What’s The Difference Between Wicker And Rattan?

Over at Home Accents Today, Mike has posted an article entitled What’s The Difference Between Wicker And Rattan?



The post features pictures of Palecek wicker furniture all available at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery.

Bev & Mike

Is Your Wallpaper Running?

We don't know how it's done, but this is the latest lighting technology, wallpaper light:



Hat Tip: Engadget

KP Design And The Luxury Consumer

Over at Home Accents Today, Mike has written a two part article about the luxury consumer.

In part 1, the luxury consumer is defined, here by Relish as those with household income between $250,000 and $500,000 and the extremely affluent as those with a net worth of $10 Million or above.



In part 2, Mike interviewed Kathie Pozarich, Portland interior designer to the luxury consumer and learns what it takes to be successful in that market. She offers tips, also, to the new up and coming interior designer.

KP Design Group, Inc.
Kathie Pozarich, Interior Designer
Tel: 503.635.3400
Email: kpdesigngroup@comcast.net

Mike writes three times a week about retailing and furniture and accessories at Home Accents Today in a blog entitled The Landfair Retail Focus.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

News From Market

From FURNITURE Today,

Sam Moore is taking a dozen of Hooker’s best-selling dining and accent chairs and making them available in 25 finishes, more than 800 fabrics and 100 leathers. The program also offers contrasting seat and back fabrics, contrasting pillows, nail-head options, welts, fringes, cords and tassels.

Also new for Sam Moore this market is about 20 frames, seven benches, three upholstered headboards, and 73 fabrics targeting interior designers.

From FURNITURE Today, Hekman is making a major contemporary style statement with its Asher Benjamin collection, designed by Peter and Meg Strattner, creators of the Crate and Barrel look. The clean-lined design for Hekman features American Cherry veneers with walnut accents and a natural cherry finish.

Retailers have been requesting more modern looks, said Neil McKenzie, Hekman’s vice president of product development.

“Not to say that the traditional look is going away, it’s just that there is a niche in the marketplace that is evolving and becoming more evident as this customer gains economic power,” McKenzie said.

“I think what’s happening is we’re slowly seeing a transition to another generation of potential customers. It’s a customer who is more interested in an urban lifestyle within their home than an actual urban geographic location. It’s cleaner lines, cleaner finishes and less encumbered.”

McKenzie added that Hekman still sees lots of customers who want more traditional home office looks and scaling. But he said that creating more modern looks with a compact scale, a good functionality story and clean lines makes sense in this changing market — without compromising quality.

Like Hooker and Aspenhome with its small-scaled Kensington home office introduction, Hekman continues the push into smaller functional desks this market, offering 48-inch and 60-inch footprints.

Those sets feature classic traditional and transitional designs, but are scaled down.

“I’ve had customers saying they’ve seen a transition in customers desiring smaller desks. Is it the economy where a smaller desk is less expensive? I don’t know. We know the request is real and it’s going from coast-to-coast,” McKenzie said.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to feature Sam Moore and Hekman in our showroom.

Bev & Mike

New From Jimmy Choo

American Idol is dominating the TV and now Jimmy Choo has this for you Idol fans:

Jimmy Choo's Idol shoes

WHY: Because it's high time we owned something this lethal. Not only do we adore the platform sole, the thick heel actually renders these...comfortable. Weird, we know. In true chicette fashion, these look best with tattered cutoffs or a miniscule mini. Talk about illegally chic. PRICE: $775

Back in August we posted about Mondrian Art.
Jimmy Choo has this for you:

Spring/Summer 08 sees the introduction of the new 'Mondrian' heel. This distinctive graphic heel gives an architectural boldness and a modern edge to designs from peep toe pumps to strappy platforms. PRICE: 375 Euros

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Start With Art! Seminar

Suzanne Gallagher, author of "The Fine Art of Wall Design", will inspire you on April 26th with creative tips and valuable interior design nuggets about art imagery, framing design and placement!



Begin your design project poised for success. You will learn how art can be the catalyst for the design of your interior spaces. It can also be the focal point that pulls your existing design elements together.

Saturday April 26th 10:00am to 11:30am

Door Prizes and Refreshments!

$10 Space is limited REGISTER SOON!

www.walldesigndiva.com 503-579-2787

Special added incentive: Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery offers 20% off purchases the day of the seminar.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Coffee Tables From Calligaris

Searching the internet as much as I do, I come across a lot of interesting sites. For example, here's one I found today, Freshome. It had pictures of a coffee table from one of our favorite contemporary vendors, Calligaris



Freshome writes

The Retro contemporary coffee table by Calligaris is both stylish and practical having a central open compartment under the top and two side drawers that open by a rotating pivot pin. The Calligaris retro table features a wenge finish that will easily match any home decor. The clean lines and smooth elegant curves make this a collection of pure design classics. This is Italian furniture design at its most architectural. New ideas in materials, techniques and shape combine to make a clarity and purity of form that is fresh and truly modern.

