House Warming Hotlist
The International Gift Fair At the Javits Center Brings Good Design Home
By CHRIS SCHMIDT
While the Martha Stewart trial dragged on downtown, more than 2,600 aspirants to her home-design mantle congregated at Javits Center this week to exhibit their wares at the New York International Gift Fair. Traveling from as far away as Denmark and Korea, exhibitors stuffed themselves and their merchandise into booths often no bigger than an elevator car in hopes of enticing vendors and boutiques to place orders for their stores. With three floors packed full of "product," exhibitors had to clamor to make their offerings stand out; at times the strain was visible. "It's all about lighting," declared Gregory Bouie, a marketing associate with Willow Group, which produces terracotta pots and wicker (800-724-7300, www.willowgroupltd.com; prices range from $1 to $60).Indeed, when it comes to illumination, Mr. Bouie adheres to the philosophy that more is more. The same goes for color. He walked me a few yards away from the Willow Group booth, then had me turn around and look at it with fresh eyes. He asked, "What do you see?" I had some thoughts; so did Mr. Bouie. "You see amazing color," he told me. It was true: The corner display was a sculpture of hot-pink, fuschia, and melon-glazed pots. Nor was Mr Bouie himself drab. He wore a maroon T-shirt underneath a khaki button-down shirt and what were either Burberry pants -- in their signature plaid -- or a convincing facsimile.
Just a few booths away, Matt Bilewicz also dressed to draw attention, but in a more subtle way. Mr. Bilewicz's white moccasins, blue jeans, and embroidered linen shirt perfectly matched the back-fromthe-ashram-where's-my-iPod aesthetic of his label, Bluepoppy (888-536-3888, www.Bluepoppy.com).A graphic designer from Toronto, Mr. Bilewicz had teamed up with a New Delhi clothing manufacturer to create this line. His discovery that Indian embroiderers charge by the stitch -- not the size of the image -- led him lengthen the gauge and enlarge the scale of his designs.
Mr. Bilewicz's line-art illustrations pepper everything from hand towels to lingerie bags to eye masks. The company also produces a yoga mat bag decorated with a lotus flower ($35-$45), yoga towels embroidered with downward-facingdog yoga practioners ($13), and a "wellness kit" ($30).You might peg Mr. Bilewicz, with his hippie uniform and blissed-out manner, as a yogi himself, but you'd be wrong. "In Toronto, they charge $15 a class," he told me. "For that money, I'd rather sleep in an extra hour."
Over at Kiss That Frog,the Gallic merchandise itself was thoroughly charmant (510-524-7611, www.kissthatforg.be). Belgian intern Valerie showed me art deco poster reproductions, mattress-ticking cushions, and adorable mini-valises ($30 a set). Also on display were a number of plate sets stamped with iconic -- if a touch familiar -- French icons, such as Tin-Tin and La Vache Qui Rit ($35-$40 a set). I was most intrigued by a place setting featuring dark, almost gothic cartoons reminiscent of Edward Gorey.
Lad Cook, president of The Original Book Company, didn't enlist any special ploys to draw potential customers into his booth, nor did he tart up his displays or wear special clothes (only a periwinkle sweater vest, thank you very much).Yet you might argue that Mr. Cook's product itself is something of a gimmick, though he doesn't see it that way. Nor does he admit the obvious irony that The Original Book Company manufactures faux-book spines (401-885-0177, www.originalbooks.net).
"Old books have a kind of high-class connotation," Mr. Cook explained. "Now the Average Joe can get the same effect without spending all the money." (A single original antique book can cost more than $100, Mr. Cook said, while his reproductions start at $40 for a foot of faux spines.) Outfitting a room as if it were a stage set presents obvious drawbacks for the home dweller, but the product is surely ideal for movie and television set designers.
This is an outlet Mr. Cook has only recently begun to pursue. One early coup: The Original Book Company's simulacrum antique book library can be seen in an upcoming "Sex and the City" episode. "It's for the one of the last episodes, but I don't know which," the sexagenarian told me. "Knowing television producers, they'll spend a lot of money, then cut the segment."