1 of 6
A vignette from Chaddock
2 of 6
Signature Pillows
3 of 6
Jaipur carpets
4 of 6
Furnishings from Alfonso Marina
5 of 6
A vignette from Thibaut
6 of 6
Lighting by Thomas O’Brien for Visual Comfort
I’ve just returned from a whirlwind tour of the High Point Market in North Carolina, where I joined thousands of interior designers and decorators and retail furniture buyers from around the globe, all shopping the market for the latest innovations in furniture, lighting, wallcoverings and fabrics, accessories, and “just the right thing” for their clients’ projects..
With thousands of companies exhibiting their wares at the market, and only a day and a half to see them, I tried to cover as much ground as possible. The biggest observation I had, as did the Richmond-based designers I ran into while touring the showrooms — Kathy Corbet, Diana Mathews and Cathy Connon — is that enveloping curves, natural fibers and materials, big texture, and warm woods will continue to be important next year.
Boucle all day … sofas and chairs upholstered in boucle fabrics were everywhere. Tweeds, plaids and velvets were prevalent, too. Vertical channel tufting made strong statements on chairs, sofas and headboards. Natural materials mixed with metals and woods to add depth to consoles, chests, chairs and lighting. Some added texture by mixing grass cloth drawer fronts with wood and lacquer frames, while others gave their pieces sculptural dimension with carved designs, metal relief patterns, inlays of shell or bone, and more. Some, like Alfonso Marina, showcased their interpretations of historic furniture forms such as cabinets on stands enhanced with inlay, applied decoration and, in some cases, color.
Headboards were oversized — some wider than the bed, some quite tall — in wood, metal, upholstery and mixed materials. Bedding purveyors throughout the market layered velvets and linens, highly textured tweeds and woven fabrics on pillow shams and duvets with large, chunky knits.
Thibaut draped bedsteads with elaborate floral canopies lined with coordinating solids and finished with dressmaker details — pleated skirts, contrasting welting, decorative tapes, tassels and pompoms. Room vignettes featured furnishings in a mix of pattern and color set against walls covered with large-scale Asian-inspired floral and chinoiserie prints and textured grass cloth.
At Annie Selke, beds were layered with softly fringed linens and vintage kantha quilts; pillows large enough — almost the full width of a bed — to be used in lieu of a headboard or to add a soft layer to a metal bedstead; and oversized pillowcases in classic Liberty of London floral fabrics.
In showrooms throughout the market, throw pillows took on added dimension in ball shapes and bolsters, and there was a profusion of long, rectangular pillows — in lumbar and 16-by-40-inch sizes, to name just a few. Traditional 20-inch squares in a colorful range of toile, chinoiserie, ikat, animal prints, stripes and geometric prints abounded.
Color stories ranged from neutral shades of gray and beige to bold jewel tones of sapphire, emerald and ruby. Woodland hues ranged from forest to mossy greens and shades of brown from mushroom to khaki, camel and walnut. Soft shell pinks were used as accents and as foils to browns and blacks in ’70s inspired abstract patterns. Jaipur Living featured traditional oriental rug patterns in muted color palettes. At Chelsea House, crisp black and whites, spring green, royal blues, and corals were enhanced by gold-finished accessories. Chaddock featured contemporary sofas and wood-framed, barrel-backed lounge chairs in royal blue velvet with bold orange accents.
Wallpaper in general continues to grow in prominence: Scenic panels like those created by historic firms such as Zuber and de Gournay were shown throughout the market. Paul Montgomery, a Staunton-based manufacturer of wall coverings and textiles, featured printed murals and wallpapers inspired by designs found in the Colonial Williamsburg archives.
Antique dealers’ booths were brimming with one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture, lighting and accessories in styles ranging from primitive to Louis XIV to Art Deco and everything in between. The offerings in Richmond-based antique dealer Justin Westbrook’s booths, for example, included an inlaid art deco cabinet on stand, a crystal chandelier, and a set of late 19th-century parcel gilt George II-style chairs.
New lighting designs at Currey & Company, Hudson Valley Lighting, Arteriors and Visual Comfort also featured ropes of light, traditional toile-shaded pendants in sleek, updated forms, and sculptural chandeliers. Pendants and chandeliers crafted of woven rattan and other mixed materials continue to be well represented.
Look for more commentary on High Point Market trends from three Richmond-based designers in the January-February issue of R•Home.