We like furniture pieces that can serve several functions.



Calligaris also offers Kobe, a contemporary coffee table in wenge, or rovere, with translucent glass



Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Musical Furnishings

Are you like me? You sit in your car waiting for the light to turn green and “1973” by James Blunt starts on the radio and you start finger tapping the steering wheel, keeping time to the beat. Sure you are.

You sit at home playing Bridge with friends. Before the cards are dealt, that song is played on the stereo, the one Michael Jackson danced to on his “Thriller” album. Your feet start moving and you imagine yourself playing the drums on the table edge. Isn’t is limiting to have only one note on that table?

Well, NW Artist Tor Clausen in his studio in Olympia WA., has a solution. His company Musical Furnishings is very excited to introduce the Musical Rumba Series. You now can have “your own personal drum table with durable, interchangeable and rearrangeable percussion inserts.”



What will they think up next?

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Pictures Of Uttermost Accent Furniture

On Tuesday, March 11, 2008, we posted Uttermost To Debut Accent Furniture! We now have some pictures of the new designs:

The 50-piece furniture introduction includes everything from stacking tables to tall chests to upholstered chairs. All furniture is either in stock or will be by late April

.


Click on the picture for large, beautiful images. We will be ordering samples!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Landfair Adds Duralee Memo Sales

Yesterday morning Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery hosted Scott McKay, Duralee Sales Representative, in a meeting for Oregon interior designers. We announced that Landfair Furniture would be the Oregon "To The Trade" showroom for Duralee fabrics and will offer memo samples. Already we have expanded the scale of fabric samples and Scott told us that another eight boxes of samples are on the way.

Scheduled for completion by June of 2008, our showroom will feature an extensive display area for Duralee fabrics, Highland Court luxury fabrics, a library area with Highland Court and Duralee sample books, and a brand new memo room. Landfair Furniture will feature a display vignette of Duralee Fine Furniture enabling more customers to experience the custom fine furniture brand.

In addition, McKay announced that Philip Gorrivan has partnered with Duralee and announced a new line of Luxury Fabrics!

Philip Gorrivan Design is based in New York City specializing in high-end residential interiors and commercial projects including hotels and offices. The firm is known for its unique and clever use of color and a polished and refined eye for objects, art and furnishings.

A SAMPLING OF SOME OF THE FABRICS FROM PHILIP’S FABRIC COLLECTION FOR DURALEE/ HIGHLAND COURT. THE FABRICS ARE AVAILABLE IN EARLY 2008.

Gorrivan has created a 5-book set of woven color books featuring the Philip Gorrivan signature style of fresh, modern designs with a touch of the past and punches of color.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Check Out Kim Seybert!

Here's a NY fashion designer that has moved from the runway to the tabletop, Kim Seybert.

Handmade placemat of smooth oval hand dyed wooden beads with a cotton backing.

As a successful designer working on Seventh Avenue, Kim's specialty was beaded and embroidered dresses and evening- wear. In 1998, Kim redecorated her apartment, reinvigorating her creative energy and enthusiasm for design. She decided to take this expertise and her lifelong passion for fashion and translate them into a collection of similarly embellished coasters, placemats and pillows.

Hat tip to Lizzie Garrett at DESIGNwatcher

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Turn Signal Jacket

Click photo for more information.

Clothing is becoming more functional, growing beyond the original intention of covering your nakedness before the eyes of the Creator and now providing for your safety.

Two-wheelers are nimbler and faster but they'll always be less noticeable and that's a bad thing on our increasingly congested roads. This jacket provides another mechanism for catching the eyes of sleepy-eyed commuters. Controls are on the wrist.

(hat Tip to productdose.com)

I need a jacket to wear for summer bicycle rides to the furniture store!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Best Places to Find Color Inspiration

One thing caught my eye in the latest HGTV decorating news. David Bromstad shares tips for the Best Places to Find Color Inspiration.

Who is Bromstad? David Bromstad is the season one winner of HGTV Design Star.

Here are his tips:

Get Outside -

Nature is the most amazing place for color inspiration, since each season offers different and amazing color combinations. The warmth of the summer and fall, the cool colors of winter and the fresh hues of spring are the perfect examples of Mother Nature's work. Color doesn't just exist in the growth of nature, but in every aspect. A stormy sky against fall leaves is unbelievable, while a yellow rain jacket on a gray, rainy day is the perfect color combination for spring.

