for interior designers and their clients. We have come across DesignTalk run by Karalee. On her blog she says

We’re about solutions, ideas, sharing and community. Whether you’re an experienced designer looking for home décor tips, or a college student trying to set up your first apartment, we have something for everyone.

Our articles focus on tips, suggestions and solutions:

One of the first articles that caught our attention was this one: Fast Tips for Selling Your Home. We are seeing some homes sitting on the market a little longer than what was normal and we're seeing signs that say, "Price Reduced".

Fast Tips for Selling Your Home has some suggestions about
1. What to subtract
2. What to add to get the house sold!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Gretchen Schauffler to Make Presentation

If you are a member of NWSID or a guest you are in for a treat at the NWSID General Meeting on July 13th. Gretchen Schauffler will be speaking.


Schauffler is the creator of Devine Color, a paint line, a color solution, sold at Miller Paint and many stores across the country and she says on her web site

I created Devine Color as my personal confirmation that wall color impacts the way we live. Backgrounds impart a visual .fragrance that makes a space unique and personal. I believe that our personal affinity for certain colors give us instant pleasure and we should give ourselves permission to live with them.

Like colors in a great painting, perfect color does not stand alone. It is the relationship and position of colors in an environment that makes it perfect.

Schauffler is an author of About Devine Color: When Color Sings, a seasoned speaker on the subject of color, an entrepreneur, and the subject of countless articles and national news stories.

Gretchen Schauffler was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where vibrant Caribbean colors influenced her personal palette for a lifetime. She moved to the United States to attend college where her diverse interests found her at four schools from New York to the Pacific Northwest, in programs as varied as architecture, fashion design and art therapy. She finally settled on a degree in graphic design from Portland State University.

After college, Gretchen's first career was in sales where she excelled, winning top honors at one of the world's foremost pharmaceutical firms. When her on-the-road career took a stay-at-home turn with the births of her two daughters, Gretchen put her schooling to work, experimenting with color and artistic multi-layer glazes for her own walls.

This led to her creation of original artwork - where her creative talent, combined with her strong sales background, yielded uncanny success. Her works have been displayed in numerous galleries, the Bellevue Art Museum and special ordered through Nordstrom. Gretchen was also much sought after as a faux finisher, creating a demand for her talent among corporate and residential clients.

All the while, Gretchen was still playing and experimenting with what would emerge as her one true passion: color. This - along with a steady flow of offers to duplicate her custom paint colors in private homes - is what led her to her lifetime vision.

Taking advantage of seven years' worth of art, color and design experience, she developed the 11 original palettes of Devine Color. Then the petite powerhouse used her sales experience and contagious enthusiasm to sign an exclusive 25-year contract to produce and distribute Devine Color with the respected Miller Paint Company, a 110-year-old manufacturer.

A self-confessed pop culture junkie, Gretchen lives in Lake Oswego, Oregon, with her husband and children.

The General Meeting will be held at:

Miller Paint co. International
12803 NE Airport Way
Portland, OR 97230
Social Hour: 5:30-6:30 PM
Host Presentation: 6:30- 8:00 PM

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Nanine Alexander writes about Mark Downing

Don't miss the article in Homes & Gardens section of The Oregonian entitled
Grace ingrained
Woodworker extraordinaire Mark Downing infuses his creations with elegance and a touch of whimsy by Nanine Alexander.

The first thing that caught my attention was a picture of a classic garden bench inspired by British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens, built by Downing to fit a curved wall in a Portlander's garden. I found a picture of a Lutyens' designed bench:

Thakeham Bench

The Thakeham seat pictured here in English Oak was designed for the garden at Little Thakeham near Storrington, West Sussex. The rhythmical symmetry of the bench is typical of LutyensÕs love of form.

Downing's bench is in a salmon color or faded Chinese red. Beautiful!

Nanine Alexander writes

Mark Downing's woodworking shop in Northeast Portland stands as a demonstration of his many skills.

