“I like to use textures and patterns that are visually captivating and texturally engaging.”  Candice Olson

Devine Designer, Candice Olson, has introduced two new fabric collections that were inspired by her Canadian roots and evoke the “cool, fresh feeling of watery blues and greys set off by the warm comfort of wood tones”.

Candice has name the collections “Cognac and Mist” and “Gold Mine”.

They include a range of new textured solids in chenille, velvets and wool blends as well as
classic patterns like damasks, paisleys and stripes reinterpreted and stylized for fashion-forward
flair.

She describes the collection as being beautiful shades of  fawn, caramel and camel that intermix with blues that range from peacock to teal to mist blue for a new fresh and current interpretation.  New textures, wovens and solids are warmer to the eye, as well as to the touch.

Gold Mine Collection

Cognac & Mist Collection

To market – to market – to buy a…

click on any of the images below to see enlarged versions and a gallery

The Four Hands showroom in High Point

Many of our customers are curious about the big Furniture Market in High Point, NC every April and October.  But, we struggle to explain this unique event.  It is a very unique event.  Hundreds of buildings, some built for market and others converted from another use, vie for your attention.  Thousands of vendors create what they hope to be compelling displays.

Lighting adds drama to upholstery

Frankly, the displays range from the sublime to the ridiculous.  You see exciting new designs and colors and staggeringly boring products that have been on the market forever.  Its a hoot.

Here are a few images from the Four Hands market space this year.  We’ve had some incredibly unique items on our floor from Four Hands: leather steamer trunks, polished steel desks w/leather strapping, aged looking shelves and accent furniture, unusual lamps, cool leather dining chairs, and dining tables hewed from grainy, gnarly chunks of wood.  It is a very cool line, and their product aesthetic is reflected in the design of their market space.

The definition of eclectic style.

What does all of this mean to our customers in Des Moines and Central Iowa?  Style.  Attitude.  Furniture and accessories that help you create a room that expresses your unique personality and sense of design.  These are the kinds of unique pieces that help you tell your story.

Spring 2010 Design Trends

April is an exciting time in the furniture and interior design industries.  The largest furniture show in the world takes place in High Point, North Carolina beginning Saturday April 17th.  We’ll be there to find new and exciting designs and products for our store and our customers.

Click on any image below to see a gallery of a few of the thousands of items we expect to see:

After the market we will be posting many more images of exciting new finds.  Please sign up for our email list to receive notification of this and other furniture and accessory news for Des Moines and Central Iowa!

The biggest events in the furniture and home furnishings industry are the Spring and Fall shows in High Point, NC.  An annual award is given for excellence in showroom design which honors the most creative and innovative exhibitors.  We’re very proud, here at by Design to point out that several of the nominees (and both of the top winners!) are vendors of ours that we love to work with.  Here are the top award winners and the remarks that the judges made about them:

Best of Market:

Four Hands

“Known for providing an eclectic mix of products collected from different countries, expressing the aesthetic ideals of numerous cultures, Four Hands has established itself as trend-setting leader in the home furnishings industry.  Judged as the very best at the Fall 2009 High Point Market, this showroom… makes exceptional use of color, lighting and textures to create a visually rich and emotionally engaging experience.”

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Best of Market first runner up:

Global Views

“Global Views… vignette’s suggest ways consumers can use the products in their homes while color pulls the whole ensemble together into a cohesive concept.  As exemplified in their competition entry photo, Global Views’ displays are organized by color, function and design, focus on interesting furniture and lighting pieces, and use striking colors to capture attention.”

People’s Choice Award:

Global Views

“Launched this year to honor the voice of our customers, the High Point Market People’s Choice Award takes showroom competition to a whole, new level.   Global Views, winner of the High Point Market’s 2009 People’s Choice Award, excelled in both aspects of the competition.  Their showroom design was so creative and compelling that it earned Second Runner Up status in our juried Best of Market contest .  On top of that fine performance, the Global Views team also did an exceptional job of promoting their display.”  (Global Views used social media Twitter to before and during market to create excitement about their display.)

To read more about these winners and other nominees or about past winners click here.