There is one color of green I just love and it comes this time of year and that is the new, fresh, rain-washed green of budding leaves.

Go Shopping -

Take a look at the fresh produce aisles at your grocery store. Nature went crazy with the most amazing and vibrant colors of fruits and vegetables. Grab a few of your favorite shades and see how you can make them work together in your home.

I'm reading "On Mexican Time" by Tony Cohan. In it he and his wife are shopping in San Miguel de Allende. Can you picture these colors: "...when a willowy Indian girl in a green sweater showed up at the door with buckets of bright orange-yellow calabaza flowers



and blue corn tortillas." or "Beneath a canvas awning we pick ripe yellow mangoes



and magenta cactus berries called garambullos for Susana's mousse."



Read the Fine Print -

My greatest color inspiration comes from fashion and magazines. First, it's the best way to stay on top of color trends and styles, since fashion is always the forefront of what then comes into interiors.

Take a Stroll -

All the colors you see in everyday life can be a part of your home. Carry a camera to take snapshots whenever you find the perfect combination.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Ruth Mullen Features Jennifer Leonard

Today is Ruth Mullen Day. In a nice piece about interior designer Jennifer Leonard, entitled Twin Set, Mullen shows how a "striking white Colonial Revival and "a matching playhouse" were restored.

With Jennifer's design touch and green thumb, and her attorney husband's affinity for manual labor, the couple have tackled some daunting tasks, such as taming their half-acre landscape, ripping up old carpet, scraping wallpaper, and painting inside and out. With 3,500 square feet, four full baths and five bedrooms, they have their work cut out for them.

[...]

It's also an intimate showcase for Nifelle Design, the interior design business that Jennifer runs from home. Rich custom fabrics and high-end designer furniture mingle with antiques, refinished castoffs and treasured heirlooms, such as the andirons that belonged to her grandmother.

Here's how you reach Jennifer Leonard

Nifelle Design
www.nifelledesign.com
503-730-7117 * jennifer@nifelledesign.com

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Uttermost To Debut Accent Furniture!

From Home Accents Today:

Uttermost will make its accent furniture debut in High Point this April, after nearly a year in development.

The 50-piece furniture introduction includes everything from stacking tables to tall chests to upholstered chairs. All furniture is either in stock or will be by late April.

We can't wait to show you pictures. Stay tuned!

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There's still time to register! On Saturday March 15th from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, Kimberlee Jaynes will share "Designer Secrets" - "Insider tips on transforming difficult design challenges into stylish solutions!" See Kimberlee Jaynes' we site: www.kimberleejaynes.com. Seating is limited so register soon at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery or call 503-245-4222

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Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Hot Products In Home Accessories

Home Accents Today's weekly email of hot products in home accessories singles out several vendors carried at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery:

Textural trophy



Topped with an oatmeal colored loomed linen shade, the Carob Medallion lamp from THE NATURAL LIGHT Prince of Wales Collection features a hand-formed clay base with a splashed glaze.

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We are excited to have next month, on Saturday March 15th from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, Kimberlee Jaynes sharing "Designer Secrets" - "Insider tips on transforming difficult design challenges into stylish solutions!" See Kimberlee Jaynes' we site: www.kimberleejaynes.com. Seating is limited so register soon at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery or call 503-245-4222

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Shell style



Beads from natural polished coconut shells embellish the pillows from Palecek with woven natural abaca cases.

Embossed Glass Lanterns from CBK



Antique Copper Finish, 6"Sq x 8"H, Glass, Iron

Lanterns from CBK



Stone Bronze and Luster Finish, Set of 3 (Amber, Blue, Green),6.5"D x 14.5"H, Glass, Iron

Taking shapes



Open blocks create the base on the Sunray cocktail table from Global Views.

Geometric looking glass



Pyramid designs finished in hand-rubbed mahogany red with burnished details and gold accents create the frame on the Conley mirror from Uttermost.

Enjoy!
Bev & Mike

The Precedent eCollection

If you have been to Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery recently or to our web site, you know we've added Precedent Contemporary Upholstery to our collection of upholstery vendors. Precedent is a division of Sherrill. We added the line first, because we know that high quality is what Sherrill stands for. Second, our customers were demanding a line of contemporary furniture and third, our customers were asking for a way to be "green".