He built it from the concrete floor up. Painted a cheerful blue, red and yellow with cedar siding and shingles, it sits on a gray stucco skirt. Leaded-glass windows, cut by Downing, look out on bright perennials planted by his girlfriend. On one of the corbels projecting from the roof, he installed a miniature statue of a Chinese warrior, a note of whimsy that he believes deserves a place in design.

The smell of cedar sends a greeting and leads you into a shop so tidy it's almost Zenlike. Tools hang on the walls, awaiting their turn to put form to his elegantly designed furniture, cabinetry, garden structures and buildings.

His creations are evidence of that philosophy and the architects who have influenced him.

We have some wonderful artists in Portland!

Mark Downing may be reached at 503-709-4049
or craftmark@gmail.com

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Update: One more reason to read the article:
FURNITUREToday writes French-Asian Crossing by Tracy Bulla

West and East converge with streamlined grace, highlighting the opulent side of both cultures with admirable subtlety. A modern mixture of these seemingly divergent design genres results in sophistication and simplicity lined up next to vibrancy and complexity. Antiqued shapes reemerge dusted off and leaner, while motifs like birds, flowers and plants are a recurrent theme. Just like a coat of lacquer, eye-popping shades of chartreuse, orange and scarlet give the look a gorgeous gloss.

John Galliano and Haute Couture fashion show in Paris

Mike and I saw The Devil Wears Prada this weekend and it was a hoot, with some gorgeous clothes. You want to go shopping after this show, and if you take your significant other, he will gladly foot the bill if you look like some of the models in the show, although my husband does not want me to wear a size zero or a two.

This is the week of the Autumn/Winter 2006-2007 Haute Couture fashion show in Paris and couldn't help notice the fashion from British designer John Galliano for French fashion house Dior:

A model presents a creation by British designer John Galliano for French fashion house Dior as part of their Autumn/Winter 2006-2007 Haute Couture fashion show in Paris July 5, 2006. (REUTERS)


A model presents a creation by British designer John Galliano for French fashion house Dior as part of their Autumn/Winter 2006-2007 Haute Couture fashion show in Paris July 5, 2006. (REUTERS)

On second thought, Mike says I have enough clothes.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

The "New" Hekman Furniture Company

Last week, we sat down with Tim DeLauder, manufacturer's rep for Hekman Furniture, to preview the new lines and go over the offerings for Las Vegas Furniture show coming up in July. Mike had searched the Hekman web site for dealers in the state of Oregon and besides Landfair Furniture, which wasn't listed (and Tim says that will soon be corrected), we found only Kuhnhausen's in the Portland area. We seem to be selling more and more Hekman and Mike asked what has changed with the company.

Seems Hekman was very much an East Coast company in the past, meaning it's styles primarily appealed to that section of the country, and also it was known mostly as a desk company. About 2 1/2 years ago, new management came in and the company has become broader and more hip. Quality and design are now equal to Drexal Heritage.

Recently two collections, Metropolis

and Repertory

have been strong on major cities. Repertory even won the first annual Advancing Design and Innovation Award (ADI).

(Repertory) is a collection of 18 pieces inspired bu the Neoclassical and Empire styles. Using the classic forms of this period as a foundation, pieces are wrapped in leafy heart cherry veneers with rich walnut burl borders and treated to satiny silver hardware.

Now Hekman has introduced the Castillian collection:

The Castillian collection is oversized and lightly distressed featuring a finish that is soft and slightly tobacco colored. It is perfect for large rooms.

Another feature of the Hekman line are two new kinds of desks: Laptop Desks, built especially for laptops and the gear needed for laptops and "Sit to Stand" Desks, that convert from a desk at which you sit, to a desk that has a feature that moves and allows you to work while you stand.
One other kind of furniture is popping up and that is a piece that works with flat screen TVs. The piece looks like a credenza until the TV appears on top from inside. Or it may look like a bookcase sitting on a credenza. Interesting ways that fiurniture companies are responding to the new technologies.

BTW, you can see the Repertory Console pictured here at The Neighborhood.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Hekman Repertory Metropolis Castillian Furniture

Paul Klee Exhibit

Are you going to be in Washington D.C. sometime before September 10th? You might look in on the Paul Klee exhibit at The Phillips Collection.

