AZTEC DESIGN VASE
BUNCHED FRAME DESIGN WALL CLOCKAt the end of this month, we will introduce you to an all-new HomeAccentsToday.com. We have spent months working on our new look and refining the structure to make it easy to use and worth visiting every day.Not all print media is dead! Home Accents Today has recognized that the web is a big asset and by incorporating relevant features on its web site, it can maintain vibrancy.
We will feature four blogs once the site goes live at the end of the month. Susan Dickenson's Retail Update and our Designer Insight you may already be familiar with, but look for lots more postings. Retailer Mike Landfair of Landfair Furniture in Portland, Ore., will post at least three times a week with practical advice and other items of interest for retailers of home furnishings and accessories. And our two most knowledgeable staffers on style, trends and design, Senior Product Editor Tracy Bulla and Art Director Wes Kennedy, will serve up Style + Substance, a look at trends in fashion, industrial design, and, of course, home furnishings.
One such artist is drum and mask-maker Ernestina Oppong Asante from Ghana.
"Before Novica, I had only one shop," explains Asante. "I've been able to make enough money now to send my six foster children to secondary [high] school."
Or take Isidoro Rojas, 41, who has woven tapestries in his Andean pueblo of San Pedro de Cajas since he was a child. Working through Novica saves the five-hour trips to Lima he once took to haggle with store merchants, he said in a phone interview. It has also introduced him to the Internet, which he navigates from a public computer kiosk two hours from his town.
Nothing makes your meals taste better than the freshest ingredients. The Prepara herb-savor will prolong the life of your fresh herbs for up to 3 weeks so you can enjoy fresh, flavorful meals every time you cook.
Most meat, poultry and fish recipes call for fresh salt or pepper during preparation. When you handle raw foods before using your salt or pepper mill the harmful bacteria stays on the mill long after you have finished enjoying your meal. Now with our patented washable salt/pepper/spice mill you don't have to worry about contaminating yourself or your loved ones with harmful bacteria. Just twist the collar to close the door to the grinder. Then wash all of the germs off the mill without fear of getting water into chamber.
Inside this traditional Mason jar hides a highly efficient solar cell, rechargeable battery, and low energy LED lamps. You simply place the jar in the sunlight and the solar energy charges the battery and powers the LED lamps providing a diffused and warm light from the frosted jar. Completely water tight, it can be left outside in any weather, and is the perfect garden light or night-light.It's $55 at the MoMA Store.
If you have a newish kitchen, I'll bet a pound to a pumpkin-seed that it has recessed ceiling lights using halogen spotlights.Yep, that's our kitchen, with one spot over the sink and the other over the space containing the microwave and boombox. The one over the sink is connected to the light fixture that hangs in the middle of the kitchen and they're on a dimmer. Dang, that sink light goes out often!
...low-voltage halogen bulbs "are spotlights, like a torch. They just push light on to the floor." That's why so many are needed. "Ordinary light bulbs produce 10 lumens [the standard measurement of light output] per watt. Low-voltage halogen bulbs produce 20 lumens, but that compares with a minimum of 60 lumens per watt for compact fluorescent bulbs."Compact fluorescent bulbs?
low-voltage halogen might be using 1kW of energy where a couple of compact fluorescent bulbs could do the same job at 40 watts.I googled compact fluorescent bulbs and found the EnergyStar site. This is a Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL):
If every American home replaced just one light bulb with an ENERGY STAR qualified bulb, we would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year, more than $600 million in annual energy costs, and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of more than 800,000 cars.Ah, so that is a Green Kitchen!
Ever wanted to update your decor or pull everything together but wondered how to do it without a complete overhaul? LIT is a flexible accent/mood light that is easily installed under most furniture. It's a virtually effortless way to update or add warmth to your space. Pick the vehicle, (sofa, bed, sideboard?), choose your color, (Passion Pink? Serenity Green?), and watch how the simplest of things can have a huge impact!Yoy would have to make sure there are no dust bunnies! I am wondering if it would work in backyard for mood lighting?