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We are excited to have next month, on Saturday March 15th from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, Kimberlee Jaynes sharing "Designer Secrets" - "Insider tips on transforming difficult design challenges into stylish solutions!" See Kimberlee Jaynes' we site: www.kimberleejaynes.com. Seating is limited so register soon at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery or call 503-245-4222

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Precedent Contemporary Upholstery is doing all it can to reduce waste and reuse materials and innovate products and processes that are better for people and our planet. For example:

Frames are made with low-formaldehyde engineered hardwood responsibly harvested from sustainable forests.

Glues and Finishes are water-based and VOC and formaldehyde free.

Seat Cushions are made from foam that utilizes soybean oil as a substitute for some of the petroleum normally required to produce foam.

Fabrics are woven from recycled or sustainable fibers like hemp, bamboo or organic cotton. Almost all are dyed with low-impact dyes that reduce or eliminate harsh chemical discharge into the earth.

Quality Craftsmanship minimizes the impact on the environment now and in the future.

To read more and wander through the styles see the Precedent Contemporary Upholstery website.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

"Greek Key Motif"?

House Beautiful has an article about The Greek Key Motif by Carol Prisant. What is "Greek Key Motif"?



Prisant describes it as "a rectilinear meander pattern: one very long and continuous line that folds back on itself repeatedly. " It meanders or wanders like the river, Maeander River in ancient Anatolia.

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We are excited to have next month, on Saturday March 15th from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, Kimberlee Jaynes sharing "Designer Secrets" - "Insider tips on transforming difficult design challenges into stylish solutions!" See Kimberlee Jaynes' we site: www.kimberleejaynes.com. Seating is limited so register soon at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery or call 503-245-4222

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Prisant says it is also called "fretwork". "Patterned ornament composed of only straight lines is termed fretwork."

You'll see Greek key on accessories, fabric, and fabric tape, furniture and as Jackie Blue Home points out, on screens or room dividers, tile and rugs.




A Greek key design from House Eclectic.

UPDATE: We just ordered a new product from Global Views that fits right in with the Greek Key Motif, this Greek Key Step Table (30"L x 19.75"W x 22.75"H)



Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

"Design Secrets"

Last month we had a great turnout for the seminar conducted by JoAnn Rouza, "The Art of Flawless Accessorizing!" We held the seminar over three different days and times. Due to popular demand we will bring JoAnn Rouza back possibly in May.

We are excited to have next month, on Saturday March 15th from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM, Kimberlee Jaynes sharing "Designer Secrets" - "Insider tips on transforming difficult design challenges into stylish solutions!" Seating is limited so register soon at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery or call 503-245-4222



Kimberlee Jaynes owner of Kimberlee Jaynes Interior Designs is among Portland's most talented designers. Her work is a combination of comfortable sophistication and confident simplicity. An associate member of Northwest Society of Interior Designers, Jaynes has practiced interior design for 17 years. She has been quoted in the Homes & Gardens section of The Oregonian as well as Oregon Home Magazine. She is a featured designer in "The Fine Art of Wall Design", a book about hanging art.

Reserve your seat for Saturday, March 15th from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM.

Bev & Mike

Bridget A. Otto Thursday

This is like Howdy Dowdy Time.

What time is it boys and girls? IT'S BRIDGET OTTO THURSDAY, UNCLE BOB!

And today is the best day in a long time because Bridget Otto called Bev Landfair, You know her boys and girls. She's the owner of Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery.

Why would Bridget call Bev Landfair, and Amanda Klash, owner of Montgomery Klash Interior Design, and Todd Dewey Jantz, owner of JD Madison? She wants to learn from three in-the-know Portlanders what they see headed our way for 2008 in terms of color.

Bev Landfair of Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery sees the organic elements in accessories as well as upholstery. She also swoons over the staying power of antiqued brass and the patinas of bronze and copper.

"Shiny brass is past," she says with a laugh.

Jantz couldn't agree more, but it's platinum he swoons over. Not the icy, cold gray from the '80s, he says, but the pewterlike platinum finish.

Landfair sees accents of marine blues and yellows on the horizon, as well as Art Deco designs, such as chairs embellished with nailheads.

All three design professionals echoed one another on the importance of details.

Whereas Landfair might add a "cool, wacky table with a copper top" and Klash might pull out a pewter-colored, cut-velvet fabric, they all agree the delight in a room comes from the details.

Landfair simply says: "It's style."

Thanks Bridget! BTW, check out our website for a new seminar scheduled for Saturday March 15th from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

"Designer Secrets" Kimberlee Jaynes shares "Insider tips on transforming difficult design challenges into stylish solutions!"

Bev & Mike