I’ve been meaning to write this post ever since I returned from High Point Market, but my clients, my life, and working on getting Scarlet’s room completed for the #OneRoomChallenge got in the way.
This little cartoon kind’ve spoke to me given how crazy it’s been ever since getting home! LOL!! My friends who know me, know I love a glass or two of wine at the end of a long day and my (very patient) husband will definitely get a laugh when he sees this.
MY HIGH POINT MARKET HIGHLIGHTS
When I go to #HPMkt, I go for many reasons. To source custom furniture, art and accessories for my clients, to receive in-depth education from my vendors and service providers, to re-connect with friends and do a little bit of networking, and to spot style directions I think will have an impact on my interior design work.
All day long, every day when I’m there, I’m visiting showrooms one after the other, taking pictures, and it’s only afterwards, when I have the time to review all the images I’ve taken, that I can clearly identify the themes or style directions I was attracted to that I think will have an impact on my own design work.
STYLE DIRECTION #1 – BIRDS.
This may be because I had flamingoes on my brain as I was sourcing flamingo wallpapers for Scarlet’s room, but, whatever the reason.. birds were everywhere!
There are always a lot of natural animal prints at High Point Market because animal print textiles are a classic design staple, but this market, BIRDS almost eclipsed the leopards, tigers and cheetahs…
I don’t know why exhibitors were drawn to showcasing so many birds this market? Maybe it’s because they sensed our clients are drawn to the indoor outdoor lifestyle more and more and need a little bit of the sense of the simplicity, natural elegance and freedom birds inspire?
STYLE DIRECTION #2: METAL LEGS
Beautiful legs have always been a hallmark of custom furniture, the kind of legs you don’t see on furniture in the big box stores or on furniture available from the big ecommerce sites, but this market I saw more uniquely shaped metal legs than I have in the past.
I love the way this exhibitor, shown below, combined two tones of wood – one light and one dark (and chose a burl for pattern) and then added the metal leg to add even more textural contrast and a little bit of glamour.
The front and side view.
I loved the copper color and the shape of the metal leg on this end table.
STYLE DIRECTION #3 – HANDCARVING AND ARTISAN PAINT DETAILS
More than in previous markets I’ve attended, I noticed many exhibitors adding intricate painted details and handcarved details to their pieces. Besides the painted detail that looks like inlay in the first image below, I also loved the corner edges of this chest – these labor intensive artisan touches are the hallmarks of custom furniture.
My clients will love the accent bureau in the second image.
The handcarved piece shown below is part of an entire new collection based on the work of architect William Morris, one of the most significant cultural figures of Victorian Britain and one of the founders of the Arts And Crafts Movement.
Can you imagine the amount of time it took the artisan to carve this by hand?
And although I didn’t have time to go this market, if you ever want to find out more about William Morris and his place in design history, I invite you all to call or visit the Bienenstock Furniture Library in High Point. I hope to be able to visit the Library during Fall Market.
In addition to those 3 style directions, I identified one I am calling, “Modern Hunt Club.” Think, the first image I showed you with the geese on the chairs and the blue leather sofas! I’ll be watching for how that style direction develops at the Fall 2019 #HPMkt.
What follows are a few more individual images I want to share with you of specific pieces I liked, or new vendors I found, one of which is the opening image on this post and also shown below.
This artist exhibited for the first time, and I fell in love with his embroidered works of art as did many of my designer friends that saw these, too.
What do you think of these? Let me know in the comments, and if you want me to order some for your home, let me know. I can have them shipped anywhere.
This corner chest was another one of my favorite individual pieces. I love the fluting detail on the front and sides. If you’d like me to order this for your homes, again, let me know. It comes in a variety of different finishes and I can send you samples.
This chandelier was my favorite of all the chandeliers I saw this market. Those rose quartz crystal clusters were so pretty in person and I couldn’t help but think how perfect this would be for Scarlet’s bedroom, if only I had taller ceilings.
Speaking of which……
I spent a good portion of time at this market sourcing for a patterned wallpaper I wanted to use for Scarlet’s bedroom. She was one tough client – LOL! Read about that here and see which one she finally approved!
If you want to see where I started with her bedroom, click here.
Be sure to subscribe to my blog for my Week 4 and 5 updates on Scarlet’s room and the big #oneroomchallenge reveal Week 6, on May 9th!
And just in case any of you have daughters that like flamingos, here are some flamingo themed wallpapers you can buy directly from my post, to save yourselves the time I went through to find one that was Scarlet Approved.
Buy directly by clicking on these corresponding numbers: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 ( Please note that #2 needs to be shipped in from the UK, the rest are available here in the USA.
Lastly, I really like this flamingo quote pillow for a younger girl’s room. It’s a little TOO young for my very grown up teen daughter, but would have been perfect for my youngest daughter, if flamingos had been her theme.
If you missed the final reveal of her bedroom, during the Fall 2017 #OneRoomChallenge, and would like to see it now, click here.
If you’d like to have this flamingo quote pillow for your own daughter’s room, click to buy it now for 10.00 on Amazon here.
( For transparency: if you do purchase the flamingo pillow or the flamingo themed wallpapers from this post, I will make a small commission, but it won’t cost you anymore than if you buy it directly. Thank you for supporting my small business this way – I appreciate it! )
Be sure to follow along with my instagram Stories for behind the scenes sneak peeks of all I’m working on, both for my clients and Scarlet’s room!
As always, thank you for taking the time to read my posts and leave me your comments. I read and respond to each and every one as soon as I can.
And if I can help you professionally in any way with the interior design of your residence, office or hospitality property, please reach out to me by clicking here.
Thank you!
Jana Donohoe, ASID
www.janadonohoedesigns.com
Fayetteville, North Carolina
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