Having said all that, it was not sunny this trip. Heavy clouds and a snap cold front set the stage for an ominous five hour drive to North Carolina, and the fact that I blew a headlight didn’t help my mood much. Experts on the radio discussed winners and losers of the latest Republican debate. A welcome break came at Starbucks in Greenville where I always stop for a visit with a good old friend. Over coffee we solve the world’s problems and debate things like if heaven will be in the clouds or just a better version of earth.

Arrival at the Doubletree in Greensboro after midnight is par for the course. Experience has conditioned me to expect something to go wrong with my hotel room, however this year I was pleasantly surprised by no surprises except a warm chocolate chip cookie at check in and an even warmer greeting. The room was spacious and well appointed and the bed looked especially cushy. Brimming with exceeded expectations, I threw open the curtains to take in a sweeping view of….the dumpster. Back to reality. Oh well, I’ll take a dumpster view in exchange for a lock that works and functional plumbing.

Thursday before market was spent in a class on internet marketing, and planning for the big weekend of showroom touring. Breaking news! Martha Stewart is presenting her new line of furniture through Miles Talbott, one of my great vendors! This has potential! I spilled a margarita on Rachael Ashwell last year, what might happen if I meet Martha? What might she say if I spill a margarita on her? I’m guessing that would not be a good thing. Word is she doesn’t just give a papal wave on a design bearing her name but rather is deeply involved in every nail and stitch. Descriptions of the fastidiousness of her team shed light on the reason for her tremendous success in all she has undertaken.

Thursday night dinner conversation was filled with crazy furniture stories….yes, they exist, and a really cool bar trick by my new friend Robert, a custom home builder, who blew our minds with a fork and spoon suspended in a physics defying balancing act on the side of a glass by a burning toothpick. I should have taken a picture but my hands were too busy picking my jaw up off the table.

Next day, off to market. Keep in mind that Friday is not officially ‘market’, so I had a full day to get the scoop while minds were sharp and smiles were bright, knowing that conversations would soon be dulled by aching feet and sensory overload.

Morning started at the Miles Talbott showroom, well actually it started at Biscuitville, but you know what I mean, and my group was all atwitter over being one of the first to see this new Martha Stewart collection. Given that Martha’s website gets like five gazillion hits a month I was expecting to see something along the lines of Vegas Strip lighting and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir to announce this major partnership, but those funny Miles Talbott folks had that “what’s the big deal?” look on their faces behind Cheshire cat grins. Clearly this IS a big deal, but true Southern gentle-people don’t jump up and down. Neither does Martha, I suppose. So, to prolong the agony they toured us around the entire building first. Clearly there was a lot to see and you must show respect to the top gun designers in the Miles arsenal, but doggonnit we wanted to see Martha! Just when I thought that maybe we would have to wait ‘til next market, there it was on the wall before me: ‘Martha Stewart Fine Furniture’. I paused in reverence and entered. Our lead designer is a huge Martha Stewart fan and knew what to expect when she visited on Saturday, but I had no preconceived notions. The two words that popped in my mind as a first impression upon seeing the collection were ‘Federal’ and ‘Asian’. Some of the pieces looked like they could be on loan from Mount Vernon or Monticello, but there were a few with Asian influence such as a fan mirror and a side table with bamboo inspired legs. Her fabrics were more colorful than I would have imagined, and apple green made a big splash on the settee shown here.

Post Martha, to sum up what I saw over the next couple days: French, gray, blue, birds.

French is first because that is the look representing the goose that laid the golden egg which unfortunately is sure to be killed soon via overexposure. French script was ever present, just like last market, but I am telling you I heard the word ‘French’ so often and in so many creative ways I would bet the official food at market was French fries. Doubt me? I wrote this one down just to get the quote right.

“…and its finished in a bleached post industrial sandblasted French.”

Deco French, French rustic, French music set to a techno beat, even the color red I noticed as a new accent this year was Bordeaux. Why couldn’t it be Chianti? ‘Cause Chianti’s not French.

To be honest, I loved it all. The look is super cool, but now that you can find it at Target how much longer can it last?

I spoke to long time fabric buying guru Sue Dunn about the accent colors at market this year and her response was blues are still big. Spa blue, turquoise, navy. Robin egg blue. She was right; blue was the predominant accent color in most showrooms whether in fabric, accessories, or occasionally in painted finishes. Apple green was strong, too, and as long as there was a gray background you could count on yellow to be nearby.

Favorite name for a color: “glazed shagreen yucca plant blue”. Honestly, what comes to your mind?

Gray was the featured neutral base color for upholstery and casegoods, and it really looks good. Accent colors pop next to gray and the weathered look it gives to occasional tables and casegoods says the owner is stylish but casual. Dove gray, slate gray.

