Thoughts from the Field

Valdera Export, our hand-picked producer of modern Italian marble dining room tables, is nestled in the Tuscan hills, not far from Pisa. Driving up to their facility on my last visit there, I was struck not only by the beauty of Tuscany, but also the beauty of the natural stone itself. Seeing so much stone in one place was a great reminder that like a snowflake, each piece of marble is unique, and tells its own story of time, place, and natural formation. As Valdera states right on their warranty, “Each piece is slightly different and will show slightly different veining. Part of the pleasure of owning a marble table is that is is unique to you.”

This diversity extends to color: while Italy’s famous white Carrara marble is often the first thing to come to mind when thinking about Italian marble tables, while at Valdera I was able to see shades of browns, blacks, reds, greens, pinks, and more. The variety seems limited only by where one chooses to quarry.

Anyway, one the things Claudia (daughter of the founder, shown at right above) first showed me about their tables is that they don’t have the cold feeling we inherently associate with stone. Valdera treats their tables with a special lacquer finish which not only protects the table — marble is naturally quite porous, and susceptible to staining — but also renders it warm to the touch.

I was reminded of all this today for two reasons: first, I am headed back to visit Valdera later this month (and must remember to bring some marshmallows, something they enjoy but can’t get in Italy); and second, because we recently got a commission for a marble & wood kitchen table, an application for which this kind of warmth was quite desirable. For that special kitchen table we brought our top wood & marble producers together in a collaborative effort, to create the perfect custom table for our client’s home.

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On the next-to-the-last day of the year (and a quiet day here in the showroom), it seemed like a good time to reflect back on the year that was, and to compile a list of our best selling Italian Furniture items from 2011.

Before we get to the actual top 10 list, an interesting note on shape preferences. Among dining room table orders, here was the breakdown on shape/style:
• Round Dining Room Tables: 57%
• Rectangular Dining Room Tables: 25%
• Oval Dining Room Tables: 12%
• Boat Shaped Dining Room Tables: 5%

Now, on to the list of top 5 selling tables, all of which were classic Italian style:
1. The 1149 “Orchidea” table has been our top seller for years. It’s shown here with an inlaid top, though it’s also available with a solid wood top, or in any number of gloss lacquered colors.

2. The 1238 dining table is one that we regularly produce in sizes well over 10 foot. Shown here in the showroom, it gives a nice view of the burled wood inlaid top.

3. Since the 1111 features such a beautiful floral inlay, I thought it best to show it with this zoomed view of the top (with matching Lazy Susan). It comes standard with an intricately carved pedestal, but like any of our made-to-order tables, can be modified to taste.

4. The 1232 long rectangular table gets special credit for being not only a top seller, but also the last table we sold in 2011. The chunky carved pedestal seems to be hit with clients.

5. Rounding out the top tables is the Talent Italian marble dining table. Hand made in Tuscany, it’s shown here in a white marble, but is available in a variety of different marble colors.

The top 4 selling Italian dining chairs for 2011 were (models 784, 841, 846, and 811, respectively):

To round out the top 10, a bit of a cheat. This item wasn’t actually the 10th best seller, but regularly draws attention in our showroom window. It’s an Italian bench, and I even got to personally hand deliver one to a local client this year.

That’s the top 10. Happy New Year to all, and best wishes for 2012!a href=”http://www.italybyweb.com/classic-dining-room-chair-gv841s.aspx”img src=”http://blog.italybyweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/bench-300×180.jpg” alt=”italian bench seat” title=”Italian bench seat” width=”300″ height=”180″ class=”size-medium wp-image-339″ /

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I always like to share it when we find a new Italian supplier with something interesting and different — especially when that something fits a tricky request we get regularly from clients. In scouting this week for a client interested in a super-extending table (in this case, one that went from small console to a dining configuration large enough to host dinner for 14), I discovered a specialty producer located near Verona, Italy with just such an expertise.

Unlike pedestal tables, which can easily be sized up to great lengths through the addition of extra pedestals (like the 36 foot long table shown here), tables with four legs can only get so long before the weight of the span is more than the legs can handle. So four legged tables that can both start at a decent length (closed) and grow to a great length (open) — and still be beautiful in either configuration — can be a challenging request.

