The Sale Niche

The Sale Niche is the place to shop for that special customer who wants a unique Patina piece with the added advantage of immediate availability.

In addition, you’ll notice that not only are the pieces special, so are the prices. These pieces are available at these prices for a limited time and will be sold or removed from sale after 30 days.

This month we are featuring two special items—a Comodino Nightstand and a Barbarini Chest:

Comodino Nightstand (C04/ST/ID/AQ/04):
Barbarini Chest (C47/SM/DW-15/TP-BK/55BK):

For pricing and other information about these very special pieces, visit the Patina web site at http://www.patinainc.com/sales.php (free registration required)

LA Reps – LA Trends

As we announced in our February issue, Patina, Inc. has chosen Bausman & Company - LA, as its exclusive representative in the Los Angeles area.

Bausman & Company was founded in Ontario, California in 1971. Since that time, steady growth has enabled the company to become one of the leading manufacturers of French and English reproduction furniture on the West Coast.

In their Los Angeles showroom they rep their own line of furniture, as well as select offerings by other companies including Lambert Bloomfield, O'Brien Ironworks and now Patina.

“Los Angeles is a huge market for Bausman & Company furniture,” says Wendy Kneedler, Showroom Manager, “But what we’ve found, here in the showroom, is that it needs to be balanced with other product and Patina is a perfect product for this. There’s no competition between the lines and it is a counterpoint that’s just wonderful.”

“We’re all excited about Patina joining us. We have a wonderful display in our front window. We’re on a street, La Cienega Boulevard, that has many design resources; there are antique shops, showrooms, and accessory shops. It’s a great area that draws designers from all over Los Angeles.”

Housing costs in Los Angeles are some of the highest in the nation, but according to Wendy, that has actually had a positive impact on interior design budgets.

“I think people’s minds are in tune with spending money on their homes. They are nesting a lot here. Building media rooms so they can stay at home. People here are not afraid of custom, they like that.”

And in an interesting turn of events, the Los Angeles market’s need for quick turnarounds has led to a reverse of the usual showroom sample discount.

“We do offer pieces off the floor. We charge more for items off the floor. It’s instant gratification. We have to wait in line for our furniture, too; so, if we sell off the floor we don’t have a sample to show anymore. It’s a nice little twist.”

When we talked with Wendy, she was in the midst of preparing for this month’s LA Market. Jane Cumming, National Sales Manager for Patina, will be attending and taking copious notes and pictures for next month’s newsletter.

“We have freshened up our showroom with new displays, done some painting and fixing up. We’ll be serving food and wine and we’re really looking forward to having Jane join us for the events.”

Bausman & Company, Inc., Los Angeles, is located at:

921 North La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90069
(310) 659-9459

Calendar Of Events
April 27 - 29: HD 2006 - Hospitality Design Expo, Las Vegas, NV	April 27 - May 3: High Point - The International Home Furnishings Market, High Point, NC April 28 - May 1: 9th Annual Chicago Antiques Fair, The Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL

New Product Highlight

The Plasma Secretary

When it comes to our living spaces, many of us have a love hate relationship with the television set. We love to watch movies and other programming but we don’t want a large blank screen dominating and overpowering the look of an otherwise beautiful room.

Patina recognized this early on and has for years offered an armoire specifically designed to hold and disguise very large television sets and it continues to be a very successful piece in the product line.

Times and technology have changed—with new, thinner but larger plasma screens becoming the norm. In keeping with this trend, Patina is now offering an even better solution for disguising these wide screen sets, the Plasma Secretary.

Based on the Palazzo secretary form and available in all of the Patina hand painted designs, as well as custom colors, the secretary is designed to hold up to a 35-inch wide plasma screen.

“The real beauty of this piece is that it’s not your typical TV cabinet,” says Patina president Marylu Stevens, “It not only looks like a secretary but still retains the functional writing desk and storage space of our traditional model.”

“I think this piece could be particularly nice in a room where space is very limited, in a small den, for example, or in a guest room; anywhere that dual-functionality is required.”

And while not tipping our hand too early, this may not be the last new redesign in the Patina line this year.

“This is the first in a series of efforts to look at our furniture in new ways; to see how we can use them in more contemporary ways. We think it’s an interesting juxtaposition, essentially hiding modern technology in furniture styled after 18th century designs.”

For more information about the Plasma Secretary, visit your local Patina representative. To find a rep near you visit us online at www.patinainc.com/globe.php. The model pictured is a C06TV/LW/BK-OC/49.

Historical Perspective

Construction and Finish Part 3

In the last few issues, we’ve been taking a look at some of the construction and finishing techniques that Patina uses today and comparing them to the old world techniques artists have used for centuries to create hand painted furniture.

This month we’ll look at the actual painting process and the materials and techniques involved with creating fine Italian painted furniture in the Patina style.

Using a tempura based paint, essentially the same paint as used by 18th century artisans, the base color is applied completely by hand, without the use of any modern sprayers or similar techniques.

As was done in the 18th century, the modern artists create their own unique template for each applied design from a waxed paper with small holes punched into it along the length of the decoration.

They then “pounce” charcoal on the paper to transfer the outline of the design to the surface of the piece. This process is used so that the intricate decorative designs can be matched up with each other and a sense of balance can be maintained within the piece.

From this point in the process, the piece is completely in the control of the artist and their expertise in applying the tempura to the designs. Years of apprenticeship and study have gone into preparing Patina artists and their skills are formidable.

No decals or stencils are ever used in the painting process. The decoration on each piece is individualized by the work of the artist.

The results are consistently stunning but each piece is a work of art unto itself.

Next month, we’ll look at a part of the process that was never done in the 18th century but is an integral part of the look and feel of the modern Patina collection.