It’s cool to see how these trends all work together. First you have the eco trend which brings in a natural look; then you have the great recession trend which drove us to simplified comfort. Add a little casual sophistication and viola! French Laundry.

Another insightful quote regarding consumer trends, “Everybody wants red but buys beige.”

I spotted accent walls and fabrics in the purple family, not a lot, just a surprise here and there, but enough to ask a color expert about it. He confessed, “Raspberry, plumb, purples, yes they are out there but purple always makes us nervous.” Scary purple.

At this point in my notes I wrote “wayyyy too much coffee.”

One factory rep told me they monitor trends in fabrics sent in by designers (for custom covers on their sofa frames) for guidance in selecting future fabrics offered by that manufacturer. They’ve seen so many bird fabrics they added a couple to their lineup. I noticed birds on a couple pillows last market and saw bird fabric in nearly every showroom this fall. Saw turtle shell in a couple of showrooms this market and now wonder if turtles will take over the world next spring.

Geometric patterns in fabric have led to fretwork designs in furniture which showed up in some clever places like headboards and occasional tables. Spooled legs…big.

Heard a story about the designer for Kate and William coming to High Point and requesting a Rolls Royce to meet her at the airport. Probably aren’t many Silver Shadows in town. She stayed at one of the nicest hotels but had to have her sheets flown in from England, poor thing. Contrast that with word that Oscar De La Renta himself was working past midnight to get his showroom ready.

From class and culture to the best (or worst) line I heard by a rug salesman who happened to be using a cane. “You want to know why I am using a cane? I took a Viagra and it’s been more than four hours.” Bet that works with all the ladies…

How would you like to be energized or have the confidence to meet life’s challenges?  According to the color experts at Pantone, all you need to do is put a little honeysuckle in your world.  Think I am joking?  Here’s a quote from their executive director in the press release on the 2011 color of the year, “In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues.”   That last phrase might be an inside joke since the previous color of the year was turquoise.  Those funny color experts…

For those of you, including me, who thought honeysuckle was yellow, it is actually a reddish pink in this case.  Huh, and I thought I knew my colors.  So, I know what you are thinking.  Who gets to pick the color of the year and what difference does that make to me while I drive my taxi from soccer practice to cheerleading practice and back to lacrosse practice?  Well, there are people out there, spectral clairvoyants, who are paid a lot of money to predict popular colors in the future, and there is a lot of money riding on their accuracy.  (I just made up ‘spectral clairvoyants’, by the way)  Manufacturers of everything from clothing and cosmetics to furniture, electronics, and autos are betting serious cash that they are right.  What that means to you is that you should already be seeing this color in home magazines, at the makeup counter, and in fashion.  As a matter of fact, I was visiting my friends at Belk’s at the Forum a couple of weeks ago and honeysuckle was already sprinkled throughout the store, especially in the young women’s department.  I’m not so sure you will see a honeysuckle Chrysler any time soon, but it wouldn’t completely surprise me to see one of the edgier car manufacturers give it a whirl.

I fully expect to see this color strongly represented at the spring furniture market in High Point, most likely in accessories, accent pillows, and wall paint as a statement.  Certainly when it comes to your home, if you choose to be on top of the trend, we would recommend using this color in small doses just to give your room a fresh pop.  We wouldn’t want you to be too energized or over confident!

http://tinyurl.com/2bc5mw3

Every so often, if a little extra time is taken to put a pinch more effort into doing something special for someone else, a beautiful thing might happen.  This is the story of just such a thing.

Little Jack wants to be a fireman when he grows up, more so than any other six year old I have ever met.  I’ll bet he knows more about firemen and the fire department than you or I ever could imagine.  He knows the local station numbers.  He knows the equipment.  He even has a fire suit that looks just like the real thing.

Jacks parents moved the family into a new house and wanted to do something special for their son, so they decided to decorate his new room in a fireman theme.  Veronique accepted the job with enthusiasm as she had bonded with young Jack while working with his folks as they furnished their home. 

A Bunk bed, bookcases, and a dresser were selected and paint colors were chosen.  Red lockers were installed.  Veronique had a pillow made with a custom firefighter emblem with Jack’s name included.  Next she had to look for accessories to complete the fireman theme, so she asked me if I had any contacts at the local fire department.  I called a friend, Sgt. Debbie Kalish, an officer with the Johns Creek Police Department, and asked her who she knew and told her about Jack.  She sent an email to Chris Holcombe with the JCFD, who then reached out to me and suggested we come down to the station to see what we could find.

