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 2 special items:

Cortona Chest (C28/ST/DW/BB04/IV/45LV):
Rialto Twin Beds (B20/TW/IV/46LV):

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

The All Designer Issue

This month we thought we'd do a little something different and celebrate some of the fine designers who regularly use Patina Furniture in their projects. We lead off with a new interview of Atlanta interior designer Patricia McLean and then take a look back at recent interviews with designers Laura Blanco of New York and Tish Key of San Francisco. We hope you enjoy these interviews as much as we do.

Designer Profile

Patricia McLean

Sometimes you just don’t where your big break is going to come from. That one project that puts you on the map and really gets your career going.

For Atlanta interior designer Patricia McLean that break came from the opportunity, as a young designer, to design a single room in a charity show house for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

A graduate of the University of Georgia, majoring in Interior design, Patricia began her career working at the Design Center at ADAC.

“I learned the business from the inside out,” she says, “I started in one of the showrooms and sold fabric and furniture. I worked with the fabric mills, the furniture manufacturers; I saw how different designers worked and I got a good business background as well.”

“I told them when they hired me that I wanted to have my own design firm. I never wanted to work for another designer. I just always wanted to work for myself and one day I just struck out on my own.”

Starting out with just a few clients she got her “break” when the Atlanta Symphony Show House decide they would “take a chance” and allow a new, young designer to design a room.

“These days, they have a lot of new designers that take part but at that time it was a real break with tradition and I just thrived on it. I loved it,” she said, “It helped me build a nice portfolio and it was a real springboard for me as far as my career.”

Seven Symphony Show Houses later, Patricia is an established and very busy Atlanta Interior designer known for her traditional / transitional designs.

“I usually like to base my designs on a historic preference. I like to use antiques, wood floors and antique rugs. Then everything needs to function, so if I have to make a piece of custom furniture to serve the purpose of the room I will.”

Patricia finds a kindred spirit in the furniture pieces she chooses from Patina, Inc.

“One of the things I like about Patina is that they are historically oriented as well. There furniture is based on true lines, the scale is right for the piece, they use pretty hardware, and they take into consideration every detail.”

“When it comes to replicating antiques, which is what they do, the finish needs to come out looking like it’s been there forever and they achieve that. That’s what attracts me to them. It’s done right.”

“I’m used to dealing with artisans and I can tell all the steps that are involved in creating a convincing faux finish and they’re one of the few that get it right.”

You can see Patricia’s portfolio of Symphony Show House designs online ather web site - www.mcleaninteriors.com

Patricia McLean Interiors, Inc is located at 3179 Maple Drive, Suites 8 & 10Atlanta, Georgia 30305404-266-9772

Designer Profile

Laura Blanco

Designer Show Houses are notorious for short installation times. Months of design work and preparations often come down to a day or two to finally put it all together. Imagine a scenario in which you have to install a bathroom and dressing area in just an hour and a half!

That’s the dilemma New York designer Laura Blanco faced while working on Veranda Magazine’s New York’s Best at Trump Park Avenue show house.

Due to a combination of New York City traffic and parking, a bottleneck at the tiny service elevator and some union issues, everything was backed up, as all the participating designers scrambled to load in to the duplex penthouse on the 30th and 31st floors at Park Avenue & 59th Street.

“The logistics were a nightmare. The show house opened on April 12th, I’ll never forget it. It was at 5 o’clock that the cocktail party and tour started that day and at 3 o’clock in the afternoon the crew was still grouting my bathroom.”

Laura was able to take it all in stride because of her meticulous planning and preparation which included extensive consultations with Patina’s National Sales Manager, Jane Cumming, and many visits to the Patina web site.

“I needed something that would definitely make a statement and working with Jane, who was fantastic, I really got what I was looking for.

I used a Barbarini dresser with a geometric design. I wanted a piece that would bridge the concept of neutrality and exoticism and that piece really did it.”

The Patina web site was an important reference for Laura due to the necessity of accurate measurements.

“I love the web site and use it quite often. Those rooms are tight; the dressing area is really a closet. I needed my measurements to be right on the money and they were.”

Despite the last minute logistic nightmare, the Veranda Magazine event went off on time to rave reviews and appreciative crowds.

“People went crazy, they loved it. I was so happy; especially since that was the room I pulled off at 4:30 that afternoon. Before that day, I was ready to go in and install everything. I knew exactly where everything was going to go. It’s a great memory and I feel really good about it.”

For more information about Laura Blanco Interiors, visit her web site at www.laurablanco.com. Laura can also be reached at (212) 876-0053.

Designer Profile

Tish Key

Interior designer Tish Key works primarily with clients renovating the fine, old housing stock of the Pacific Heights, Presidio Heights and East Bay sections of San Francisco.

“Housing costs here are some of the highest in the country”, says Tish, “People are staying in their homes and renovating, rather than buying new homes”.

Settling in the Bay area in 1995 after working for large architectural houses in Atlanta and Dallas, Tish opened her own firm and quickly established herself as one of the areas premier designers.

“We don’t really have a certain look, if you look on our website (www.tishkey.com) you’ll see that it ranges from things that are very contemporary to very traditional. I just try to make whatever is appropriate for that house or that family the best it can be.”

That philosophy came in handy while doing her last showcase home, recently featured in the May 2005 issue of Traditional Home, a traditional English Tudor that once served as the British consulate in San Francisco. Unlike the usual showcase home where designers have free range, this commission came with a specific request.

“The coordinator called me to say that the owners wanted me to design their 10 year old daughter’s bedroom and bathroom. They wanted it designed specifically for her. They wanted a bedroom that could be appropriate for a sophisticated young woman as she grows up. They wanted it to be timeless for her.”

Tish now had a client with a specific charge but she was still working under the time constraints of the showcase event. She had less than two months to design, coordinate, purchase and install the rooms.

Tish immediately turned to Patina for most of the furnishings in the bedroom, including the Friuli bed itself and Fontevielle Writing Table. She felt that Patina had the appropriate look for the room and the timeless quality she was after.

An added plus was that, working with Patina, even with her tight schedule; she was still able to make some last minute design changes.

“One thing I like is, that although it is hand painted furniture, you can customize it. On the tables, we have butterflies and dragonflies running along the edge. We were able to customize that design to get what we wanted”.

The reaction from both the clients and the public was overwhelmingly positive and more importantly the 10 year old daughter loves her new bedroom.

“I think the room is sophisticated enough and neutral enough to be timeless. To me the room is a backdrop for her personal items and those will change over time but the room will still be a comfortable retreat for her.”

Tish Key can be reached at:

Tish Key Interior Design
2328 Union Street
San Francisco, CA 94123
Phone: 415-359-1470