Secured under your furniture with special LIT universal clips that work with any type of frame (wood, metal or plastic). Includes dimmer.
The Association of Interior Designers (ASID) points out today that the new buzz phrases are "age-restricted communities" geared toward "active adults", not necessarily retirees built for boomers.
Builders are setting aside big sections of projects, if not whole developments, for older baby boomers.Active adults want low maintenance living, first floor condos and walkable neighborhoods.Take a look at the demographics, said Vernon McClure, president of the Home Building Association of Richmond. The number of empty- nester baby boomers will double in the next 10 years, he said.
"This is about a change in lifestyle," said Don-ald O. Allen, owner of D.O. Allen Homes, whose company has built six communities in the Richmond metropolitan area that are targeted toward boomers.My question: What is the definition of active-adult? Does this qualify?
"They can have a first-floor master suite and they can get rid of the lawn mowers, rakes and shovels, and someone will clean their windows once a year."
Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery
Utterly elegant
Nature lover
The Origins Cava table, a semicircular piece made from the shell of a fallen tree, creates a stunning focal point with a ceramic Buddha. Both are from The Phillips Collection
CANDLEHOLDER
with Stamped Round Back Mount with 2 Conquistador Swords and Antique Black and Gold Finish, Set of 3 (2 Swords, 1 BackMount), Back: 17"D, Swords: 9"W x 38"L, Holds 3 Taper Candles,
CBK
EIFFEL TOWER DESIGN WINE RACK
with Glass Holders and Brown Rust Finish,22"Sq x 71.5"H, Holds 20 Bottles
CBK
Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery
You can find trend forecasts, designer profiles, product launches and reviews, sale announcements and links to featured stores and merchandise along with practical decorating advice and inspirational eye candy. Reader insight and advice are welcome, creating a mix of design voices, resources and ideas from around the globe:
Apartment Therapy , about small spaces.On the right side of this blog, you will find links to local designers and resources, interviews and links to design blogs around the world, for that is the reach of the internet. An article about you doesn't just reach the Portland area, but the U.S. as a whole and Europe and Asia and South America and is available everywhere there is a connected computer. Watch our blogroll grow!
Design*Sponge
Decor8, an Elle Decor favorite by a blogger in New Hampshire.
Pigtown*Design, based in Baltimore.
Design hole, based in Detroit.
Bloesem blog, by a Dutch blogger.
SF girl by bay, from a self-described bohemian blogger based in San Francisco.
Altering the lighting, from ambient to natural, for instance, can make a space feel less cavernous and more open.
A fundamental step toward renewing a room is to reduce clutter.
Find furniture and accessories that are multifunctional.
Low ceilings can make a room seem claustrophobic. Painting a low ceiling and the walls in the room the same shade can make the ceiling seem higher.
Replace the large, coffee can-like fixtures in track lighting with smaller, less conspicuous ones.
Mirrors -- even the small, decorative kinds -- can expand a space.
Lose the carpet. It's a lot more spacious with hardwood floors.
Hire a professional. They can help you avoid pricey mistakes.
We discussed Pro Tint and how her husband Jim started the business in 1989 as Pro Tint Window Trimming. For a long time, she was in the background and people would call and ask for Jim. Gradually, callers started asking for Julie as well as Jim then just Julie. Now with two capable employees Pro Tint is not just the Jim and Julie show.Bev & Mike
Julie says that fabrics, carpet, wood floors, art and upholstery will fade over time from not only ultraviolet light, but from heat and visible light. Through Pro Tint’s relationship with Huper Optik films, Julie and her crew can provide the best product in terms of performance, aesthetics, high quality protection and customer service, at work or at home.
Fifteen years after Jim started the business, he is retired, but Julie and Julie’s office manager Amica Quesnel and sales consultant Sandy Coleman are busy seeing clients and making estimates. She does find time for a workout and an occasional book by Nicholas Sparks. There is precious little time for gardening so she and Jim have converted garden areas to grass. Julie has recently added a DVR from Comcast to see some of those TV programs commercial free. Now she can decide when she will view a popular show and she can record one show while watching another. She says she even has perfected a technique to record two shows at once.