Diana and Veronique went to the station and were given a warm welcome by the guys at the station.  They came up with a retired 50’ fire hose.  Perfect.  Chris then mentioned that he had seen a craigslist post offering a pair of fire boots for free.  Upon her return to the office, Veronique got on the computer, found the listing and made a call.

“I understand that you have a pair of real firemen’s boots that you are giving away for free,’ she asked.

On the other end of the line was David Matheny, who replied “I do have boots that I will give away for the right reason.  What’s your story?”

She told him about Jack and David quickly agreed that the little boy should have the boots.  They arranged to meet. 

The boots, size 14D, were black and heavy, with marks of wear and traces of soot that were earned the hard way.  Veronique was overjoyed with her find and inquired as to where they came from. 

It turns out that David’s father, who recently passed away, was a lifelong firefighter.  After his passing, there were things that needed to be cleared out of his home, but the family just didn’t want to throw everything away.  The story of little Jack and his love for the fire department was just what they needed to hear and the thought of their fathers boots being enjoyed by a little boy lifted their spirits.

It didn’t end with the boots.  The more David’s family thought about their father and about Jack, the more they found joy in giving him additional pieces of their collection.

Now Jack has a full sized firefighter suit.  They call it ‘turnout gear’.  It smells like smoke.  It gave us goosebumps.

Every so often Veronique would get another call from David after he found something else that he thought Jack would like to have; firefighter tie tacks, fire extinguishers from the 1940’s, the lamp that his father had on his desk, a photo used for training at Georgia Tech, his father’s helmet, his badge. 

David found the light that his dad would clamp on the top of his car on the way to an emergency.  With a little help from an electrician, it now serves as an alarm, blinking when it’s time to wake up.

Jacks parents were overcome by the generosity of a stranger, and frankly we all were touched by this story of one little boy’s dream and how it enriched the keeping of a fathers memory alive.

There will be a party when the room is complete and finally Jack and his parents will meet David and his family.

Thanks to everyone who made this project a success.

Here is the bio of William Matheny.  Please take the time to read what David wrote about his father.

William J. Matheny {Bill}. Dad was a graduate of the Citadel 1951. He started his firefighter career just outside Augusta Ga. in Martinez as a volunteer firefighter. 

Late in 1969 we moved to Atlanta when Dad was hired at Georgia Tech as an instructor with the Georgia Fire Institute. The department he worked in provided training for both volunteer departments, county departments and city departments. During his time at the Georgia Fire Institute he was very instrumental in developing fire fighting procedures when dealing with LP Gas {Liquid Propane} fires. He also was involved with creating a 2 year Fire Diploma Course that was taught at area colleges.

 He dedicated over 30 years working with IFSTA {International Fire Service Training Association}  The mission of IFSTA is to identify areas of need for training materials and to foster the development and validation of training materials for the fire service and related areas. IFSTA’s publishes such manuals as the Essentials of Fire Fighting.

After several years with the Georgia Fire Institute it was time for a change but he always had a hand in Fire Safety. He spent the next several years with ITI {International Training Institute} and Gold Kist, working very closely with safety and driver training.

Dad eventually went back to his true passion and created his own company, Fire Education, specialized in fire safety in the private sector, working with many companies such as Atlanta Gas Light.

Emptying the contents of my pants pockets on the desk in my hotel room, I looked down at the considerable pile and smiled.  Lots of candy wrappers, two Yuengling bottle caps, and Dan Gasby’s business card.  It had been a good day.  Yes, a very good day…

(Insert dream sequence music here)

It is cliché to say that a place is a study in contrasts, but High Point, North Carolina is just that.  Showrooms full of beauty and creativity, on the cutting edge of fashion for the industry, bursting with energy, surrounded by blocks of low slung brick buildings that are a quiet and sad reminder of a more prosperous industrial time.  As an example, the Huntington House showroom, which features product tailored to perfection with fabrics of textures and colors that make designers swoon, is mere steps away from Grumpy’s Green Oak Tavern, the kind of joint that smells like Bourbon Street the day after Mardi Gras. 

Arriving just after eight in the morning, my intended parking lot, the one where I’m sure all the cool people park, brushed me aside with a LOT FULL sign forcing me to relocate a mere three blocks away in distance but miles away in security and stylishness.  Yes, when you are at market, there’s even style in where you park.  Saying a little prayer for the safety of my car, I uncooly tiptoed through the broken glass and mudholes in the graveled lot and made my way to my first meeting.  Things had not started well and were about to get worse.

Believing more in Providence than karma, I am hesitant to swallow the notion that forgetting my digital camera on a business trip that revolves primarily around things visual would have anything to do with the fact that I stole my son’s laptop the last time I ventured to High Point.  Hopefully my new friends, Scott and Darren, owners of the Luxe store in Victoria, BC, don’t think my good ol’ American friendliness had anything to do with that 7” lens dangling from a strap over Scott’s shoulder.  With my photography problem solved, I could now direct my focus on the important things.

