NY NOW RUG EXHIBITORS SPOTLIGHT TRENDS TAILORED TO DESIGNERS
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NEW YORK -- The summer 2017 edition of the semi-annual NY Now show boasted more than 30 exhibitors featuring rugs - from artisans showing a smidgen of hand crafted pieces to vintage traders and big name importers with stacks of new designs to browse.
While most importers who exhibited earlier this summer at Atlanta and Las Vegas markets said traffic at the Javits Center last week was slower than they experienced at the winter NY Now event, those who tailored their exhibits to the designer audience fared well.
Baki Ildiz of Creative Touch scored with the addition of luxury textiles and pillows in prints by Carol Benson-Cobb to complement the Texas-based artist's best-selling rug collection. "You have to expand to adapt to the customer," Ildiz said. Auskin USA's Paige Bigelow Geer was thrilled with sales on opening day. "We've sold more today than we did in an entire week in Las Vegas last month," she told RugNews.com. "I don't know why, but we always do better with New York designers," she said, adding, "our products are so glamorous, you'd think the opposite would be true in Vegas."
Key rug players focused their presentations to a fashion-forward audience on the hunt for the newest textures -- which are soft, subtle, fabric-like and ribbed, often with chenille or carved raised details. Modern abstracts in icy colors still reigned supreme, but gypsy looks and vividly colored Bohemian patterns were attention grabbers in brand new collections and at booths specializing in vintage offerings.
Several rug exhibitors at NY Now (Bokara, Creative Touch, FJ Kashanian, New Moon, Pasargad and S&H Rugs) will be showing these and fresh new designs at The Rug Show to be held Sept. 10-13, also at the Javits Center in New York City.
BOKARA RUG COMPANY
Ethan Shirazi shows granddad Jan Soleimani of Bokara Rug Company the proper way to flip a stack of modern abstract rugs at NY Now.
"Are you looking for something modern? I can flip this stack for you," said a child's voice approaching the RugNews.com team from behind. We turned to find 10 year old Ethan Shirazi eager to present Bokara Rug Company's interpretations of the "it" look of market -- abstract modern designs. Not wanting to disappoint the aspiring salesman, we said we hadn't brought cash to the show. "Tell them you take credit," his grandfather and mentor Jan Soleimani sagely advised.
The new combination of supple fabric-like texture and subtle luster takes center stage at Bokara Rug with this ribbed patchwork design in icy pastels.
BUNGALOW FLOORING
Edward Bobowski, regional sales director, says Bungalow Flooring is opening a curated collection of its line of indoor and outdoor mats to smaller stores across the country.
One of the biggest names in the indoor and outdoor mat category, Bigelow Flooring used the show to introduce a tightly edited selection from its 40,000 SKU line to a new target customer: smaller retailers such as those attending NY Now. Previously sold primarily at large national chains and major e-commerce sites, the brand is known for wellness mats, doormats and a charming pet mat collection.
From lifelike foliage to whimsical puppy designs, the colorful, washable mats from Bungalow Flooring drew NY Now visitors for a closer look.
CHILEWICH
The ombre effect of the new twill weave Shade rug design from Chilewich was in the spotlight at NY Now.
Chilewich had lots of rug newness, from the tight twill weave Shade with warp stripe and bicolor yarns, to Speckle, a jacquard weave with hints of metallic sheen, to its first-ever round rugs and a heathered design added to its low pile shag collection.
Speckle from Chilewich features a subtle sheen created from a jacquard weave that uses a low contrast bicolor yarn in the warp and a pearlescent yarn in the fill.
CREATIVE TOUCH
Baki Ildiz of Creative Touch brings a range of rugs including the best-selling Carol Benson-Cobb collection (behind him), and a vast assortment of decorative pillows to NY Now.
The success of rugs designed by licensing partner and artist Carol Benson-Cobb has led Creative Touch to expand the program to include her luxe fabrics in screen printed linen or velvet and a collection of Benson-Cobbs coordinating pillows. The abstract pattern assortment brings a new dimension to the rug company's growing line of vividly colored and elaborately patterned pillows.
Creative Touch showcases its new screen-printed designer fabrics of velvet or linen featuring abstract designs by artist Carol Benson-Cobb.
ELIKO
Ariel Basalely of Eliko talks with designers admiring the company's lustrous transitional textures at the company's popular NY Now stand.
New York-based Eliko showcased its transitional Brigita collection of hand-knotted rugs prominently on the walls of its NY Now exhibit space. The collection, made in India, includes some 30 designs, and show shoppers were constantly stopping by to check out the new range, which features bamboo silk rugs in a loose Tibetan weave, and wool rugs with a high-low texture. Other attention grabbers included vintage throws and transitional textured rugs in soft, shimmering colors.
