The NYIGF: Enlighten Me
by Emily
I spent the better part of the weekend circumnavigating the New York International Gift Fair which is, by the way, crazy pants. The NYIGF hosts nearly 3,000 vendors who are there representing their home, gift, and decor lines. It is open to the trade (designers/decorators/retailers) only and a great way to meet fabulous vendors and sales representatives, see what’s new and chic for the coming year, and gain valuable inspiration for client’s decor. Whew, it is A LOT. And really amazing for new kids on the official interior design block like me.
An important element of design that can often be overlooked or turns up as an after thought is lighting. You know you’ve found yourself in a dressing room looking in the mirror thinking “I look AMAZING!” OR the polar opposite “get.this.off.of.me.immediately!” Often times those reactions have everything to do with lighting and that feeling carries over to how you look and feel in your home. We’ve touched on Lighting Trends in the past, and it is so important that it is certainly worthy of another post!
So while I am not going to go into all the ins and outs of slimming lighting or go off on a rant about painful overhead fluorescents, what I will go into is some of the fabulous lighting vendors I saw and loved at the gift fair and a sampling of my favorites from their lines.
1. Solaria - this super nice group from Georgia had such a great range of options and understands the importance of “illuminating” a room with lighting. Love.
“Bubbles” – I love a little funky.
“Flora Toscana” – isn’t this shape great?
“La Villa” – I am sure you aren’t shocked a little turquoise showed up…
“Raphaella Sconce” - reminds me of my own dining room fixture – I just adore this style
This is just a sampling! Check out their website – really great stuff and very nice people.
2. Ro-Sham-Beaux - They describe their line as capturing the “essence of functional art while bringing a whimsical element of beauty and durability to the forefront” and there is no better way to describe their amazing line. I mean, just take a look at these gorgeous, unique pieces.
“Patricia Blue” lamp – I love that this lamp has a presence without taking up a ton of table space. Added bonus? I think my mom would love it – she is a blue person! – and they share the same name.
“Malibu Coral” – Y’all know us and our general coral obsession! Need I say more??
“Sofia” - I love this fixtures interesting shape and rope-like finish that is somehow not casual but elegantly refined.
Y’all will love their lamps and fixtures… check out their website, too!
3. Chandi Lighting - for all of you romantics out there, this is your lighting company. If you think in Twinkle, you are going to be sold immediately on their eye-catching fixtures.
“Jasmine” – check out this scale! While only for the photo shoot, I definitely wish I had some outdoor space to glam up with this beauty.
“Jennifer” – again, what amazing scale! And while not necessarily what every home needs, this is pretty incredible and a nice example of their work.
“Yari” pendant - likely a better scale for most, this pendant is romantic yet captures a cool industrial feel.
Chandi has plenty more to surely catch your eye on their website. Check it out.
This is just a small collection of images and there are so many great lighting options out there. I hope you feel inspired by this post and it makes you a little bit more aware of this very important element of beautiful design.
More from the NYIGF to come!
