Day 2 Design Influencers Tour at Market 2022

As I mentioned in the last post and newsletter, I always enjoy going to the High Point Furniture Market, the world’s largest home furnishings trade show, and I’ve never enjoyed it more than this year! I normally go each fall. I had never been in the spring. However, I was selected as one of 10 design influencers and had the distinct honor of participating in the Design Influencers Tour. We had a whirlwind tour of showrooms over a two-day period. I loved collaborating with my fellow influencers and picking the best of market to share with you. So, here is how day two started out!

We started out the day at Minted, which I’m sure you will recognize at least from charming Christmas cards with beautiful photos of your friends and family! Did you know they also have a treasure trove of images that can be made into wall art? I was impressed with the subtle beauty of these two works and the grand size – a full 48×70”.

We order a lot of production art like this for our commercial clients. It looks nice, is affordable, is readily available and easily replaceable if something were to happen to it in a public area. It is also a good resource for residential clients who want their rooms to look nice but may not have a robust art budget. Additionally, it’s a great resource for children’s art, art for secondary or casual parts of the home and perfect for rentals and Airbnbs.

I also loved the fact that you can select your art and then select various sizes and even color! Note how the vertical green-hued painting in this next room was customized from a small, horizontal piece in red hues. Genius!!! This will be a handy resource for us when selecting art for commercial buildings. It can be challenging to find 30+ prints that can all work together as a series along hallways or in lobbies.

Minted also does framed textiles and murals too. The textile art really has the ‘70s vibe that is super strong in design right now. Boy, these things take me back. Several of the design influencers of a certain age reminisced when seeing all of the cane, wicker, rattan, macrame and house plants at Market this year.

 

Our second stop was the chic and charming Dome Deco. I had visited this space the day before to have a glass of Prosecco and learn more about the line, so I was happy to be back with the tour group.

We learned that Dome Deco is a Belgian brand that does 60 percent of its business in the European Union. It’s a favorite of hospitality designers and was very popular at Maison & Objet, the French counterpart to High Point Market.

I was wowed by the beautiful tailoring in the upholstery and its rich, brooding color palettes. Just look at these beautiful split double welts on this sectional and the variety of colors and textures available.

 

I can see why bars, pubs and restaurants would love these Bari Bistro Tables with various shapes and tabletop options. This ceramic that looks like a rich marble is so pretty and should be a breeze to keep clean!

The always fun and colorful Bungalow 5 was next. I had admired the appearance of burl wood a few years ago when it first appeared at market. I bought a rounded edge coffee table in 2020. It is still very much in vogue today because I saw lots of rounded corners and burl wood, especially at Bungalow 5.

The blond wood with interesting brass trim details, the inlaid brass on white shell pieces and the clever lacquered grass cloth in multiple colors made for a cheerful and sunny space full of great design and inspiration.

Here’s a chic little white desk with a charming companion chair in white and cane. The desk is washed lacquered linen and I love the cane details on the chair. The turquoise lamps really add a pop!

 

How cute is this Ming chest below? I love the navy color in front of the yellow wallpaper, but it comes in five different finishes, all of them interesting.

 

All in all, this showroom has several pretty furnishings that can read coastal, modern or just fresh. They are also known for their clever accessories like these little treasures:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Universal was next. It features a great space in High Point with a Designer Lounge – complete with healthy drinks and snacks and hair touch ups in the salon! Universal also has spacious rooms, full of interesting furniture combinations and fun décor. We stopped here for a group shot.

 

 

 

 

My favorite part of visiting the Universal showroom was the fabulous display of outdoor living furniture. As you know, this category has just exploded and it’s no longer the one or two-season, throw away folding chairs of the past! Today you can often spend far more money on your outdoor furniture than your indoor furniture. It’s beautiful, durable, comfortable and long lasting so most clients are happy to get their outdoor spaces spiffed up with great new pieces.

Look at how cute this outdoor SWIVEL chair is next to this nifty little outdoor table.

Universal paired up with Coastal Living Magazine for a great outdoor collection. I love the Edisto cocktail table shown below and would not hesitate to use it inside as well.

 

We finished the tour visiting the Erinn V collection. With a casual and rugged style, she reported that the Piedra Cocktail Table has garnered a lot of attention.

I preferred the Ellwood Cocktail Table, shown below. The marble top was gorgeous and the shape was comfortable and fresh looking.

We finished on the softer side with the feminine and pretty pieces designed by Miranda Kerr.

If you missed my recap of day one on the Design Influencers Tour, I encourage you to read that post. It’s chock full of stylish photos and inspiration. Visit my blog again in the coming days as I still have more to share from my High Point Market trip.