Metal figures from Palecek are constructed of strip metal in open weave forms to create graceful woman designs.
CBK's Classic Bulging Design Lantern is highlighted by a mix of bamboo, wire and iron in a natural and black finish.
the comforts of the house's interior to a nearby outdoor space, usually one that is attached to the house. This means plush furniture upholstered in weather-resistant fabric, a cooking area or heat source and a covering, such as a canopy, to keep the rain out.Combine the comforts of home, outside, with plasma TV and expensive electronic games, not to mention stereo systems and you have created an Eden, a perfect world at home.
...some homeowners say they’re falling out of love with their expensively furnished backyards, which require hours of upkeep and costly repair. Others are abandoning the rooms altogether.Yes, every year I plant pots with new colorful annuals and Mike refinishes the deck every two years. I've even had to replace some clay pots that flake in the cold. In the fall, pots need to be moved closer to the house to keep plants from freezing and lots of summer nights one of us waters front and back.
The backyard misery has been a boon for exterminators and repair shops. Fire ants nest in speakers and televisions. (They’re attracted to the hum and vibration.) Squirrels chew on the arms of teak furniture and on speaker wires. When expensive electronics come into contact with water, dust, pollen and heat, burnouts and other problems can occur.
The Klismos, used principally by women, was made with delicately curved back and legs. These features allowed the sitter to be in a freer and more natural position. According to Bishop (1979), the backs of these chairs, referred to as Stiles, were designed to the curvature of the back for comfort and extended to the shoulders. The Klismos, like most other furniture, was made of wood and not ornately decorated. In order to increase the comfort, cushions and animal skins were usually placed on the Klismos.
Troy-Bilt, a leading manufacturer of lawn and garden equipment, predicts that in 2007, gardens will continue to be viewed as an extension of the family room and grow in their role as an outdoor entertaining destination.Savvy Gardening has some tips for your garden that will get the neighborhood talking, and make it even cheerier and more relaxing for you in your back yard:
...creating a resort at home becomes more attractive as transportation costs climb.Pure Contemporary in Behind the Curtains has an article about GE,
This new program helps residential developers and builders design homes that are not only comfortable, but that are more efficient in their energy consumption and indoor water consumption than industry–accepted average new homes.Homebuyers are choosing energy efficient homes and look at some of the things provided:
[...]
In the last two years, natural gas costs have risen 42 percent and electricity costs have risen 17 percent, according to a report in Energy Source, March 2007.
...becoming known as the Design District, with Globe Lighting, Bedford Brown, Kravet and other related businesses within a few blocks of one anotherShe notes
While I understand the need to market the North Pearl, I think it's a mistake to label that small section as the one that specializes in design when we have a huge home furnishings group peppered throughout the neighborhood. It's like saying that the area around the armory is "the gallery district" because of a few galleries in close proximity to each other.The North Pearl Design District leans to To the Trade and is easy for interior designers to make many stops and the area is very accessable via freeways from anywhere in the city. Landfair Furniture does 80% of its business with designers. However, we welcome home furnishing and accessory shoppers and are in a position to recommend designer help if needed.
What's new: This spacious furniture store, the first tenant in the new Pearl Design Center, opened in March on the northern edge of the Pearl District.
Where & when: 1636 N.W. 15th Ave. at Savier Street under the Fremont Bridge, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
What's cool: Landfair carries an eclectic array of home furnishings -- from traditional to contemporary -- from designers such as J.D. Chamberlain, Sherrill, Rowe and Hekman. It also plans to add a line of durable, affordable children's furniture.
Who: Beverly and Michael Landfair opened their first store on Macadam Avenue in Southwest six years ago. Beverly says she travels to High Point, N.C. -- "the daddy of all markets for furniture buyers" -- every six months.
Why here: When the Landfairs lost the lease on their first store, they looked around for something bigger and more accessible. This section of the Pearl is becoming known as the Design District, with Globe Lighting, Bedford Brown, Kravet and other related businesses within a few blocks of one another.