It is rumored that fresh oxygen is pumped throughout the gaming areas of Vegas casinos to keep the players fresh and alert.  High Point is not so sophisticated in their methods.  They use candy.  There are candy bowls everywhere and buyers are drawn to them like little hummingbirds to a feeder, ingesting bursts of sugar to keep the energy up throughout the day.  It must be frustrating to be a showroom rep, eagerly proclaiming all the freshly memorized features and benefits of this year’s product only to have the pre school equivalent attention of the buyers hijacked by the discovery of a heaping bowl of Whoppers mini-packs.  
I have to say, Market was sparkling this year.  A couple of seasons ago the manufacturers appeared to have thrown their hands up in despair.  Market looked like the proverbial clown threw up as it was every man for himself in an attempt to produce something the buyers would like.  Something, anything!  This fall, Market was back.  It was poetry.  It was harmony.  It was a jazz quartet in perfect casual yet elegant rhythm, with grace notes of color, and boy was that nice to see.   Everything looked so natural, literally.  Nothing was forced or contrived.  I saw a lot of weathered wood, farmhouse and driftwood finishes, distressing, and plain linens.  Colors were light and muted.  Things were simple and comfortable.

One of the most innovative initiatives in the history of the furniture industry is the use of……oh look, Hersheys Special Dark!

Blue was the color this fall, every blue under the sun.  The predominant tones were soft and dusty, with touches of navy and peacock here and there.  Blue goes nicely with the French Laundry look that is all the rage right now.  Thank goodness orange is on the way out.  Sorry orange lovers, you had your season.  Step aside.  The warm tones that appeared showroom to showroom were spice colors.  Cinnamon, paprika, nutmeg.  There was one shade of red that looked so familiar to me.  Every time I saw it I would nudge a rep or another buyer to ask just exactly what that color was.  “Well it’s sort of a brick”.  No it wasn’t.  “Tomato”.  Nope.  Finally it hit me.  Tomato paste!  If you have ever made pasta sauce and opened a can of tomato paste, that’s the color.   

While simplicity reigned supreme, there is a movement towards pattern in upholstery bodycloths.  Geometrics, almost a neoclassical look.  It made me jot down the words ‘Greek influence’, whatever that means to you.  Scroll fabrics, lattice, fretwork.  I also noticed large birds in fabrics this year in more than one place, but fewer florals.  Patterns were larger, whether in fabrics or on rugs.  Rugs were large scale pattern, tone on tone.  Contemporary rugs were often used in very traditional settings. 

Now, having said that things looked smashing in their simplicity this year, I have to confess that there were a couple of alarming moments.  I texted Veronique, back at our store, “uh oh.” 

Veronique: “What?”

“Mauve.”

“Noooooooooooooooooooooo!”

A few minutes later, from another showroom:  “Uh oh”.

Veronique: “What now?”

“Fuchsia, I think I threw up in my mouth a little bit.”

Veronique thought I was messing with her, because when I mentioned that there was flat out shamrock lovin’ kelly green in one corner of the Century showroom she texted that she didn’t believe me.  I had to send her a photo from my phone.  To be fair, the rest of Century’s showroom was spectacular, as usual.  It was there that I heard one particularly interesting comment about the continuing popularity of the Tuscan look. It is being fueled by the fact that with the crash of the housing market people are getting sweet deals on large Tuscan style homes which can only be furnished with Tuscan style furniture.

Later in the afternoon I bumped into Jim Calhoun, who is probably one of the most knowledgeable and nicest people in the industry.  I still don’t know exactly what he does, so there’s a mystery about him. He works with Miles Talbott, is a color expert, and puts up with my stupid questions, so I like him.  He should be sainted for that alone.  He pours a mean margarita too, I’ll tell you.  Actually, I will tell you a margarita story after I tell you what Jim told me about color.  In chatting with him about blue being “the” color this year, and that I had seen every shade imaginable, he said that navy and dusty blues are what’s ‘out there now’ and that everything else (all the other shades of blue) is fringe.  Since he’s the color guy, I challenged him.  “Jim, what up with the mauve?”  You should find his answer interesting:  Gray, purple, mauve, and fuchsia are showing up in apparel right now, and home furnishings follow fabrics.  Purple almost never makes the jump, but you still have to give it a shot…or words to that effect.

Text:  “SC OMG!”

