Dispatches From the Design Industry – Late-Summer Trends at Niermann Weeks’ Factory
This summer we’re seeing new design trends emerge, since we’re having runs on assorted furnishings, including the:
Venetian Secretary. We’ve been getting an order a week for this cabinet in the Danish pearl and gold leaf finish, which makes me happy. This product was out of fashion for a few years, but now it’s right back in.
Venetian Secretary Niermann Weeks
The one that I have at home holds my laptop and printer inside the slant-front drawer, and its carcass is finished in pale yellow and terra cotta, which is how we first introduced this design in 1988.
Venetian Secretary Niermann Weeks 1980's Version
We’ve also shown it standard in creams and in an all-over mirrored version.
Palazzo Secretary Niermann Weeks
I’m a light freak and Joe designed this ultimate light-reflective surface for me, but when we saw it finished it was just too beautiful to hide at home. It now resides in our New York showroom. I like this secretary in all of its variations – beautiful and useful all at once.
You all are ordering Cartouche Table in various sizes, from a console at 72″ long to one that’s 42″ long, and also the coffee table version. The Cartouche is a sturdy table, sitting firmly in its setting. It has plenty of presence as well as the strength to display your prized collected goodies. Earlier this year, customers favored the table in silverleaf finishes, for which Beverlee is prepping this coffee table.
Bev Leafing Cartouche Coffee Table Niermann Weeks
Recent orders, however, are sticking with the Antique Gilt finish, as shown in our catalog on the web at www.niermannweeks.com.
Antique Gilt Finish Niermann Weeks Finishes
The image above shows an ant’s-eye view of the finish. My husband always peers at finishes as though he were an ant crawling around on its many layers and colors. Plain flat finishes don’t interest him as much as ones that look like they’ve survived centuries of use and repainting and abuse. Those are his favorites.
Today I photographed Sandy finishing a coffee table according to our standard formula for Antique Gilt.. She’s using a tiny sponge to evenly display the final tones, so that Joe with his ant’s eye can look right down into the layers of the finish.
Sandy Painting Cartouche Coffee Table Niermann Weeks
In the warehouse we have a 42″ console ready to ship, just waiting for the packing team to get it. The glass is cut with its clipped corners and fits exactly.
42" Cartouche Console Niermann Weeks
Also in the warehouse waiting for its glass top to arrive is a standard 72″ console. It’s so long that I couldn’t find a long enough background, but I bet this console will look handsome glowing behind somebody’s sofa with a lamp and accessories.
72" Cartouche Console Niermann Weeks
Tuscan Commode Most of our decorative details are raised from their surface of the product, but for this commode Joe decided to go inward. It’s a neat feeling to push your hand into the depth of the drawer face to get to the pulls. Joe Saladino shares my appreciation for this piece, which he often orders. He’s sent it around the world in many lovely locations. If you’re read his most recent book Villa about his own home in California, you’ll get an introduction to his incomparable, classical style. Being in one of his interiors instantly makes me feel serene.
This order, however, came from another New York designer. She had us customize the cabinet with faux drawer fronts that open to hold audio visual equipment. In the photo at the right Tony is making the final adjustments to the hardware on the faux fronts. The back of the commode has slitted vents to let escape he heat from the electrical equipment.
Tuscan Commode Niermann Weeks
Tuscan Commode Niermann Weeks
