2007 NWSID Golf Tournament

Partial proceeds from this year’s tournament went to ReFIT (Remodeling for Independence Together). ReFIT is a non-profit volunteer organization providing home modification services for physically and financially challenged homeowners who wish to remain living independently in their homes. For more information go to www.ReFITPortland.org

All in all this year’s tournament was a testament to the dedication and commitment of the members in this organization. It is people like you that make it possible for us to achieve our goal of helping our community and showing the Portland area what a great organization NWSID is. If you would like to participate in next year’s tournament, e-mail us at nwsidgolf@msn.com.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Ottoman Bench - A Great Accent Piece For Any Room

Jesse Akre has written an article about the Ottoman Bench:

One of the best types of accent furniture that you can buy is an ottoman bench. Many people spend their furniture shopping time focusing on things like beds, cabinets, and desks. There are more furniture items out there that you need to consider, though. You can sleep in your bed, but you cannot play cards there. You can do some work at your desk, but it won't provide extra seating when you have guests over. Accent items are important pieces because they complete your home's look and they add to the primary furniture items that are already in place. The ottoman bench is one of those items that you don't have to have, but it adds something to your house that other furniture items cannot.

If you want an ottoman bench, you aren't limited to one size, color, or style. More and more people are becoming interested in buying these items, so there are plenty of options out there. If you like leather, then choose from many wonderful leather options for your ottoman bench. That isn't the most popular type of ottoman bench, though. Generally, people prefer softer upholstery for their accent items. Since these items will not be used in seating most of the time, they will be there for looks.

Generally, the ottoman bench is a big item that can seat up to two people. Unlike its smaller ottoman counterpart that attaches to a small chair, this accent item is meant to accommodate more than one person. Because of its bulky size, you will need creative when figuring out a good place to put it. Ottoman benches are usually found in large hallways towards the front of a home. Other families choose to include the ottoman bench as a part of its living room furniture. This is alright as long as it is simply an extra piece and not the actual couch.

As far as shopping for an ottoman bench goes, people have become very creative in the past few years. Around ten years ago, people would use furniture stores almost exclusively when shopping for an item like this. These days, folks are much more willing to use the internet in order to find a good deal on an ottoman bench. There are plenty of dealers on the internet that are willing to give you a good deal on one of these items. Others have done one better, bidding on items at places like EBay in order to find a great deal on an ottoman bench. This is probably a little bit irresponsible, though, as you are never sure what condition you will get on items like that.

An ottoman bench can do wonders for a home that is in need of a little bit of accent furniture. It can provide not only a good look, but a place for people to sit when they come to visit your home. Finding an ottoman bench on the internet has never been easier, as well.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery carries many styles of ottoman benches. Those pictured above are examples from Sherrill, Sam Moore, Whittemore - Sherrill, and the Moondance collection from Stanley.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Marriott Works With Hekman

Marriott has opened a luxury hotel in Grand Rapids, Michigan reports Chris Knape and Jenna Carlesso.

From the giant Polish vases filled with locally provided flowers to the hundreds of photographs from sites in Ga District, Ghana; and Perugia, Italy; and other Grand Rapids sister cities, the glittering downtown hotel is a study in cosmopolitan fusion.

Local touches were everywhere during Monday's "sneak peek" media tour of the landmark $100 million, 337-room luxury hotel.

[..]

Furniture from local companies -- primarily Steelcase Inc. and Hekman Inc. -- is found around every turn.

Yes, Hekman is a local company in Grand Rapids, however Marriott is very sensitive to every detail in this spendy refuge for travelers and still chose Hekman. We are proud, as well, to feature Hekman products.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

The Sultry Shades of Gray

Tracy Bulla Senior Product Editor HOME ACCENTS TODAY.RELISH writes about "Smoke & Mirrors."

Gray, the color of the season, arrives in sultry shades of platinum, gunmetal, slate and anthracite. Poised between black and white, gray lends the illusion of mystery, intelligence and extreme sophistication with a silvery smooth, fluid presence. While subtle whispers betray an aura of cool, collected and infinitely understated richness. Whether applied to classic or contemporary designs, the result is effortlessly modern in the absolute.

Wow, all that to describe gray! Too bad you aren't able to see the two page photo layout of Smoke & Mirrors, but Relish is not online yet. I will tell you that I will keep the magazine in the store. You should also know that we ordered a gray sofa some weeks ago and it will be on our floor soon. Give us a call to see if it has arrived.

UPDATE: The sofa is here and it's Fantastic!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Hekman: Tuscan Estates

At the October Fall Market 2007 Hekman will make some exciting new introductions.

Hekman has a long Heritage of shopping Italy for unique antique furnishings in the areas century's old estates or in the fine shops of the Tuscan Region running along the Tyrrhenian Sea trom Carrara to the north to Capalbio on the south, Cortona on the west, with Florence right in the middle.

This Tuscan area is full of fine artisans who reproduce and finish these antique finds in small family run shops where time honored techniques continue to be used to manufacture and finish furniture. It is not unusual for family members to labor over pieces for weeks using old world lacquer techniques and adding layers of color, sanding through the finish build up with river rocks and river sand to produce an exacting replica of a fine antique from one of the Tuscan Estates of the area.

