Aelfie Oudghiri, of her eponymous Brooklyn-based design studio, gives flat-woven tribal motifs a youthful spin.
A first time exhibitor at NY Now, contemporary Brooklyn-based design studio Aelfie had a "really good" market, says founder Aelfie Oudghiri. Aelfie, which has a selection of pieces at retailer Urban Outfitters among others, reworks flat-woven tribal rugs for contemporary audiences. "Our designs are geometric, modern but in conversation with the history of weaving and art," she said, noting that she became interested in area rugs following a trip to Turkey. New to market is a range of all-cotton bathmats, made in India, in a palette of fashionable color schemes ($45.00 in 25" x 34").
Aelfie introduced a collection of cotton bathmats, made in India, available in three designs.
APADANA
Michael Alidadi of Apadana Fine Rugs returns to NY Now after a year's break.
Connecticut-based Apadana Fine Rugs returned to NY Now after a one-year hiatus, said owner Michael Alidadi, who focuses on mid- to lower-priced hand-knotted designs. "Sunday was really good and our vintage range always does well," he said, noting that his distressed and overdyed rugs in turquoise and fuchsia were his top sellers. His vintage one-one-of-a-kind rugs are made of 100 percent hand-knotted wool.
Apadana offered buyers a colorful selection of distressed and overdyed wool rugs.
CREATIVE TOUCH
Creative Touch's Baki Ildiz at the New Jersey-based company's NY Now debut.
Exhibiting for the first time at NY Now, New Jersey-based Creative Touch introduced a line of pillows to drive traffic to the booth. "I am glad we exhibited; it has been upbeat," said principal Baki Ildiz, adding that designers are typically most interested in the company's Modern Wool and Silk collection of transitional designs.
Creative Touch offered buyers a broad range of rug styles and pillows.
F.J. KASHANIAN
Jonathan A. Kashanian, F.J. Kashanian vice president, was pleased with traffic at NY Now.
Returning NY Now exhibitor, F.J. Kashanian shows off its assortment of overdyed rugs and also presents a new range of Oushaks made in Afghanistan. Jonathan A. Kashanian, vice president of the Secaucus, NJ-based company, said the booth was busy and traffic good.
Kashanian shows off a new Oushak collection alongside its overdyed Persians.
NAMO RUGS
Keerti "Keeki" D'silva, a partner and design director of Namo Rugs, moves beyond wool felt rugs.
Namo Rugs, founded in 2013, takes a contemporary, eco-friendly approach to the floor, and made a debut into the rug industry with a line of wool felt rugs and decor, ranging from $30 to $1,500 wholesale in 5x8. The Brooklyn atelier expands its offering and introduces two collections, Vintage and Patchwork, featuring recycled cotton. "We are getting very good leads and lots of retailers," says D'silva.
Namo grows its assortment of rugs introducing the recycled cotton Vintage and Patchwork collections.
NASIRI
Nader Nasiri of Nasiri Carpets returns to NY Now for a second time.
Returning to NY Now for a second time, Nasiri notes that overall the show has been good and that he made new contacts during the home furnishings event. The New York City based showroom introduces Charmo, a collection of flatweaves, crafted from 100 percent goat hair in Kurdistan, Iraq. All Nasiri rugs are crafted of hand-carded and hand-dyed Persian wools with all natural dyes taken from regional plants and minerals.
Nasiri introduced Charmo, a flat-woven design crafted of Persian goat hair and natural dyes.
NOMADIC TRADING
Husband and wife team Timur and Lineke Williford, partners of Nomadic Trading Co., return to NY Now.
Based in North Carolina, Nomadic Trading Co. brings attendees a range of vintage Turkish rugs, including the new Overdye Persian collection. It also offers underdyed, white-washed designs that were popular with buyers, says Lineke Williford, co-partner. The company had a busy show, nearly selling out of its vintage Turkish Siirt blankets, crafted of mohair, on day two. The company also offers a production line of hand-woven killims.
Nomadic Trading focuses on repurposed vintage rugs.
ORIENTALIST HOME
Orientalist Home's Gady C. Yesilcay had a busy opening two days at NY Now.
Gady C. Yesilcay of Orientalist Home returns to NY Now offering buyers a large selection of home accessories and swatches of his latest rug, Aqua, a Tibetan weave range made in India of bamboo. "This has been the best show in the past five years," said Yesilcay. "It seemed that business had been going down with every show, but this year there is more traffic."
Orientalist Home debuts Aqua, a Tibetan weave rug made in India of bamboo.
S&H RUGS
S&H's James Arjmand said that a new booth location, closer to the entrance, helped attract the attention of visiting decorators.
Return NY Now exhibitor S&H, located in New Jersey, was brought up front during the recent winter 2016 edition, the company's James Arjmand told RugNews.com. "We have gotten a lot of attention from designers. We always meet with decorators during NY Now and usually get large orders throughout the year because of it." S&H showcased an Egyptian style mamluk in a striking palette of colors that include fuchsia, teal, yellow and navy (to name a few). The handmade rug is crafted from pure silk and oxidized wool.
S&H makes an effort to offer buyers something fresh each show, such as its vibrant Egyptian mamluk made of silk and oxidized wool.
SAFAVIEH
Tiffany Yaraghi sits in a glamorous vignette that marries the high-end Safavieh couture line with more affordable items at its second NY Now show.
Safavieh, which debuted at NY Now last August, continues to focus on cross-merchandising by creating vignettes that marry home furnishings and furniture with its rug collection. "We are featuring our couture line of high-end furnishings with lower end accents and our one-of-a-kind overdye rugs," says the company's Tiffany Yaraghi.
Safavieh Home Furnishings presents a range of its one-of-a-kind overdyed rugs at NY Now.
SUMMIT RUG
Kazem Fatahi of Summit Rug meets with New York designers during the show.
Returning to NY Now, New Jersey-based Summit Rug offered buyers new selections in a range of styles, including its new collection of Scandinavian flateweaves. The range includes reproductions of designs from 1940-1960 and is crafted in India. The company also showed off its new abstract designs made of bamboo silk in India--a collection that Summit's Kazem Fatahi said attendees "really liked."
Summit debuts a collection of Scandinavian 1940-1960 reproduction flatweaves.
Read RugNews.com's NY Now Fashion Floor Guide Part 1: Glam Flourish and Part 3: Stylish Outdoors.