Friends

The best part about spending 2 weeks a year in High Point, trudging around from showroom to showroom, sleeping in a strange bed, working 14 hours/day?

Seeing friends.

Yep.

That's it.

Sure, it's fun to see really cool furniture - especially when some of our friends have been particularly inspired - but the best part is the 'catching up.'

"How ARE you?"

"We're good... we're good."

"How is business?"

"Better... we think it's getting better. Yes. Definitely getting better."

"Ours too... what a year."

"No kidding!"

"And your kids?"

"Still growing!!!"

"See you tonight?!"

"Absolutely!!!"

Yep......... buying furniture (on EVERY level -supplier to manufacturer, manufacturer to retailer, retailer to consumer)... is ALL about the relationship.

... and we wouldn't have it any other way.

Purposeful Eclecticism

There is a trend afoot in decorating and entertaining that I will call 'purposeful eclecticism.' It's where the home/apartment dweller has purposefully mixed styles and eras and colors and textures... not because they had to (think hand-me-downs) but because they wanted to... and they want it to look 'effortless', like they accumulated their goodies over time.

I find this intriguing and delightful.

It used to be that people aspired to have "the complete set", or... sorry, hate this furniture term... the "suite". The bedroom suite, the dining room suite, the living room suite: think sofa, chair, and loveseat that ALL MATCH. People saved their pennies to buy their furniture this way, and then they lived with that 'suite' all the rest of their lives.

Which makes me think that today's eclecticism is not something born of 'need' but because of 'want'.

Think about it... true eclectic decorating usually starts out of need: can't afford the 'matched set' so you figure out how to make the mismatched one look terrific. My parents' apartment while my dad was in grad-school was the ultimate in mismatched items, many of which were later painted this odd shade of green because, naturally, they had gallons of leftover green paint from some other project. Items are repurposed from bedspreads into draperies and pillows. It was recycling at its finest.

Now, however, the appeal of DIY, the lure of the thrift store or yard sale, and the encouragement to re-purpose and recycle, has created a new level of eclecticism that is truly purposeful (with the illusion of appearing 'effortless').

On a recent episode of Dear Genevieve (yes, like many of you, I HEART HGTV, especially Genevieve, Candice, David, and Vern...)... Genevieve Gorder (who got her TV start on Trading Spaces many moons ago) brought life to a couple's Victorian era dining room by buying them MISMATCHED dining chairs from different periods. She then covered the seats in the same fabric, to bring them 'unity'. Her decorations? Fruits and vegetables. There were two big pieces in the room that she bought new: the table and the chandelier. Everything looked great.

Okay... so why would I - a retailer of NEW furniture - be espousing the ideas of purposeful eclecticism? Well, first off, because I like it, and I do it myself. My living room has an antique carved Brazilian cabinet, an early 20th century baby grand piano, an original-to-the-house stone fireplace, and... lots of modern furniture, lighting, & rugs.

Designers are touting the beauty and benefit of 'mixing things up.' LaDiff friend and Richmond designer Kathy Corbet recently led a seminar titled 'Mix it up! Incorporating Contemporary Styles into a Traditional Home.' On her blog, Kathy says "Simple touches can provide a smooth visual transition when combining periods and adding modern touches."

We LaDiffers love to mix things up. Our belief is that as long as each piece has integrity unto itself, and YOU love it, you can make it work. If you trust your own instincts, you'll find that you are drawn to similar colors or textures, that, when mixed together, become something layered and wonderful. (In fact, mixing things up is part of the reason we started Vive - more global/ ethnic/ one-of type furniture, located next door to LaDiff.)

Compare it to fashion:
* a beautiful antique cameo pin worn on a chic black sweater is truly elegant
* a vintage 1960's dress looks sexy with sleek modern boots
* jeans and a t-shirt are instantly dressed up with a vintage scarf and handbag

Now let's do it with furniture:
* you've inherited Gramma's antique iron bed - flank it with glass tables for a modern update or warm it up with solid cherry
* vintage 1950's white laminate kitchen table? how 'bout some Danish inspired colorful bent-ply chairs to go around?
* that exquisite antique Persian rug from Aunt Mary? sleek black Corbusier-inspired leather upholstery lets the rug be the star
* naugahyde lazyboy circa 1974? ... we recommend that you donate that item to Caritas' furniture bank and start OVER (there are some things we just cannot help)

You don't have to start from scratch! In fact, we wish you wouldn't. If your furniture has character and 'good bones', work with it. Just add some quality, fun, and color where needed.

Purposeful Eclecticism... hard to say... fun to do! Let's do it together. Get started at: www.ladiff.com

Toot! Toot! That's our 'own' horn you hear!

Well... it's Monday... so it's time to write another blog entry.

This morning, Carol Hazard and the Metro Business section of the Richmond Times Dispatch did it for me.

The comments from Jerry Epperson, furniture industry expert & analyst and downtown Richmond neighbor, are so flattering that our buttons have been popping off our shirts all day!

A big shout out and thank you also to Alice Lynch, with the Virginia Capitol Foundation, and, of course, to our partner of almost 30 years, Ivor Massey for their nice words, too!