Ok, the margarita story.  I sort of spilled one on Rachael Ashwell.  Rachael, the founder of the Shabby Chic brand, was there in the middle of all her wonderfully comfortable furniture that is beautifully perfect in its imperfection.  Sorry, but I was smitten with her accent and rather than taking notes on furniture construction and fabric options, began writing down words that sounded great when she said them.  Laboratory.  Think how Hugh Grant might say it, except with a female voice.  We even had a group discussion on the proper way to say “bottom”.  I don’t care, she could read a phone book and it would sound lovely.  So you know, the Shabby Chic brand has been out there for twenty years or so.  There are three Shabby Chic Couture stores, London, NY, and LA, where the product is highly customized (I’m guessing that might mean pricey?).  Miles Talbott brings her line affordably to people like you and me.  When you think Shabby Chic, you think comfort, beauty, light, airy, soft pastels….flowers…horses…kittens.  You don’t think Ozzy Osbourne, but Ozzy is a big Shabby Chic fan and all of his SC furniture is black.  I didn’t see a speck of black in her showroom, but she made it happen for Ozzy.  I have to confess that it’s a funny thought to imagine him venting colorful language trying to get out of the super soft Comfy Sofa. 

I mustered up the courage to ask Rachael if she would take a picture with me and of course she graciously assented.  We sat on her Grace sofa (because I had ordered one) together, she staged the setting and the picture was taken.  Somehow, when I got up and was clumsily and somewhat nervously thanking her, I dropped my plastic margarita cup, which I’ve gotta tell ya made an awful lot of noise when it smacked the hardwood floor. I stood in horror as the sticky droplets of shame flew high in the air and landed on the sofa.  Being a quick thinker under pressure, I recalled that a big feature of the Shabby Chic line is that it’s slipcovered, so I said “Hey, it’s washable, isn’t it?” to which Rachael Ashwell replied in her wonderful accent, “Yes, and myself as well.” 

Back to market trends…

Window treatments were simple panels, but Veronique and Janice noted that banding was popular along the leading edge or at the base of the draperies, as well as on skirts of chairs and ottomans, and even on drumshade chandeliers.  They liked the combination of the traditional with contemporary-linen panels with grommets, large simple pleats, on a wood or wrought iron pole.  Very casual and relaxed, just like the rest of market.

You know, if you just want my bullet points on trends, go here http://georgiainteriordesign.com/tricks-of-the-trade/high-point-market-notes-fall-2010.

Did I mention that the Paris thing is big?  I saw evidence of it in virtually all of the leading edge showrooms.  From the extraordinarily chic Salon chair and sofa offered by Joe Ruggiero, all the way to a simple script fabric toss pillow on a linen sofa.  One thing struck me funny was that some of the script fabric had been dumbed down.  Last market the script was exclusively French and I had Veronique translate it for me before I published my photos just in case it said something naughty.  This year some of the script was in English, and it wasn’t very interesting with lines like “sunlight is ideal” and “avoid planting near trees and shrubs.”  I prefer the French, even if I can’t read it.

That night I had the pleasure of having dinner with a few friends including George Jordan, President of Miles Talbott, and Dan Gasby, Renaissance Man.  He’s the kind of guy whose accomplishments makes me wish I could get a do over.  Dan is married to B. Smith who I mentioned in my notes last market seems to be the ultimate entrepreneur, with her hands in restaurants, fashion, jewelry, furniture, etc.  This year they are even in the MRE business…you know, Meals Ready to Eat, for the military?  Poblano Corn Chowder is one offering.  I can hear our troops overseas rejoicing now.  Dan is the quintessential New Yorker, rapier wit, a great story teller, and able to sniff BS from a mile away.  Over dinner, and more margaritas, the conversational tone grew serious as George was talking about the effort, sacrifice, and innovative energy his father put into the business to make it successful back in the early days and how the alliances with top name designers has created an uniquely diverse group under one stylish umbrella.  Right as he was building to the climax of the story, Dan yelled out “genius!” which drew an appreciative glance from George, but was actually in reference to Darren who had just arrived with a full pitcher of margaritas.

I love the inside jokes and stories.  One manufacturer has introduced a new arm style as an option for their sofas.  It’s the CAS arm.  That’s because when the owner first saw it he proclaimed that it was “cool as s@#$!”  Yes it was, and so was the rest of market.

THE color this fall:  Blue.  A little navy, a little peacock, and lots of dusty, soft or muted blues.  Spa or mineral blue.   Blue accenting naturals and neutrals was the predominant look if it wasnt all blue.  Warm tones were spice tones; paprika, cinnamon, etc.  Not as much red, but the red I saw was the color of tomato paste. Orange is definitely on its way out except burnt orange.  Saw glimpses of the return of the four horsemen of the apocalypse: purple, mauve, lavender, and fuchsia, but you’ll have to read the long version to get the details.  Very little green.