...the Swiss-born artist's fame came easily enough in Europe -- where his career flowered in the decades before his death in 1940 from scleroderma.

[...]

When Klee worked in abstraction, as he did in "Gradation, Red-Green (Vermilion)," a 1921 watercolor on view at the Phillips, he never approached Kandinsky's bravado of color and scale. Klee's exercise in color and composition is much more intimate and subdued than any Kandinsky. Most of the Klees here are the size of postcards or notebook paper. (A few get larger as he approaches his final years. Most suffer a little for it.)

Klee and America at The Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St. NW, Tuesday-Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Thursday 10 a.m.-8:30 p.m., Sunday noon-5 p.m., through Sept. 10. $12 adults, $10 age 62 and older and students. Free to those 18 and younger and museum members. Call 202-387-2151.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Pauk Klee The Phillips Collection Washington D.C.

Tips for Entertaining at Home

In a column called Ask the Barefoot Contessa in House Beautiful, author Ina Garten answers questions about entertaining at home.

What's the best size table for a dinner party?
I like small parties. With 6 people, you can really get a conversation going. The ideal table for 6 or 7 is a 48-inch round, because everyone is equally engaged in the conversation.

Do I need to make place cards?
I don't think it's necessary to make place cards for a small party, but I do think it's important to have a seating plan. While we're having cocktails, I'll decide who are the two most talkative guests that evening and seat them opposite each other, which keeps the conversation flowing.

I have too many people to seat them at a table. Is it all right to have them eat dinner on their laps?
If you need to invite more people than you can seat at tables, and you just can't afford to rent them, serving dinner on your lap isn't ideal, but it's just fine. However, you'll want to plan the menu carefully.

I'm having 30 people for a fund-raiser at my house and no one will know each other. How can I be sure it'll be fun?
...the key is getting people engaged with each other as quickly as possible.

What if people ask to bring their children to a party?
Except for holidays, I don't think children belong at an adult party — and I'll bet the children agree! I don't know any 6-year-old who wants to sit through a conversation about Iraq.

It doesn't show much imagination to bring flowers or wine when you're invited to dinner. What's more interesting?
There's nothing wrong with bringing flowers or wine, but it's how you deliver them that can make a difference.

There's much more in the article than I've given a hint of. Check out Ask the Barefoot Contessa. She has some great ideas for your next dinner party or large event that you are planning. After all, we want people to have a good time. We would like them to want to come back again.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

House Beautiful Ina Garten Ask the Barefoot Contessa Entertaining

What is Synaesthesia?

Synaesthesia, a harmless condition that allows a person to appreciate sounds, colours or words with two or more senses simultaneously.


Murnau - Castle Courtyard I, 1908 by Kandinsky

Wassily Kandinsky is believed to have had synaesthesia.

In his case, colours and painted marks triggered particular sounds or musical notes and vice versa. The involuntary ability to hear colour, see music or even taste words results from an accidental cross-wiring in the brain that is found in one in 2,000 people, and in many more women than men.

Composition VII, 1913 by Kandinsky

Despite the lack of medical proof for Kandinsky's synaesthesia, the correlation between sound and colour was a lifelong preoccupation for the artist. He recalled hearing a strange hissing noise when mixing colours in his paintbox as a child, and later became an accomplished cello player, which he said represented one of the deepest blues of all instruments. Sean Rainbird, curator of Tate's forthcoming Kandinsky exhibition, says, "My feeling is that he was quite a natural at it. To have painted the largest work he ever made, Composition VII, in just three days, shows that this language was quite internalised."

'Kandinsky: The Path to Abstraction, 1908-1922' is at
Tate Modern, London SE1 (020 7887 8888),
June 22-Oct 1.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Wassily Kandinsky Synaesthesia

The Neighborhood

The Neighborhood started June 10th and will run to July 2nd from July 2 - 11 am - 9 pm and is closed Mondays & Tuesdays. The Neighborhood was formerly the RE/MAX Street of New Beginnings.www.the

This year Suzie Buchanan of Buchanan Associates and Michelle Barnes of Timeless Interiors gave their time with the Wysteria. built by Homes with Style. Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to showcase some of our furniture that fits with the overall design.