In the constant search for the new and better, furniture manufactures are looking again at ultra suede.  Ultra suede (used as a generic term for a type of fabric) became very popular some years ago and then faded from favor.  There were many reasons, but chief among them were the proliferation of cheap products calling themselves ultra suede.  Since the high quality versions have such desirable wear, comfort and color characteristics, manufacturers would like to include some offerings in their fabric options.

What does this mean for you? 

1. Huge fabric color selection.
2. Great wear quality.
3. Comfort

Those are compelling arguments for this fabric.  But the million dollar question (as always) is “What do you, the consumer, think of the new UltraSuede?”

Comparison points for you to consider:

UltraSuede is actually a trademarked name for a particular manufacturing process owned exclusively by Toray Industries.  To better educate consumers to the differences between the legitimate Ultrasuede and the pretenders, Toray has issued the following information:

PRODUCT COMPARISONS
**Three categories of types of suede products
Non woven polyester, non woven nylon, woven/knitted polyester

ULTRASUEDE® IOO%POLYESTER ULTRA MICROFIBER NON WOVEN

1. Trademarked brand name, the original. Toray Industries, in the 70’s, invented the first microfiber. Apparel Designer Ralston introduced into the USA as the first machine washable/dryable designer garment. The benchmark product.
2. Manufacturing process is unduplicated and proprietary. Millions of tiny microscopic microfibers in each square inch. These microfibers are needle punched together. There are no threads. The microfibers are needle punched around an interior scrirn. This is one of the reasons why this product is so durable. Ultrasuede® microfibers are 50 times finer than cotton and about 200 times finer than wool. The suede look and feel are inherent and are achieved during the manufacturing process.
3. Exceeds all light fastness and color fastness testing. This product is used extensively in the automotive industry where color and light fastness testing have much higher standards.
4. Passes over 200,000 double rubs on durability upholstery test.  Residential standards are 15,000 double rubs, contract heavy duty standards arc 30,000 double rubs.
5. Machine washable and dryable.  Does not shrink, stretch, fade or pill.  Most any stain comes out with mild soap and water.

OTHER POLYESTER BASED MICROFIBER PRODUCTS – NON WOVEN

1. Only 1 or 2 other non woven micofibers in the market — no recognizably trademarked products.
2. Density per square inch of microfiber is substantially less due to inferior manufacturing process.  Usage of water jets to mingle fibers which cause force during process.  Less microfibers mean less durability, cleanability, etc.
3. Due to water jet process less surface effect and a dry feel, more like brushed cotton vs. suede.

OTHER POLYESTER BASED PRODUCTS – NON WOVEN AND KNITTED

1. Most microfiber in the market today is either woven or knitted.
2. A woven or knitted product does not have an inherent suede” feel.  To create a suede feel the product has to be sanded. This procedure immediately weakens the thread, leading to an inferior product. In most cases these products need to be backed for stability.
3. Poor durability and color fastness. Barely meets standards for residential furniture.
4. Product weight is about half of Ultrasuede®.

NYLON BASED PRODUCTS – NON-WOVEN

1. Nylon is inherently hydrophilic (absorbs water), can easily absorb its equal weight in water. Leaves water rings
2. Unstable color migration (crocking with other fabrics).
3. Permanent deformation under weight (stretches with poor recovery).
4. Extremely inferior abrasion resistance.

Design blog Design Happens loves Candice Olson and wrote about her collection at the recent High Point market.  Of course, by Design is the only source in Des Moines for the Candice Olson collection of furniture styles and fabrics.  If you’re a Candice fan, be sure to stop into our store and ask one of our designers to show you the pieces on our floor and in the catalog.  Here are a couple of quotes from that article plus a link to the blog:

Design Happens » Archive » High Point: The Candice Olson Collection

by Chelsey Bowen in Furniture Finds, High Point Furniture Market

You didn’t think we’d leave High Point without giving you a peek at Candice Olson’s new pieces, did you? We stopped by Norwalk Furniture’s showroom yesterday and were greeted by her incredible new color scheme of truffles and ice. Candice’s combinations of serene blues, grey-browns and bright whites create a relaxing, yet sophisticated atmosphere.