New designs in the Brigita for Eliko collection by Lithuanian designer Brigita Krasauskaite attracted NY Now attendees.
FIBRE BY AUSKIN
Paige Bigelow Geer and Erin Dowd of Auskin USA reference the company's roots with a lifelike poster of a herd of sheep that elicited lots of double-takes at NY Now.
Auskin USA introduced NY Now audiences to the Australian-based company's increasingly international and growing assortment, which now includes patterned cowhide rugs and pillows in addition to its fashion shearling and sheepskin products. New natural undyed Islandic sheepskin hides with varying uncut pile heights were also a hit with New York designers.
The Fibre by Auskin brand has expanded its line to include intricate new inlaid cowhide designs to complement a range of interior decorating styles.
FJ KASHANIAN
Jonathan Kashanian poses with two of F.J. Kashanian's NY Now top sellers: the Ocean rug (top) and Chelsea in the foreground.
F.J. Kashanian's exhibit offered lots of fresh fashion, and the results paid off with Jonathan Kashanian declaring NY Now a successful show. Popular with designers were lustrous Tencel rugs, including Ocean in blue and white from the Modern Luxury collection, and Pristine in silver blue. Another show hit was Chelsea in ivory and navy, crafted of wool with bamboo pattern accents. Brilliant fashion colors combined with ethnic folkloric motifs, a Kashanian signature, were evident in new designs, Graphic and Gamble from the Sari Wool collection.
Striking colors and elaborate motifs are hallmarks of F.J. Kashanian's intricately woven Sari Wool collection, a showstopper at NY Now.
JONATHAN ADLER
Mid-century meets the shaggy pile of Moroccan Berbers in the new Tanzania rug by Jonathan Adler. hand knotted of wool with rayon for sheen.
Celebrity designer Jonathan Adler is placing a new emphasis on hand-knotted rugs in his total home collection, said public relations director Ryan Dziadul at the brand's NY Now booth decorated with full room vignettes. On show were Adler's two newest releases, the Tanzania rug in wool and rayon, and Blocks, which is hand knotted of viscose and wool.
Inspired by Art Deco geometrics the new Blocks rug in icy blue by Jonathan Adler is hand carved and cut into varying heights for dimensional texture.
NEW MOON
Sisters Erika and Josephine Kurtz of New Moon Rugs pose in front of a Bali hand-knotted rug and pillows from the Classic collection.
Family owned and based in Wilmington, Delaware, New Moon Rugs boasts an international following. The company, which showed at Domotex China for the first time this year and plans to return in 2018, reported positive response at NY Now to its prominently displayed Bali rug, hand knotted of Tibetan wool, Chinese silk and natural nettle. Also popular were hand-screen printed pillows from the Classic collection in bamboo and silk, and the southwestern designs of the Mesa pillow collection in linen.
A hit with NY Now shoppers, the Mesa pillow collection by New Moon features southwestern patterns inspired by the company's original rug designs.
PASARGAD
Pasargad's Edward Verdiev shows rugs from the bamboo silk Modern collection to designers at NY Now.
At Pasargad, elegant upholstered furniture, including fur clad benches and a brand new blue crocodile leather chair, attracted designers, as did the company's contemporary and transitional assortment of rugs. Popular with show attendees were lustrous 100 percent bamboo silk rugs from the Modern collection, and supple textures in a blend of wool and silk.
Trending at NY Now were supple rugs with surface interest, hints of sheen, and understated colors like above from Pasargad's wool and silk Texture collection.
PATRICK CHARLES
Bohemian-chic style makes a fashion statement at the Patrick Charles booth at the summer edition of NY Now.
Vintage carpets and kilims and pillows from Turkey in a bazaar-like setting attracted visitors to the California-based Patrick Charles stand, which was also decorated with a range of rug-upholstered accent ottomans and an assortment of rugs from flatweaves to shaggy sheepskin textures.
S&H RUGS
Maria Vasquez and Ori Wilbush of S&H Rugs pose at their NY Now booth featuring a representative sampling of the company's myriad designs and distinctive palettes.
Designers attending NY Now were the first to preview S&H Rugs' newest collection of modern designs and fashion colors, and to learn about the company's enhanced special order capabilities (
read full story). Among the hits at the show according to president Ori Wilbush, were a dramatic new erased-look honeycomb design and the new Natural Abstract collection hand knotted by Nepali weavers of undyed, hand-spun wool.
S&H Rugs introduces the hand-knotted cut and loop Natural Abstract collection crafted in Nepal of undyed wool in 100 knots per square inch.