Quote: "We have animal crackers out and water in the fridge," Beverly Landfair says. "We try to make it kind of homey." Get in touch: 503-245-4222
Oregonians buy nearly 200 million bottles of water each year and most are not recycled. The state Department of Environmental Quality estimates that Oregonians trash as many as 126 million bottles every year.Over at Fabulously Green, we see that artists have been creative with these plastic bottles:
Aartist Michelle Brand was inspired by the bottom of Dasani water bottles.
The inspiration for these plastic petals were found at the bottom of a bottle--literally. Turn your empty Dasani bottle upside down and voila--a botanically inspired base. Michelle cuts, sands, and strings together recycled bottles to create this light catching fabric.You can only do so much with 200,000,000 bottles. It's about time!
Consider this: The majority of retail operates in a world designed, owned and managed by men for women consumers.Whittemore says these retail establishments are "not connecting with their woman customer."
Connecting successfully means truly understanding who that person is, how she interacts with your store and what value she obtains from you. Although she may have tolerated the way things have been, she increasingly prefers environments that recognize her, welcome her and acknowledge her as having the means to make significant purchases.Consider, also,
Beverly (left) and sister Carol celebrate Open House on May17th at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery in the Pearl Design Center.Beverly and husband Michael look proud of their creation.
Long, short, frilly or barbecue-style, the apron has withstood the test of time, becoming a cultural icon of sorts.In Arizona, local retailers suggest
● A floral-print half apron, embellished with two bold blue butterflies, brings a festive and springy look to the kitchen.For me, I like the solid bib-apron.● Soft ruffles, hand embroidery and delicate floral cutouts on all-white fabric create a crisp, classic and feminine look for an old-fashioned afternoon tea or other special occasion.
● Mommy's or Daddy's little helper can practice cooking while looking adorable in a pint-sized apron
● Vibrant flowers, birds and metallic braiding
A little web checking provides information that a dozen white aprons can be purchased for $48 a dozen. Most aprons sell in the $30 to $35 area. A logo can be added and you have a great impulse item. Can you believe it? People will pay you to advertise your store.
Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery
The ideal outdoor room takes the comforts of the house's interior to a nearby outdoor space, usually one that is attached to the house. This means plush furniture upholstered in weather-resistant fabric, a cooking area or heat source and a covering, such as a canopy, to keep the rain out.Now if we can just get the sun to stay out here in Portland on the weekends.
Deborah Krasner, whose recent book, "The New Outdoor Kitchen," explores one of the most popular new forms of outdoor space, explains the trend as an answer to our desire for instant comfort. Call it The Resort Effect.
"More and more we want the luxury we experience when we travel," she says. "We want that resort experience at home."
"This is a huge trend and an international trend," Krasner adds. Since she completed her book, Krasner has been asked to design outdoor kitchens in Sicily, Denmark and Britain.
Creating a resort at home becomes more attractive as transportation costs climb. (emphasis added)
Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery
(She is) a busy designer for discriminating clients, she also designs furniture for Hickory Chair and fabrics for Kravet.In the interview she was asked, "When do you think a room needs updating?"
A. Rooms that are done in the heat of a trend tend to need redoing five to seven years later. Rooms that are designed with a more personal or timeless approach usually last for a minimum of 12 to 15 years. At that point, I find that fabrics often poop out, depending upon the wear that they receive.While she designs for the Florida market, she is a trend setter and there are some clues as to what will get picked up nationally.
The building activity in the area is breathtaking. Just up the street, Safeway is building a new store and cranes are a fixture on the skyline. If you are in our area, stop by and introduce yourself. Mike's favorite food at the party was the Mexican Wedding Cookie.
We still have some cookies in addition to my favorite, fat-free animal crackers.
Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery
The Top 100 company will close all five of its Minnesota stores and its Brooklyn Center, Minn., distribution center and “part of the company’s continuing strategy to focus its resources in high-growth markets including California, Chicago, Portland (Ore.) and Las Vegas,” Wickes said in a release.I counted 10 Cranes in the downtown Portland area this weekend, and might have missed a couple.[...]