The overall trend:  French laundry is everywhere.  Script fabrics.  Casual comfort, simplicity.  The word ‘Paris’ used frequently to describe collections.  Lighter tones overall.

Fabric trends: 
Some movement toward pattern in upholstery body cloths which has been very plain lately.  Geometric patterns, Greek influences, neoclassical, lattice, fretwork, scroll.  Saw lots of fabrics with large birds and open space.  Large patterns.  Fewer florals.  Animal prints still popular, cheetah seemed to provide the spots of choice.  Sunbrella fabrics…amazing offerings that can be used for anything (upholstery, bedding, window treatments) all made of solution dyed acrylic that WILL NOT fade and can be cleaned with bleach.  The color is all the way through the thread. Unreal.  Fabulous.

Wood finish:  Driftwood and anything natural is HUGE.  Weathered, distressed, painted and sanded, worn and rustic, silvers and grays.

Window treatments:  Simple panels, casual and sort of intentionally imperfect.  Grommets.  Simple pleats, but longer…6-8”.  Fun blends of traditional and contemporary:  Wooden poles supporting linen panels with large grommets.  No puddling, but sometimes a simple break on the floor.
Paint colors:  Muted, natural.

Bedding:  Solid colors, simple, neutrals with pops of color provided in the pillows.

Interesting style trends: 

-Banding, banding on drapery panels, sofa and ottoman skirts, chandelier drum shades.
-Any mirrored finish was antiqued.
-Upholstered headboards were seen with wood trim.
 
Chairs:  Spool chairs were in just about every showroom.  Lots of tall, sleek, ‘swoopy’ (thanks for that technical term, Veronique) accent chairs.   Details on backs of chairs…good for floating in a room.

Sofas:  Track arms of all different sizes, but we saw a lot more narrow armed sofas.  

Lighting:  Chandeliers were large and simple (again, simple!) and not as traditional.  Less crystal.  Drum shades.

Area rugs:  Contemporary, large pattern, geometric, open.  Traditional rugs had large scale offset patterns, in other words it was not centered.  Not good for symmetrical folks, but interesting!

Let me know if you have any questions.  The long version is coming soon!

Fred (name changed to protect the guilty),

Ok, I talked to the team and here’s the order of attack on “operation sharpie”:

1-If your relative knows what happened and is the original owner, find out if any stain-proofing was done to the sofa.  For example, if they used Guardian, they could call the 800 number and have it taken care of under the extended warranty (not from the manufacturer, but from the stain-guarding company).  Stain warranties don’t travel to new owners, so I am guessing this option might be a challenge.

2-Try to have it professionally cleaned.  Call Steven Vorbeck at Citrusolutions at 770-476-7211.  I called Steve for you earlier and he has a product designed to get ink out of upholstery.  It works on regular ink on sofas all the time, so he thinks it might work with a sharpie.  He was at the chamber meeting last night.  He will welcome your call.  He does an awesome job on carpets, by the way.

3-If the cleaning fails, sharpies are made to be permanent, take the arm cap to Thomasville and see if that fabric is still current.  It’s somewhat of a long shot, but if it is a traditional fabric it could still be in production.  If so, you could order new cushion covers from them.  If the fabric is current but the sofa style is not, you can get the fabric from them and have new cushion covers made by John Barker at Five Star.  They do recovering, expertly and reasonably.  (770) 614-3045.  John can give you an estimate of cost and tell you how much fabric to order based on measurements.

4-If you have no luck with Thomasville, bring the arm cap to us and our staff will have a pretty good idea if there’s a chance that a different fabric source can provide the fabric.

5-If all that fails, know it is relatively common to have contrasting cushions.  So, if we totally strike out we could come up with a contrasting fabric that would look awesome and have John make new cushion covers and maybe a couple of pillows and your relative gets a cool new look.

6-Invite your relative over and give their kids sharpies to play with and then go “oh no, look what happened!”  Just kidding.

7-We do have great prices on new custom sofas.  Sunbrella now makes fabric for sofas and chairs and you can clean future sharpie marks with bleach!

Hope this helps!  Let me know what happens.

Michael quickly responded.

That’s awesome!  I will get to work.  She lives in another town and her daughters are 22 and 12 so I don’t think that one option is really feasible but of course I know you were joking!   I like all of your suggestions though and the order in which you presented them.  No wonder you are as successful as you are, Alan!

 Best-”Fred”

One last suggestion…

Not a problem!  Spread the word.