The table at left (above) actually extends to a full 18′4″ (sufficient to seat at least 20 people); the one on the right, though “only” extending to 9′10″, starts out as something closer to side table in size. Given our more frequent calls for classic Italian furniture, these two examples were a great find for our clients. But there are also many contemporary Italian extension tables which we sell with similar properties (Pacini & Cappelini EXTRA table shown below).

These are just a few examples for illustration. If there’s a special Italian extension table that we can help you find, please click the Get More Info button, and tell us a little about what you’re looking for.

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Sitting here in a closed and darkened design center, on the day after Thanksgiving — on hand to do whatever I can to ensure a client’s successful early morning, holiday table delivery — it seems like a fine time to reflect on the special experience of having a piece of furniture lovingly made in Italy, just for you.

Would it be easier for any of our potential clients to pick up the phone of a large catalog retailer, and place an order to be soon thereafter dropped at (or perhaps on) their curb by UPS? There’s no question it would be. Mass produced furniture is easy to find, and easy to get. And the whirring efficiency of a mechanized production line is not subject to the uncertain production schedule that comes with a few individual craftsmen hard at work on their share of larger task of completing that one special piece.

Our clients come to us, however, because they appreciate the value of having something made to order, made just for them, and handcrafted by specialists who’ve often been honing their skills for decades. That experience doesn’t generally come cheapest, nor fastest. But sharing that experience with our clients is something we take pride in. And on this day after Thanksgiving, I wanted to thank our clients for trusting in us, and for occasionally indulging us a few delays along that journey.

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Earlier this week, the lovely ladies from Lilu Interiors (a very talented group of Minneapolis interior designers, and our neighbors here at the design center) stopped by the Italy By Web showroom to better understand how our Italian furniture connections might be able to help them on client design projects. I really enjoyed the chance to share with them some of the beautiful collections I’d scouted at past years’ Salone Internazionale del Mobile (Milan furniture fairs). But beyond that, visiting with them — and seeing what caught their attention — was a nice reminder of the value a good designer can bring to a project.

A quick personal story on that point: when my wife and I were looking at how to make better use of space in our own home, we got professional help from friend and designer Michael Rabatin. On his very first visit — and without our having to buy anything new — he was able to visualize a simple re-arrangement of our existing furniture which completely transformed one of the bedrooms. It’s a room that I’d seen every day for more than a decade, and yet this seemingly simple change had escaped me that entire time.

Anyway, since many of our fabulous clients discover us without the aid of an interior designer, I thought I would let you in on a little secret here: shown below are a couple of the modern design collection pieces picked out by the discerning eyes of the Lilu designers.

In a world of so much uniformity, it’s nice to be able to uncover something that stands apart. And even in the very personal world of one’s own home, it’s often nice to have someone who can help with a fresh perspective.

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Stacey and Ralph Sevinor created a piece of Italy for themselves in the rolling hills north of Boston, Mass. The owners of Church Hill Construction pay homage to the European lifestyle through their spacious home, a French Country-style chateau set high on 10 acres of rolling grassland, tucked among a countryside dotted with New England style saltboxes.

But the real euro style is found inside their Boston-area home, where Murano glass, Sicis tile and furniture handcrafted by small, family-owned Italian artisans, fill its rooms.

Stacey Sevinor said they originally built their 12,000-square-foot home as a model for their construction business and furnishing it was a daunting task. That is, she said, until she discovered Italybyweb.com, which specializes in quality, affordable Italian furniture, 100-percent Made in Italy.

“I was searching high and low for a 13-foot table without any leaves. I found the web site, found the table and fell in love with it!” she laughed. “But I wasn’t sure about buying a table on the Internet!” Sevinor said her initial hesitation fell away after talking by phone with Robert, owner of the business. “I hate it when you sit in a chair and it cuts you under the leg. Robert said, ‘If you’re not happy and they are not comfortable, we’ll take them back.’ They’ve been just great to work with. And my set is absolutely gorgeous!”

The Sevinors loved their model home and its furnishings so well they now live in it. They bought a gilded formal dining table, 14 classically styled formal dining chairs and the classic Italian buffet; they are considering an elegant cocktail cart as they continue to shape their living spaces and grounds to reflect an Italian aesthetic. Italy by Web offers Italian furniture options for all rooms the home, from living to dining, bedroom to office. “Our goal is to provide great quality, service and value,” said owner, Robert Kelen. Stacey Sevinor says her family has received all three, many times over.