You can read the article online by clicking here.

Below are a few photos that appeared in print, including the wonderful 'empress of LaDiff' (as my dad calls her), Miss Lucy.

And, of course, if you want to know even more about LaDiff, we hope you'll visit us in person. For starters... visit ladiff.com and check out our story and our 'stuff'. Thanks!

Ch-ch-ch-changes...

"Turn and face the strange ch-ch-changes..." sang Mr. Bowie, a long long time ago.

For the last few months I've been busy reconnecting with former classmates, with the culmination of our 25th high school reunion occurring this past weekend.

It was a blast. A great turnout; fun people; good conversation; a LOT of laughing; and many, many walks down memory lane.

Which got me thinking about just how much the world HAS changed in 25 years.

The year that I left high school ... 1984, with all of its Orwellian overtones...

• AT&T - a.k.a. MaBell - was 'divested' (broke up into lots of smaller companies)
• Apple introduced the Mackintosh computer (which was mostly used by new college freshmen to play donkey kong)
• One month before winning 8 Grammy's for Thriller, Michael Jackson's hair caught on fire while filming a Pepsi commercial, begin his spiral into drug dependency.
• The Soviet Union (yes, not yet Russia again) boycotted the summer Olympics in Los Angeles, allowing the women's gymnastics team, led by Mary Lou Retton, to take home lots of gold.
• Virgin Atlantic Airways made its inaugural flight.
• Vanessa Williams becomes the first Miss America to resign her crown after nude photos of her show up in Penthouse (oops).
• Crack cocaine is first introduced in Los Angeles beginning what became a drug epidemic
  

Oh, and all of my papers were typed on an electric typewriter, my car still had an am only radio, and I listened to albums and cassette tapes (although my boyfriend at the time had a new-fangled 'cd player').

How far we've come in 25 years.

As people, as a planet.

... with so many opportunities left for innovation, for creation, for improvement.

I wonder what the next 25 will bring?

Deadlines are opportunities

I have to admit it... I love a deadline.

In fact, I need one.

It propels me to act.

This Saturday, the president of LaDiff (aka my husband) and I are hosting MY high school reunion at OUR home. 100 people (about 65 classmates plus some brave spouses/dates) will be coming to our house to reminisce, eat, drink, listen to great (yes great) 80's music, and tell stories. I agreed to this 5 years ago (no, I'm not telling you which reunion this is, but the previous music hint may have given it away), so it was not a surprise to my husband when I reminded him back in the spring.

The reunion has given us "a deadline:" a deadline to landscape, to paint, to hang light fixtures, to change some furniture...

Some of it felt like drudgery (I'm not a fan of planting multiple tiny all-green plants into a bed - it's boring, back-breaking, tedious), but the end result, going room to room, outdoor space to outdoor space, to make improvements big or small, has been worth it.

In fact, just yesterday, the husband said "It's been good to have a deadline to force me to get some of this done."

Deadlines are good.
They prompt us to start a project AND finish it.
We take action.
WE MOVE!

We might curse a deadline when it's in front of us, but we are grateful when it's behind us, when we've we met the goal, when we've finished the project.
When we view a deadline as an opportunity to improve, learn, change, it can enrich us.

I like a good deadline. (oh... and the husband, who is also the President of LaDiff, is the most amazing, selfless, helpful person you could meet, since he's been painting, tilling, planting, piling, cleaning... and it's not even HIS reunion... he's a darn good man, that man I married.)

(Is this a good time to remind you that the DEADLINE to save in the Perfect Seat Sale is Sunday, October 4th? Especially for the Comfort Sleeper sale, since this was the FIRST TIME they had a sale, and we have NO IDEA when they'll do it again? It's a GOOD deadline... that gives YOU a real opportunity to save money.)

Think.Shop.Buy.Local - redux

On Friday, September 11th, after taking a moment to pause and reflect on the tragedies of 8 years ago, a Westin hotel ballroom filled with retailers and fans of retail gathered to celebrate.

The agenda for this particular Retail Merchants Association First Friday Forum breakfast was the Think.Shop.Buy.Local campaign - its origins, its mission, and its future direction.

Panelists were Michael Guld of Mainline Broadcasting & the Guld Resource group as moderator, Tom Silvestri, publisher of the Richmond Times Dispatch, and....... me. Michael presented the program, the website, some of the media opportunities. I presented the retail perspective: how to 'get on board and make it happen.' Tom presented the contributions that retailers make to the community and the hopeful impact of the TSBL campaign on the Richmond area.
The follow up in the Richmond Times Dispatch on Saturday was spot on (thanks, Louis Llovio!). While this is a WONDERFUL campaign, it will be critical for local retailers to think globally about the nature of their business. We cannot work in a vacuum; we have to continue to differentiate, grow, and improve to compete with the 'big boys'.

The big surprise follow-up came on Sunday, when Tom Silvestri posted a FULL PAGE editorial in the RTD, celebrating the achievements of local retailers. He flattered, he honored, he told stories, and he showcased the individuality, the success, and the personality of Richmond's retail community. He began his Richmond-Retail-Horn-Tooting by revealing his 'angle':

"I admit I have a bias. My livelihood and that of approximately 625 colleagues at the Richmond Times-Dispatch and another 925 of our independent contractors depend on retailers who advertise and inform the public using our newspapers and Web sites to attract customers.
As they go, we go."