Hekman over the years has stored in a warehouse their favorite samples of these fine antiques from the Tuscan Region and is reproducing them and some adaptations in a collection they are calling Tuscan Estates.

This collection consists of two dining rooms, four occasional groupings, entertainment and home office pieces totaling 31 items. The crafting of this collection reflects the use of the time honored techniques of the artisans of Tuscany using hand planed thick veneers randomly laid in horizontal and diagonal patterns and hand rubbed with bee's wax to reflect the patina of an old planked floor. This creates the core finish to the collection named Weathered Walnut. Then on a select number of pieces with generous turnings and carvings Hekman layered color and lacquer and then sanded through these layers using old world sanding techniques to create a rich Rubbed Onyx color.

Hekman married the Rubbed Onyx color in tandem with Weather Walnut to high light the carving details and the flowing lines of each antique reproduction. To finish the collection they have reproduced a jewelry finish called Tortoise Shell using hand detailing like, the ancient artisans to create the mix of colors necessary for this finish.

Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery is proud to have carried Hekman since 2001.

Bev & Mike

Get Out of Your Overwhelm!

Is this you? You are a mother to two children, a wife trying to find some quiet time with your husband, fitting in an exercise program, working 7 days a week as a designer, feeling lots of stress, and feeling guilty because you think you should be able to handle everything in your life better.

Nika Stewart, a Designer's Success Coach, writes

I know the feeling too well. I wish I could say that I don't, but I am prone to feeling overwhelmed. As designers and business owners, with so many external and internal factors to deal with - the economy, the housing market, our families, our own homes, the demands of our clients, backordered and discontinued fabrics...(oh my gosh, I am feeling anxious just typing this list!), we are bound to feel overwhelmed and stressed sometimes.

The experts say when you are feeling stressed, you should take a break, get a massage, or take a bubble bath. But, who has the time.

Stewart writes, "When I am too stressed and too busy to take even a little time for myself, that is when it is absolutely critical to do so!"

If you are feeling the stress, she recommends an Intention Break

• Step Away - you can NOT stop the ongoing overwhelm if you do not physically step out of the situation.
• Reflect on your goals - remember your priorities, think about your dreams. Write your intentions down, and keep this paper with you always. Post it where you can see them often.
  
• Go back to your regularly scheduled life - If you are continuously reminded of your business intention (reading it when you wake up, glancing at it from time to time as you work, saying it to yourself over lunch), you will make choices on a daily basis that bring you closer and closer to your goal - and further and further away from overwhelm.

I wrote down some of my goals for business and posted them on the kitchen cabinet. I see them all the time. When I'm feeling overwhelmed, I remember one ofmy goals is to retire at 60. Retiring for me might mean working only two or three days a week. I don't know how yet, but thoughts of how to achieve the goal come to me while I shower or drive to the store and I make choices during every day that bring the goal nearer. I let go and let my subconscious find answers.

BTW, Stewart had an online seminar in which she discussed "how I turned my struggling 7-day workweek into a thriving, successful design business (where I work only 4 days a week, make lots more money, and enjoy my life more than ever!)." Maybe, she will schedule another or there may be slides available of her talk.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

The Phillips Collection

High Point is coming soon! Show dates are October 1st - 7th in North Carolina. We are receiving some very interesting marketing pieces from vendors and I thought this was unique for giving a flavor of a company's design. The Phillips Collection, where every piece is a conversation, has been in business for 20 years. We carry many of their accessories at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery.



Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery

Hemlines Are Plunging

Check out this "Boomer" friendly news from The Wall Street Journal's Cheryl Lu-Lien: Tan

The fashion pendulum is swinging to extremes these days. Pants, which were super-skinny just this summer, are flaring out to sail-like widths this fall. Tent-like trapeze dresses are giving way to close-cut pencil skirts. And now — most dramatically — hemlines are dropping.

One of the biggest themes emerging at this year’s New York fashion week is the longer hemline. Here’s a peek at a few top designers’ sketches of this new look.

One of the biggest themes emerging this week at New York fashion shows, which are displaying styles for next spring, is much longer dresses and skirts, many extending to midcalf or even the ankles. Today, Badgley Mischka and Bill Blass are scheduled to present long dresses and skirts for the spring. In the following week, labels including Michael Kors, Donna Karan, Peter Som, Nanette Lepore and Tracy Reese are planning to show longer pieces, many of which are flowing dresses meant to be worn during the day.

The longer looks are a big departure from the micro-mini shifts and short, youthful baby-doll dresses that have dominated stores and runways for several seasons. Just this spring, thigh-skimming looks reminiscent of the mod 1960s were the big trend that retailers and designers were pushing.

Designers — who pooh-pooh the old stock-market adage that falling hemlines presage a falling market – say it’s only natural for the fashion pendulum to swing toward a new shape as the industry seeks to capture shoppers’ interest. Fashion has been careening from one extreme to another particularly quickly these days amid speedier clothing production and broader consumer interest in frequent updates.

As an unofficial and unelected member of the fashion police, I am charged with ticketing any violators of this new fashion, even though it will probably take a year for it to get to PDX. I will say this is great news for boomers and our gravity challenged skin above the knees.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery