These days, everyone from designers to homeowners is re-imagining old household furnishings. It need not be an exhaustive or expensive effort. It could include a lamp with a shade made of rawhide, Moroccan-style leather poufs instead of a basic wooden stool, or an animal-print covered ottoman.
BoBo Intriguing Objects of Atlanta offers nearly two dozen styles of chandeliers, from a large “aquarium” with an iron frame covered in linen to smaller amber wine spheres with stainless steel canopies hung from a heavy gauge wire.
“These have been big sellers,” said Michael Berzsenyi, a sales associate with BoBo. “We can’t keep them in.”
It's all part of the modern furniture movement, in which something new and different is something special, but there's still some love for the old favorites.
Old Not Yet Out as New
BoBo Intriguing Objects was one of more than 700 vendors showcasing common items treated in uncommon ways during the Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market in January 2012 in the AmericasMart complex.
One refrain among some buyers making their way through the sprawling 800,000-square-foot complex was a desire for furniture with modern designs instead of the distressed look. For these buyers, antiques were out.
“I’m seeing too much country-style stuff in here,” said Miami-based buyer Vilma Cuenca. “We’re looking for more modern-type items and not the shabby chic stuff that we’re seeing all over the place."
There were, in fact, plenty of vendors featuring furniture with soft, muted colors, painted finishes and little ornamentation — together indicative of the country style. English, French and colonial-era U.S. influences were visible in these designs. A number of vendors offered items and fabrics with floral, checked and striped patterns, and rustic accessories, such as pottery, baskets and carved wooden bowls.
"We actually don't mind the country style at all," said Monica Rolle, a buyer from the Tuscany region of Italy. "Ceramic tableware and that country-style rustic are what's in for us."
Other buyers -- including many from the Northeast and Southwest -- said their customers are looking for pieces with brighter hues and splashier designs. They're seeking items with a mixture of styles and fabrics pulled together by a similar texture, finish and color pattern.
Reds and blues, especially aquamarine and electric shades, seemed to be the preferred colors. They could be found in love seats, recliners and ottomans.
“Color is back,” said Cindy Ollie, a buyer with the Perfect Petal of Denver. “People are moving away from neutral.”
That trend includes the increased use of sleek finishes and unique materials.
Lacquer best typifies the trend. It's showing up on larger pieces of furniture, such as end tables, cabinets and armoires. Some designers are going with Finnish-inspired marimekko fabrics that infuse bold and bright colors into antiseptic home offices.
The timing of the movement has been good for Jim Hampton of Hampton Row in Atlanta, who has turned his lifelong passion for working with glazes and porcelain into a collection of lamps offered in an array of colors and shapes.
Take, for example, the "Turquoise Pillow on Acrylic Base," or the "Matte Griffen Sacramento," which has a blue porcelain base paired with a beige linen shade.
“It’s just a matter of figuring out where the market is going,” Hampton said. “But these are my designs and there’s only one of me. So figuring it out can be a challenge.”
Outdoor Looks
Buyers maintain that customers looking for outdoor furniture and accessories are more likely to fork over their money for uncommon designs, shapes and materials.
Toward that end, Spruce -- a New York City wholesaler featured on the cover of Home Accents Today in November 2011 -- has an array of distinctive garden pots and accessories.
Spruce employs its own craftsmen and artisans -- including a sculptor -- who use the latest technology to come up with a range of designs. The pots are made almost exclusively with fiberglass, and each finish is applied by hand.
“That’s what sets us apart,” said Steven Wilburn, executive vice president of Spruce. “We’re all lightweight fiberglass. You don’t see the same thing here that you see everywhere else. And we’re always churning out new designs.”
New designs also play a role in other outdoor accessories, such as “fiberclay” terracotta planters and towering fiberglass cranes with marble bases and bronze paint finishes.
At Indus Design, an importer and trade wholesaler based in Tempe, Arizona, design consultant Trish McNamara said its buyers are committed to re-purposing older materials as new lamps, tables, cabinets and bed frames.
Borrowing from Pakistan, Indonesia and Peru, among other countries, Indus incorporates disparate design influences into something McNamara calls “urban rustic.”
The concept of urban rustic is conveyed by warm and inviting colors and clean and crisp lines, creating a tastefully designed but comfortable living space. Modern furniture and a trendy color such as turquoise creates the urban feel while rustic touches can be found in leather pillows, faux fur blankets or nickel bar stools.
“Nobody wants anything that looks perfect anymore,” McNamara said. “They want something brand-new, but with that worn-in look.”
Indeed. Buyers mostly want the same things they always have. But new. And different.