But isn't his bias one that EVERYone in Richmond has?
Don't we ALL rely upon local business to keep the engine going?

It's all a tightly knit interwoven circle.
You put money in my hand. I in turn use that money to buy goods or services from someone else. They in turn do the same.

It's our THINKING about whose hands we'll choose that makes all the difference.

THINK before you shop and buy...
You have the power to build your community, to improve your community, to sustain your community, when you make the decision to keep it LOCAL.

Thanks for the campaign, Retail Merchants Association.
LaDifference is going to do what WE can to continue to spread the word and 'make you proud.'

BiOH - Ask for it by name...

In the furniture world, for those of us trying to be 'more green', nearly every furniture category and every furniture surface can be redesigned in a more environmentally friendly way. Wood is sourced from sustainable forests. Lacquers, paints, and surface treatments release no VOC's (volatile organic compounds) into the atmosphere. And vendors reuse, repurpose, and recycle wherever possible. And consumers respond.

All of that is great.
Except for one rather important omission... the SEAT.

FOAM - a fossil-fuel dependent substance - has been the primary resource for the seating (and bedding) industry for decades. Why? Because consumers (particularly American) find it comfortable. Foam is resilient, can be cut and carved into shapes, and lasts a long time, particularly when it is very dense. But, it is still a fossil-fuel reliant substance.

What's an environmentally savvy consumer to do?

Well, some go back to down filled, but that creates a whole different set of problems (plucking feathers from birds and all that). Down seating also gets very slouchy (some say sloppy) looking over time, and down is much much firmer than most foam seating... which means that most manufacturers who work with down still combine it with - you guessed - foam, for that softer, cushier, longer-lasting feel. Back to square one.

In the last few centuries, before 'foam' was so prevalent, cushions were stuffed with anything from straw to horse hair. Ever sat on an antique sofa with horsehair cushions? Rather, um, firm.

Now there is an alternative: BiOH polyols.
Created & developed by Cargill, BiOH polyols offer retailers and consumers an option to seating that relies 100% on fossil fuels.

Founded in 1865, Cargill* is a privately held company that employs 160,000 people in 67 countries. An international producer and marketer of food, agricultural, financial and industrial products & services, Cargill is dedicated to helping their customers through collaboration, innovative, research & development. It is through these efforts that BiOH polyols came to be.

"BiOH polyols are a soy-based ingredient for flexible foam used in upholstered furniture and bedding, carpet backing, and automotive seats. Traditional foam and carpet backing ingredients are derived from petroleum-based products. BiOH products are made from a renewable resource - soybean oil." BiOH polyols can be used to replace about 20% of the 67% of polyphenols used to make upholstered foam cushioning, without losing the durability, strength, and comfort that American consumers desire in their seating. (To learn more about the research & development of the product and the science behind it, visit the BiOH website.)

When LaDiff learned more about BiOH polyols, we were impressed. This would tie into our efforts to educate our consumers about environmentally friendly home furnishings options. We were even more pleased to learn we were already carrying furniture made with BiOH seat cushioning, when we saw this video blog on BiOH's website about one of our FAVORITE upholstery & leather suppliers: American Leather.

We jumped on board the BiOH bandwagon and started talking about it on Twitter with BiOH horn-tooter (and marketing manager) Jessica Koster and mistress of all BiOH social-media, Leslie Carothers. They gave us the full story and explained that the goal is to get consumers - HEY, THAT'S YOU! - to know enough about the benefits of BiOH that they ask for it by name. We figure that once consumers - YOOHOO, calling YOU again! - realize that there IS a choice in upholstered seating that includes renewable resources, asking for it by name would be a natural 'next step'.

Think of it like the Intel Pentium chip. Go back about 10-12 years, when computers just started getting 'fast' (to be able to interact with the quickly evolving world of the internet). Intel had this great product, but it couldn't be sold alone. It was always put inside of another product: the pc you chose. (Okay Mac people, just bear with me for a minute). So Intel started marketing this chip... telling people to ASK FOR IT when they bought a computer. Pentium became a household word for computer-savvy consumers. They sought out machine builders who incorporated the Pentium chips into their builds. Success!

Why can't BiOH become like the Pentium chip?

And, unlike some decisions that are 'good for you', BiOH is not 'tasteless' in the sense of design. Some of the country's top furniture designers and manufacturers are using BiOH... which takes us back to American Leather. We're still working on getting American Leather to hang tag all of their product to shout out "hey! this has BiOH!" In the meantime, we'll do it ourselves... "Hey, you guys! Check out the very cool furniture at LaDiff that includes BiOH polyols! It's better for the environment... and better for all of us too."

psst... to you LaDiff upholstery suppliers who are NOT using BiOH foam yet, you might want to look into it for your company too!

*Information on Cargill found at http://www.bioh.com/.
*Thank you to Leslie Carothers (@tkpleslie) & Jessica Koster (@BiOHforALLJK) for providing us with information and education to write this blog.