“I had gone to all the furniture stores in my area from the top of the line to the worst, and I didn’t want anything that had a leaf in it. An interior designer at a top store told me I should buy two tables and put that together. Another store told me I could have one made for $150,000! So I googled ’13-foot table’ and Italy by Web popped up. Within a week I had material samples to chose from,” she said. “It was delivered with white glove service; the guy was great!”

Another feature Sevinor loves: the “memory” foam on the seats of her dining room chairs. “My husband was entertaining Honeywell executives and it was the first time he had sat in the dining room chairs. He says, ‘These chairs are so hard.’ I said ‘Right, they are, wait two minutes!’ Your body just sinks in because of the memory foam. It’s wonderful! No one left the dining room all night!”

A wall mural of an Italian scene provides a backdrop to the dining table, which Sevinor proclaims “Mouth-watering. Breathtaking! When people walk into my dining room, their jaws drop!” But she also points out the set’s utility, noting that the Madeira fabric on the dining chairs is naturally stain-resistant. The Sevinors are frequent entertainers and open the home they share with their 8-year-old Doberman, Simone, for fund-raising parties.

For Sevinor, who was first introduced to Ralph by friends at Donatello’s restaurant in Saugus, Mass., all things Italian are worthy of study. It flavors her lifestyle, from the food she loves to cook (“Always an Italian Christmas Eve! Linguine with seafood, and a great marinara!) to the furniture she and her husband choose for their home.

Her recommendations? Her recipe for Linguine with Seafood, below; and for Italian furniture, Italy by Web!

Olive oil
1 heaping T of crushed fresh garlic
2 cans of pureed tomatoes
1 t basil
1 t oregano
1 lb. shrimp, cleaned and deveined
1/2 lb. scallops
1 lb. mussels in shells, scrubbed clean
2 lobsters in shells, cut into pieces, shells left on
1 T sugar
1 1/2 lb. linguine
Reserved foam from pasta water

Line the bottom of a 10-quart pan with olive oil.

Saute the garlic in the oil until soft. Add the tomatoes, seasonings and sugar and bring to a simmer. Add seafood. Cook until mussel shells open and lobster meat is done and the shells have flavored the sauce. Remove seafood and discard shells; return seafood to simmering sauce.

While sauce is simmering, bring water to boil for the linguine. Skim some of the foam from the water as the linguine cooks to flavor the sauce.

When the pasta is finished, drain and serve mounded with sauce.

Mangia!

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One part of selecting a new dining room set where we typically spend a lot of time with clients is helping them find just the right dining chairs. The fact that all our Italian dining chairs are made to order (in Italy, naturally) makes it easy to customize the chairs with the client’s desired fabric and finish. But that often comes second to finding just the right frame.

Today I spoke to a client who had purchased an antique dining room table and chairs, and was now looking to find two very special Italian arm chairs to crown the set. She had a sense of the style she wanted, but needed to be sure that the chairs would match not only the general look of the other pieces, but also be sized appropriately (in this case, chairs with a taller back).

Using her style preferences and size constraints, we were able to suggest at least four beautiful chairs from our standard collections and two more from collections we’d seen at the last Milan furniture fair.

Once the client receives and reviews the fabric and finish samples, she’ll be able to connect one of these brand new Italian-crafted chairs to her classic antique set without any of the hassle of having to shop from store to store.

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On our travels through the world of Italian furniture, we’re always looking for talented artisan producers that are new to American consumers. This week we connected with yet another such undiscovered gem, in the heart of Italy’s Veneto region: a forty-four year old, family-run company crafting furniture using traditional techniques: dovetail joints, handmade engravings, wood marquetry and more.

Their hand-crafted Italian dining tables perfectly address an oft-heard client request: solid-wood dining tables in other fine woods such as walnut, cherry and oak. And in line with another Italian tradition, their full production is now under the watchful eye of the next generation — the founder’s two sons and daughter.

I’m particularly excited about this discovery, as solid-wood Italian table tops can be difficult to find: because of the natural movement of furniture crafted of solid wood — and the less ornate top styles that can be produced this way — this method of construction is not often the chosen one on formal Italian dining tables. For tops that capture the simple elegance and inherent beauty of walnut (or cherry and oak), however, it is definitely a very nice choice.

We’ll be adding carefully selected pieces from their collection to our online inventory in the days and weeks ahead, but wanted to give you a sneak preview of some of them today. (And as with all of our made-to-order furniture, these too can be customized with special finishes and produced in special sizes.)

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