The Wysteria


An English country cottage with established landscaping and modern appointments, the 2,850 square-foot Wysteria envelops visitors in warm, rich color and lots of light. The open floor plan extends to the home’s large, airy bedrooms, which quietly beckon you to sneak in a quick afternoon nap or a few chapters of your favorite book.

“The Neighborhood is more than a home show; it’s a gathering place where people can pull together fresh ideas for updating their homes, learn about construction and design trends, and while they’re at it, have a great time.,” said Dave Nielsen, CEO of the Home Builders Association of Metropolitan Portland. “Every home is unique and each showcases the true craftsmanship of Oregon home builders. This is our first such development in Clackamas County and we couldn’t have picked a better time to build in this vibrant, growing area.”

The Neighborhood is all about:

* Inspired Homes. Eight earth-friendly, fully appointed and landscaped homes by Sequoia Custom Homes, El Dorado Custom Homes, Buena Vista Custom Homes, Homes with Style, Teal Point Homes and Development, Schumacher Custom Homes Inc, and DreamHouse Construction.

* Ideas. The show presents creative yet realistic ideas that visitors can implement in their own homes. People looking to redecorate, re-landscape or redesign a home will find lots of inspiration and advice at The Neighborhood.

* Family. The Neighborhood is a fantastic event for all ages. Kids Weekend June 10-11 kicks off the show; ENERGY STAR weekend helps ring in Father’s Day June 17-18; and Outdoor Weekend June 23-24 highlights terrific outdoor living and entertaining ideas.

* Energy efficiency. Homes at The Neighborhood feature ENERGY STAR® qualified products exclusively. This reflects the growing interest among both homebuilders and homebuyers for new homes that build in energy efficiency measures such as increased insulation and ventilation, high-performance windows, state-of-the-art heating and cooling systems, gas appliances and more.

* Charity. The place will be rockin’ on June 19, when The Neighborhood hosts Rock the House, a charity event to raise money for Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. Sequoia Custom Homes will auction its Doernbecher House of Hope live at the event, which also will feature a silent auction, great entertainment, and food and drink. Tickets cost $35 and can be purchased through Tickets West (www.ticketswest.com) or www.neighborhoodpdx.com.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to be involved in this event. We will offer special show pricing and will make a donation to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital for each piece sold.

Bev & Mike

Portland Condominiums

There's a new web site called
Discuss and Find Portland Condominiums.
It's advertised as:

"Your most important resource to find anything about Portland Condos and PDX lofts."

The site has information available about the new projects:

McCormick Pier
The Meriwether
The John Ross
The Strand at RiverPlace
Waterfront Pearl
McKenzie Lofts
North Park Lofts
Pearl District
Riverscape Townhomes
Old Town Lofts
Orenco Station Town Center Lofts Hillsboro
Portland Downtown Condos
Cascade View

Check out the site. In addition there is a news section. I would like to see the site have much more content, but they are doing it right by setting up useful links in the Portland area.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Portland Condos Lofts Portland Condominiums

McMahan’s to Close two Oregon Stores

FURNITUREToday reports that Top 100 chain McMahan’s will close a 16,000-square-foot store in Astoria and a 30,000-square-foot store in Salem.

“We’re going to be liquidating our inventory in an orderly fashion,” said Taylor Ganz, vice president of the Los Angeles-based retailer, which will have 17 stores in California and Oregon when the closings are completed.

He would not elaborate on the sales, except to say all three stores would be closed before the end of the year.

Ganz said the three closing stores were no longer profitable. “We’ve decided to put our resources in more profitable markets,” he said.

That will leave them with stores in Albany, Bend, Coos Bay, Klamath Falls, Medford, and Roseburg.

Of course, Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery will be happy to help residents of Astoria and Salem with their furniture and accessory needs.

Bev & Mike