The company said it is opening 10 new showrooms in those markets this year.
While few people would say they go to Target or Costco for pleasure, these retailers have gained an edge in luring people in for everyday products, and then enticing them to fill their carts with much more.What can a small retail business learn from the big box stores? Your retail customers may walk in and say, I didn't know you were here and then on impulse walk out with a purchase because they derived pleasure from buying it.
Welcome to the $80 tube of toothpaste, where a receipt ends up being far longer than the shopping list.
In our store we have some items that look like a spilled wine glass. It always brings a chuckle and then the thought that this item would be great as a joke for that friend with light carpet or the white sofa.
Impulse items, the bubbles in the glass of good retailers.
Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture & Design Gallery
During the past few years, a new material called Hularo has become the staple of high-end contemporary design for exterior furnishings. Hularo is a man-made, totally weatherproof fiber, but unlike other plastic fibers it contains no PVC, will not crack or fade and does not give off toxic fumes.Here are some examples of outdoor furniture using Hularo
You might see decorative metal wall art pieces and grills outdoors, but they're now making decor statements inside the home.These often-ornate pieces can be made of iron, other metals or even faux iron with the look of the real thing.
Pictured are some examples from Global Views:
Louis Iron Wall Panel 24"W x 36"H
Maresca Iron Wall Shelf 7"L x 37"H
CBK also offers metal art:
Queen Headboard Bed with Oval Design, Iron Cast Top, Medallion Accents and Antique Rust Finish, 60"L x 2"W x 60"H
Wine Label Design 9-Bottle Wine Table with Distressed Red, Gold, and Antique Black Finish, 31"L x 11"W x 30.25"H
In many ways, iron wall grills work like any other piece of art you might put on a wall. But because they don't have an array of colors like you might find in paints or tapestries, they are less busy and blend in easily...Both Global Views and CBK are carried at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery, now located in The Pearl.
There are basically nine different aspects each of which has specific colors and materials associated with it that the Chinese believed were important and influenced by your surroundings.Home Decorating Reviews continually comes up with articles of interest to Interior designers and DIYs.
Those aspects included:
- Prosperity which relies on the color purple and uses wood or water as its primary textures.
- Reputation or how successful you are which has the color red and the elements of fire and wood.
- Love and Relationships which is reflected by the color pink and has the earth and fire as elements.
- Family which relies on the colors green, black, and blue and trusts only in the ever changing form of water.
- Health which features shades of yellow, brown or orange and has both earth and fire at its heart.
- Creativity and children or offspring tones of yellow and subtle earth tones are used here with the element of metal to add strength.
- Knowledge and Skill colors of black and green with the earth to balance them.
- Travel and Friendly assistance stark whites and blacks with materials of either metal or water are used here.
- Career aspects of career use the colors blue and white and rely on the strength of metal to reinforce them.
The die is cast, the expert judging panel is back and 11 finalists have been selected to compete during the second season of the original interior design competition, "HGTV Design Star." It's anyone's guess which finalist will walk away with the coveted prize - his or her own show on HGTV... (emphasis added)Does this have the appeal of American Idol? Probably not, but I can see a lot of designers tuning in to gauge the competition and measure themselves.[...]
As with the series' first hit season, fans can expect captivating challenges that stretch the creativity, ingenuity and skills of the designers, artists, stylists, architects and craftsmen who aspire to host a television show.
Outdoor lighting has evolved over the past five years, resulting in the creation of more elegant, sophisticated tabletop lamps for outdoor. Weatherproof shades, cords and bases combine to round out the outdoor living experience.One Company singled out is this lamp from Frederick Cooper, a vendor supplying Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery.
Bev & Mike
The Thatcher teak lamp from Frederick Cooper stands with a square baluster shape complemented by black marble accents and a beeswax round stretch shade.
* The store is an extension of yourself.The last thing we did that night shopping was to stop back in to The Mercantile. The special sweater was waiting and my husband added it to his Christmas presents for me.
* Know your customer by spending a lot of time on the floor.