I think you still have a shot with #6 and the 12 year old…

Have a great weekend,

Alan

Now that I know the industry, the good and the bad, have toured manufacturing plants and spoken to countless CEO’s of furniture companies, I can tell you what to look for and how to avoid some serious mistakes.  Your sofa may be one of the most important purchases you make for your home.  It’s where you spend time with family and friends, entertain clients or the boss, and it says something about your taste and style.  So buy well.  Some people spend more on a night on the town than a sofa they will own for an average of seven to ten years, longer if they buy traditional looking furniture.

Keep in mind that your options are endless.  Most good sofas are made to order, so you get to choose your style, fabric, pillows, seat cushions, back cushions, feet finish, or whether or not you want it skirted.  Or, maybe you want nails, fringe, contrast welt, or, heck, monogrammed throw pillows.  Have fun, and buy what you love.  Just remember, custom does not have to mean expensive.

Tip number one is so ridiculous that I have reservations in telling you in fear it will hurt my credibility in your eyes and make you think the rest of this post is not worth reading. But believe me when I tell you that this blunder has happened to a lot more people than you think.  Here it is.  Ready?  Measure the doors or openings through which the sofa you are buying is going to have to pass in order to get into the room you want.  If you ever visit a friend’s house and wonder why the sofa in the basement is nicer than the one in the living room, it miiiiight just be they bought it without measuring the doorway. 

Tip number two has a lot more substance so I can recover a little respect.  Make a scale drawing of your room.  Include windows, doors, openings to other rooms, and typical paths of foot traffic.  Add overall measurements and especially the measurements of spaces you are considering placing your sofa. If you have a newer home here in suburban Atlanta, that cute little 84” sofa you saw at the furniture store may be way too small for the room.  Note the height of the ceiling.  Ceilings open to the second level might make you consider a sofa with a higher back  We’ve had more than one client who bought a sectional off a random furniture store floor only to find out they needed it to be left facing rather than right.  Those go to the basement, too.  Thank God for basements.  I have one friend who was too stubborn to put his mistake in the basement, er, terrace level, so his leather sectional sits crookedly in his living room, sort of blocking an entrance and preventing access to some of the built in cabinets…but what a deal!  Buying a sofa that fits the scale of the room is important for the overall look and feel but if you are extremely tall or short, you may need to be more concerned about buying the sofa to fit your personal scale and have your designer help make it work in your home.   There are some tricks to making that work, but I’ve gotta keep moving.

Number three is a biggie around here in the ‘burbs where most every house is full of bouncing children.  One customer told me that she needed a new sofa after finding out that her kids were jumping off the second floor loft onto her couch down below when she wasn’t looking.  You do not need to wait until the kids go off to college before you have nice furniture…you need the right sofa with the right fabric or leather so you can enjoy it with your children!  Here’s where I get into quality and while some of you say you don’t care about construction, I say you should.  The ‘six month wonder’ sofas are plywood construction stapled or nailed together.  You can sometimes lift one corner of the sofa and the other three legs will still be firmly on the ground.  That should tell you something.  The store selling it doesn’t care about you and you are going to be full of wrathful righteous indignation after a short while when it fails to hold its shape.  Good sofa construction has a kiln dried hardwood frame and is corner blocked, glued and screwed.  That rhymes, so you should remember it.  The sofa will feel heavy.  Trust me, manufacturers don’t have the money to put anything extra into a cheap sofa, so with a hardwood frame, heavy=good.  A quality frame typically comes with a lifetime warranty.  

The frame of a sofa holds the support system for the cushions.  My experience is that a manufacturer that bothers to put good heavy wood into the frame is also going to give you a nice support system.  Top companies use eight way hand tied springs, which I won’t bother to describe right now, but will just say they give the best consistent support and comfort.  Below that are sinuous springs which are metal bands stretched across the frame to hold up the cushions, a system that can be acceptable if there are a sufficient number of bands and those bands are thick enough.  Below that is a webbing system.  Unless you are buying a $300 dorm room special, webbing=run away!

One note, contemporary sofas are not normally kept as long by the owner because they go out of style more quickly, therefore they can cost less and have less effort put into the frame construction and spring system, which in this case can be ok.  Some designs are so sleek that there is no room for eight way hand tied springs.

A couple other things to look for are just the quality and general straightness of the stitching.  Feel for nice padding on the arms and edges.  If you are going to center your sofa in a room, the back of the sofa should look nice and have some substance beneath the fabric.  Check it out, poke the back of a cheaper model and there won’t be anything there!  That won’t be good when junior gets backed into the sofa during an imaginary swordfight. 

Leather should be top or full grain if you plan to use the sofa with any regularity.  You could get away with splits on a show piece in a room that doesn’t have much traffic.  For more info click here.  Pet owner?  Consider a top grain ‘protected’ leather.  It won’t show claw marks, assuming cute little Muffin is not part velociraptor.

