HFN Staff Report
NEW YORK–’Tis the season for seasonal.
With the hardware show and casual furniture premarkets just passed, buyers and vendors have outdoor and seasonal products on their minds and order pads.
For those who haven’t yet finalized their commitments for the 2009 season, the International Casual Furniture & Accessories Market will take place Sept. 15 to 18 at the Chicago Merchandise Mart.
Vendors are focusing on salable seating, from dining and occasional to deep seating “chat groups” and comfortable loungers. Additionally, stand-out silhouettes and accessories are being touted as traffic builders in the stores.
The following is a glimpse at what some of the companies are offering this season.
Laneventure has expanded its Spinnaker Collection of synthetic outdoor furniture with the barrel back game chair and the tall side dining chair. Both are available in either chocolate or aged white, and each comes with a choice of either a teak or stainless-steel leg. And the cushion is constructed via a patented operation known as reticulated foam construction. The barrel back chair combines a chic design and great comfort, while the dining chair’s tall back relaxes you as you sit at a dining table. Previous items in the Spinnaker collection include a sofa, loveseat, cuddle chair ensemble, dining chairs and sectional seating.
Ironworks crafted by artisans in Novara, Italy, were the inspiration for Tropitone’s Novara Collection, which makes extensive use of castings to generate not only beauty but stability. Especially useful for blustery days, the collection’s chairs boast a fully cast arm, draped and finished with old-world scrolls at both front and back. Castings also reinforce the item’s feet and cross bars. The collection offers seats in both sling and woven formats. Both formats offer a dining chair, swivel action lounger, ottoman, bar stool and chaise longue. The sling group also offers around 150 different fabrics and more than 10 frame finishes. The woven group is available in a deep brown known as Saddle, or a tan called Bark.
Old World is new at Pride Family Brands, which is introducing its Soleil and Rialto collections. Soleil’s old-world features include arched details and a seat back that is much higher than one would find on contemporary chairs. This collection includes deep seating—which makes it suitable for indoors as well as outdoors—as well as cushioned and sling dining. The Rialto collection boasts an elegant European motif, utilizing classic Chippendale scrolling, curved arms and semicircular leg supports. As with Soleil, Rialto includes deep seating and cushioned dining. The two collections, part of Pride’s Castelle brand, are available in a variety of decorative finishes and cast tabletop designs.
Monte Carlo and Brazil may be destination spots for vacationers, but for those who enjoy the luxury of their own outdoor living spaces, these two names reflect New River’s latest introduction of casual furniture. Monte Carlo is the collection’s brand name, and Jatoba—Brazilian cherry—is the material. Often used for flooring and stair treads because of its legendary durability, Jatoba, manufactured in the South American country and distributed throughout North America, lends its inner strength and beauty to this deep seating collection. Designed by Philip Behrens of Natura Design Inc., the collection reflects the evolving nature of backyards, patios and terraces as integral “rooms” of a home, rather than as mere adjuncts for occasional dining. Beyond the collection, New River is introducing RÊVE (French for dream), a white wood finish designed specifically for dining collections, and available in mocha and cinnamon.
Playful and fun are the images conjured up by Moroso, in its new collection of colorful furniture from famed Dutch designer Tord Boontje. Shadowy Chair and Sunny Lounger were previewed with much fanfare in Milan this past April. Their shapes evoke 1920s beach furniture from the North Sea and Northern Europe. Shadowy is thus named for its curvaceous high back that protects the sitter from the afternoon sun; Sunny lets the user catch those rays while relaxing on the built-in headrest. These pieces, completely crafted in Senegal by a cottage industry of craftsmen, were inspired by furniture the Senegalese made using traditional techniques interpreted in nylon cord, left over from the fishing industry. The pieces use traditional herringbone pattern, but are amplified with new color combinations stretched over frames made of tubular steel galvanized with zinc and then painted and wrapped in cord.
Shadowy Chair and Sunny Lounger will likely turn heads in the window now through October at the Moroso store at 146 Greene St. in New York.