Contemporary climbing

Shares case goods spotlight with traditional

Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, April 2, 2012

This wall bed is part of Modern Expressions, one of three new Better Homes and Gardens collections offered by Universal Furniture. It is made with quarter cut ash veneers in a Graphite finish and features inset leather panels.HIGH POINT - While High Point Market buyers will see plenty of European traditional in this spring's case goods offerings, they'll also be able to quench their thirst for contemporary.
     Lexington Home Brands' new 120-piece Aquarius is a key example. It features bright reds, oranges and aquamarine tones that reflect some of the latest trends in handbags and apparel. Aquarius also uses a mix of exotic veneers ranging from mapa burl and walnut to zebrano and rosewood with clear, higher sheen finishes that highlight the grain patterns.
     Contemporary designs are also found in short bedroom and dining room groups such as those offered by Shermag as well as in larger whole home collections. Many offer a dramatic wood story through finishing and distressing techniques, as well as radial and book-matched patterns on headboards and dining table tops.
     Bernhardt's Mercer collectionAlex Bernhardt Jr., Bernhardt and Universal's Modern Expressions are key examples.
    Modern Expressions, one of three new Better Homes and Gardens collections, is made with quarter cut ash veneers and laurel burl accents in a mid-sheen finish called Graphite. Soft contemporary design elements are seen in the rounded shapes and contrasting cream colored inset leather panels of a wall bed, and in an entertainment credenza unit with splayed legs.
     Mercer uses flat cut ash veneers and mahogany solids in a dark java finish that highlights wood grain patterns, giving it a rough hewn, handmade appearance. Asian design elements are seen in cast hardware in a dark nickel finish and the sharp edges of a wall bed. Mercer also fuses European modern design elements as seen in the long and low profile of a bedroom dresser.
     A.R.T. Furniture's Optum is more transitional, but has some contemporary flair as seen in forms such as an upholstered shelter bed and a sling back chair. Made with prima vera veneers in a brownish gray mink finish, Optum also has dramatic radial matched patterns on the top of an oval, double pedestal dining table.
     Midcentury modern and Art Deco design elements are seen in the soft curves of Shermag's Rive Gauche bedroom as well as in Classic Chic, one of four new whole home offerings in the new HGTV Home line by Bassett Furniture.
     In Classic Chic, the Art Deco influences are seen in the figure eight and loop design patterns on dining chairs and the headboard of the Diva panel bed, as well as in the cufflink-inspired hardware. Select pieces also have contrasting walnut veneers with ivory borders.
     Fine Furniture Design's Sunset Canyon and Palm Island take a more casual approach to the company's largely European traditional-influenced line of bedroom and formal dining, with lighter finishes.
     Among the signature design elements of Sunset Canyon are the metal accents on pieceThis dining table in A.R.T. Furniture’s Optum collection showcases prima vera veneers in a radial match pattern. The finish is called Mink, a brown with gray undertones.s such as a sleigh panel bed and cocktail table and the champagne hardware, which offers a rich contrast to the waxy hand rubbed and lightly distressed finish on alder veneers.
     "The inspiration is more California casual that has a more relaxed and elegant feel to it," said Jim Adams, vice president of marketing. "It has a hand-rubbed finish that is a clear finish, but with some distressing that works for today's customer looking for a more casual and relaxed feel."
     By comparison, Palm Island has South Pacific design influences as seen in the turnings and reeded shapes on the posts of a high/low poster bed.
     Case goods resources also are offering traditional looks with a variety of European, Tuscan and American design influences.
     Many are updated with finishes that highlight wood grain patterns, in some cases distressed and textured.
     Such trends are evident in Hooker Furniture's 75-piece Rhapsody, a grand-scale, European-influenced whole home collection with large scale scroll details on table legs and bases, and acanthus leaf, fleur de lis and rope twist molding details. The collection has a walnut tone rustic finish over pecky pecan, walnut and ash veneers and poplar solids.
     Another 50-piece Hooker collection called Classique offers English traditional style elements as seen on the leg turnings of writing desks and This group of nesting tables is part of Rhapsody, a 75-piece collection by Hooker Furniture that is made with pecky pecan, hickory, ash and walnut veneers in a walnut-colored rustic finish. The scroll shaped base is among the grand-scale, European-influenced details in the collection.dining, sofa and cocktail tables.
     Stanley Furniture's Arrondissement is a 65-piece collection with traditional French, Italian and Gustavian design elements including acorn shaping of the finials on a poster panel bed and the turnings and column-shaped legs on the pedestal base of a round to oval dining table. Made with rustic pin knotty cherry and anigre veneers, the collection is updated with a fresh casual look for today's consumers thanks to elements of water spotting, fly specking and tooling, a technique normally used on leather, but applied in this case to the veneers.
     Victorian and cottage design elements are seen in new bedrooms offered at Klaussner, Universal's Better Homes and Gardens and American Drew. Those companies also have bedroom and dining room introductions that incorporate mixtures of Tudor, American traditional and/or Mediterranean designs
     Gustavian and Swedish style elements also are seen in the new Woodlands collection by HGTV Home by Bassett Furniture and Bernhardt's new Belgian Oak, in rustic white oak solids with a low sheen, distressed finish for a casual, weathered look.
     Company President and CEO Alex Bernhardt Jr. said that during challenging economic times, customers are driven towards familiar styles and want to avoid "fashion risks." He said he believes the company's mix this market is well-timed for those consumers looking to branch out with new styles in their homes.
     "People sense there is a lot of change in consumer preferences," he said. "At this point, they are more eager to try some new and different things, which is great, because this is what I am bringing out."