Upholstery fabric should be durable although vanity sofas in a seldom used keeping room might allow you to go with a little more style over substance.  Check to see if your fabric sample has a loose weave or has the potential to pill and if so…here kitty kitty!  Most quality upholstery fabric has a ‘double rub’ rating.  We call it double butt rubs.  The higher the number, the more scootching it can take.  20,000 double rubs is not uncommon.  We do often recommend fabric protection, but just know that it will void the manufacturers warranty on the fabric.  We don’t typically worry about that because even the top lines don’t warrant the fabric for anything other than manufacturers defect.  They understandably can’t be held responsible for extra wear from your cuddly St. Bernard or that time you hosted the Sumo wrestling team.

Number four is a little more perfunctory, but you will thank me in the long run.  Sofa’s have two functions, style and comfort.  Let’s talk about comfort.  Think about how you intend to use the sofa and how your family sits.  Now I am not saying that you have to hide behind the curtain and do a detailed analysis of sitting habits of your spouse and children, but it would help in choosing cushions and arm styles if you really took the time to see how your current sofa is being used.  Nap sofas should have lower and softer arms.  Reading sofa’s should have arms that are high enough to support your elbow when you have a book in your hand and be the right height in relation to the end table so you can comfortably place your cocktail on a coaster.  Formal entertaining sofas tend to be firmer because it just isn’t right watching the boss’s wife struggle to get out of a cushy seat.  I just got a funny picture in my mind…sorry.  TV sofas should be deep and soft.  The same sofa can sit in a variety of ways with the choice of different seat cushions.  The best cushions tend to be down wrapped cores (unless you are allergic to down!) and the cores can be high density foam or actual spring units.   Spring down cushions have a great feel, and yet because of the springs will regain their shape once you get up.  Down cushions will be the softest but will have that sloppy look and will require a little effort to punch them into shape, yet some people love them.

Okay, so that was four main tips.  I was thinking I should write five because that’s just what you do…the five best tips for buying a sofa.  But really, there was a ton of info in this post.  I know I made it seem harder than buying a car, but you will hopefully spend more time with your friends and family in your home than in your car, even in Atlanta.  Please don’t be intimidated, just be informed, and if you have any questions you can always call or shoot me an email at johnscreek@luxemail.net.

I was talking with my design team about how our clients are using sectionals these days and as the conversation unfolded Veronique told me that every time her family gets together to watch a movie, someone shouts ‘dibs’ to claim the corner seat.

Sectionals are hotter than ever, but it wasn’t until I posted the news of the arrival of three new sectionals to our store on facebook that I became aware of the fact that many people didn’t know they were popular again. 

Anybody who has followed my blog knows that I like to notice how history tends to repeat itself, even in our world of furniture and interior design.  The resurgence of the sectional could be due to the cyclical nature of things, or it could be in response to the open great room floor plans in new homes these days, but just maybe it could be something more intimate such as the desire for family closeness, especially during challenging times.  There’s nothing better than the whole tribe sitting together, legs intertwined, watching a movie.

So yes, sectionals are back.  Oh boy are they back.  We are seeing them in great rooms, family rooms, and basements and they function in a variety of ways.  Watching TV is a biggie, and we’ve heard from more than one husband that if he gets a sofa chaise combination he can do without the recliner.  (Hear that, ladies?  There’s a way out of a recliner in the living room!)  Many people are using sectionals in place of theater seating in their media rooms.  Social gatherings are made easy with lots of comfortable seating which promotes great conversation much easier than sitting like birds on a fence on a formal sofa.  Others are finding they can maximize seating in a smaller room, a constant challenge, with the addition of a properly fitted sectional.

What most people don’t know is how customizable sectionals have become, and because they can be a bigger ticket item, it is very important to buy wisely.  The configurations are limitless, from the basic aforementioned sofa chaise to a full blown ‘party pit’.  The corner piece alone could be a simple corner, a curved corner, or a wedge and the decision will be influenced by the size of the room and whether the sectional is going to curve to fit the walls or float in the center of the room.  Most of my blogging does not directly promote our services, but I will say that when purchasing a sectional, I can’t stress enough how important it is to get some help from a professional.  Space planning is critical and in order to maximize the use of your room and your new sofa, you should have some help.  We’ve had to try to bail out numerous clients who came to us after buying a sectional off a random furniture store floor only to find out that the scale was off or it faced the wrong direction.  Oh the bitter aftertaste of falling in love with a price before getting to know the product.  Making a room work with a large piece of furniture that doesn’t fit right is a huge design challenge!

Price points and styles vary, so the three pieces we added to our showroom were selected to show the range from clean lined and easily affordable to the ultimate in large scale and trim options.