* Listen to what your customer wants.
* Believe in what you are selling.
* Be able to wear every hat that business requires.
* Build good relationships with your vendors.
* Learn how to sell.
* You must be able to invest the hours to make it a success.
* Remember, it's not a museum; the clothes have to go out the door.
Lightweight trench coatBev & Mike
The new "little" dress (Hint: It's not black)
Dolman-sleeve tunic top
Straight-leg jean, white for sure
Extra-long tanks and T-shirts
At-the-knee shorts
Lacoste polo shirt, the new fit (longer, more buttons)
Flirty skirt
Multistrand bracelets and hoop earrings
Extra-wide belt
Missoni anything, for the color -- Victoria Taylor (as translated by fashion apprentice Erin Hoover Barnett
Mary and Peter Osterberg lived with their functional but oh-so-'50s kitchen for four years before they felt ready to remodel. Then, it seemed, everything just fell into place; their prized Art Deco table and chairs, for instance, which they discovered at a local vintage store. Photo by Marv Bondarowicz THE OREGONIANBev & Mike
Ann Laman of Soderberg Laman Designers came to them asking for a sliding barnlike door that would make a bedroom area private...Bev & Mike[...]
(Lee and Messick) found that making the sliders out of frosted glass allowed light to pass through without compromising privacy. By not using a floor track, they avoided any sign of a retracted door, save for the frame it hangs from.
SCREENPLAY: Sliding doors close off a bedroom from the living space in Ed Tonkin's loft in the Eliot Tower. The design of the door echoes the glass-and-metal design of the loft's expansive windows. Marv Bondarowicz THE OREGONIAN[...]
The two men, both native Oregonians, seem half shocked by the demand for their sliding doors and how it has led them to develop other loft furnishings that emphasize efficient use of space.
David Hyser and Nancy Werner sought a lifestyle change and "engineered" a move to Portland from Chicago in 2004.Their realtor was "horrified" at their choice of house to purchase due to its "issues":
There was no flow between the kitchen and the living/dining room. Homemade built-in shelving crowded the living area. Flooring changed from tile at the entry to carpet in the living/dining room to laminate in the kitchen. A dropped ceiling and poor use of space made the kitchen uninviting. Poor-quality window casings detracted from the windows in the living/dining room.The couple interviewed a number of interior designers and found that Julie DeJardin fit them the best "because they felt confident she would listen to them."
"This whole space now is contemporary and minimalist and engaging," says DeJardin. "It is now more simple and more beautiful."And that's the goal of a good designer.
Hyser and Werner agree.
"We're thrilled," Werner says.
Talking of beds, there are times we all crave for more space to store everyday bedroom articles. You know, those heavy blankets, matching curtains, cushions and the like.We found a storage bed at BermanFALK, the Sonoma storage bed. It is solid birch with dove-tailed self closing drawers. It also comes in a variety of finishes and in three sizes.
Storage beds fit the practical ideals of viability and functionality and serve the purpose of small spaces to near perfection. ...a neat and tidy bedroom is the dream of almost every home.
Home-buyers of tomorrow could find themselves walking across floors made from manure.
That's no cow pie-in-the-sky dream, according to researchers at Michigan State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
They say fiber from processed and sterilized cow manure could take the place of sawdust in fiberboard, which is used to make everything from furniture to flooring to store shelves.
And the resulting product smells just fine.
This month marks the first early start for the High Point Market, held March 26-April 1 in High Point, N.C. The change doesn't have any effect on the variety of outdoor products featured at the show. From outdoor lighting to full-scale casual furniture collections, there will be plenty to see in the Furniture Capital.Several vendors whose furniture is carried at Landfair Furniture + Design Gallery are singled out:
Part of the Outdoorables line of outdoor lighting, Frederick Cooper's The Golden Stalk lamp is crafted from unique porcelain with hand-painted Tuscan leaves over black marble, topped with a sesame fabric round stretch shade.
Palecek's Al Fresco Marina Collection features a unique variegated gray and brown finish over an all-weather weave.
PowerBlog Review: Landfair Furniture
