I was not able to make it out to North Carolina for High Point Market this year, but luckily for all of us, I had an “insider” attend during the October session to bring us back the scoop on the best of High Point Market Fall 2017!

High Point Market, often referred to as simply “market” by the interior design community is the largest home furnishings industry trade show in the world with over 2000 exhibitors, and 10 million square feet of shopping! My friend and fellow designer, Sarah Montgomery, was there on behalf of the company where she works, Eastern Accents, which is fabulous Chicago-based resource for beds, bedding, pillows, drapery and more.

Sarah’s got a FABULOUS eye and knows the Centered by Design brand well (we both love color, texture and textiles), so she chose six of her favorite vendors to highlight for us here:

Wesley Hall

Wesley Hall is a domestic furniture manufacturer based out of Hickory, North Carolina. They specialize in upholstered furniture and are known for their colorful leathers and large selection of fabrics as well as their quality and company culture.

All of their furniture is customizable, from the leg finish, to the nailheads to arm height on a sofa. It is important for designers to see the Wesley Hall showroom at market, not only to see and try the new introductions, but to see the possibilities since everything is custom. Their showroom is always so well done, and they are not afraid of color! They actually change the color of their double entryway doors every market and designers have fun guessing what it will be. It’s this attention to detail that is carried out through the whole showroom and can set a trend in motion.

Sho Modern

Sho Modern is a brand new lifestyle furniture and accessories brand. You come across new brands like this when you peruse the Salon floors in the Suites at Market Square. Susan Hornbeak- Ortiz, the founder, owner and designer of Sho Modern combines her background in art installation and sculpture to create these globally inspired goods. Interesting shapes and textural details stand out in this line and the use of fur, fringe, leather and metallic make for the ultimate statement piece.  

Resource Decor

Resource Decor is a trend forward furniture and accessories brand located in a stand alone showroom in the heart of Market. The large, diverse line features brand collaborations with many famous contemporary designers such as Kelly Hoppen and Andrew Martin.

In the new frontier of branding, design style is synonymous with Lifestyle. As you walk through the showroom you see vignettes featuring California casual, clean-lined elegance, urban eclectic and mid-century modern. I am always drawn to interesting shapes, finish combinations and use of color in furniture and Resource Decor has such a good selection of fashion forward pieces in a variety of styles.

Oly Studio

Oly Studio is a gorgeous furniture line by two San Francisco designers, known for it’s casual elegance. The furniture seems at home in the High Point showroom, a two story historic building with huge windows and a courtyard. Oly’s aesthetic contrasts dark and moody with light and bright, as well as the masculine and feminine. Mostly neutral in color, the shapes and textures stand out making them collector pieces you would design a room around.

photo cred – Anne Sage

Ambella Home

Ambella Home was a favorite find from Market! As a product designer myself, I am very familiar with most of the home furnishings fabrics available. I knew I was going to be blown away by the fabrics as soon as I walked into the showroom. The color and scale of these fabrics paired with some of the more feminine furniture frames was gorgeous.

The company’s founder, George Moussa was from a family of importers and was actually the first to introduce the “sink chest”, a traditional wooden chest with a sink mounted and plumbed for a faucet. This paved the way for a new category at market that continues to sell.

However when there is beautiful fabric around I could care less about a sink so I had to find out more about the creative director. Jennifer McConnel, sources from all over, but mostly Europe and customizes the fabric designs as much as she can. Takeaways from this showroom are jewel tones, velvet and abstract patterns are hot, and I need to go to a European fabric show ASAP.

214 Modern Vintage

214 Modern Vintage is a must see at Market. The other showrooms are lovely, but after a time the dry air and fluorescent lights start to get to you. It’s usually good weather in April and October so designers can get some fresh air and continue their shopping at this vintage store housing a group of dealer’s goods.

When I source decorative accessories for clients and for my own home I like to “discover” them.  Sourcing vintage is the best and most rewarding way to do this. At other showrooms the usual talk is stock and lead times, but at 214 Modern Vintage, if you can carry it, you can take it!

A big THANK YOU to Sarah for giving us the insider scoop on brands to know from High Point Market Fall 2017. Check out Sarah’s Instagram for more daily inspiration and leave us a comment if you discovered a great new find at market this year, we would love to know and share!

XO – CLAIRE

PS. You might like this Styling with Books or My Favorite Art Resources post if you’re looking for more home decor inspiration.