The Ollie Sectional is the newest piece of her popular Ollie collection. With it’s sleek style and versatility in fabric, arm and leg choices, it’s the perfect addition to any family room.

My favorite new pieces is the Calvin chair. One of the things Candice does best is taking a classic style and adding her own unique touch to it. The Calvin chair is a tribute to the timeless wingback, but the deep pitch and exaggerated curves bring an updated, sexy vibe to the design.

We have an exclusive interview with Norwalk experts coming soon. Just wait until you see the Calvin chair in white leather!

Design Happens » Archive » High Point: The Candice Olson Collection

Fall ’09 Design Trends
At by Design we’re fascinated and excited by the color and design trends that are constantly reshaping our designs and homes.  We hunt for news that we think is relevant to our customers in Des Moines and Central Iowa.  We would like to occasionally provide you with outside points of view about what is exciting and new in furniture design, furniture color trends, fabric design, accessories — everything that goes into creating a beautiful room.  Here are the six hot design trends that Metropolitan Magazine has forecast for Fall ’09 after visiting the Spring furniture market in High Point:

Glamour
The economic slump brought glamour to the fore with rich materials, sophisticated colors and stunning curves.

Metallic Leather
This new glimmering leather treatment put a shine on classic furniture shapes.

Pleats Please
In upholstery, we saw tailored looks and fashion details everywhere.

Small Space Solutions
For the pragmatists in the audience, we saw several savvy pieces for small spaces.

Green and Gorgeous
Green has finally made it to High Point, North Carolina, and you couldn’t turn a corner without receiving a flyer about green design or hearing about the latest, greatest green manufacturing technique.

Hopeful designers compete for the ultimate prize: their own design show on HGTV.

HGTV Design Star is back for a fourth season beginning Sunday, July 19, at 9 p.m. with 11 finalists who have tremendous incentive: the winner gets their own show on HGTV.  And, judging for the first time is Candice Olson, designer of some of by Design’s most popular upholstery groups.

The competitors are professional designers, home stagers, architects and artists. They compete by offering clever design solutions to various design challenges.  Budget and time constraints and production schedules add to the reality of the situations. Viewers should see innovative designs and the latest colors and trends.

The hour-long series will air on Sundays for nine weeks through September 13.

Want to follow the competition and the behind the scenes drama? Check out the DesignStar blog:
http://blog.hgtv.com/design-star/

In the home furnishings and interior design world the High Point, North Carolina market is widely acknowledged to be the largest, most important event of the year. And it happens twice a year!

Each April and October 85,000 buyers, manufacturers and members of the press descend upon this small city. They walk the streets between over 100 buildings showcasing every imaginable piece of furniture, tables, chairs, rugs, lamps, wall art and accessories.  At over twelve million square feet of display, we know that we’ll never see all of the companies or merchandise displayed here.  But, part of our mission is to bring back part of this cornucopia to Des Moines and Central Iowa.

Here are some of the exciting things that the by Design team discovered in the High Point market this April:

The Malibu leather sectional has a wonderful attitude. It has a unique adjustable back that is both simple and elegant. Just slide the back cushion up and back, put your feet up and relax. Combining plush lines and cushioning, the Malibu is a fabulous design.

Gray has been emerging as a powerful and functional design color. One of the best ways to accessorize grays is with silver and mirror finishes. A great example is the Metropolis round striped-base table. Deco-like lines finished in a polished pewter look make this a great accent piece in your room. It’s like adding a bit of jewelry!

The new curvy Tousley sectional adds dynamic lines to a room. It is a sophisticated design with thin track arms, tufted back cushions and tapered feet. A great design like this brings amazing drama and fun to a room. Never underestimate the value of either fun or drama.

These vases have a bright pewter finish with a black matte textured base. These great finishes and interesting shapes add texture, detail and personality to your room.

Dull brass is an emerging finish. It brings back the warmth of brass without the dated look of polished or highly antiqued brass. We loved the Miami Horn end table with its tapered, flaring legs and functional size. It’s a great accent piece.

We like the Breonna table lamp for its interesting shapes as well as the beautiful textured shade and great finish.

The Bellucci buffet lamp combines an elegant shape with unusual metallic shade and handsome design details.