We Think It's In the Details

How did they do it?

Since a photo is worth a thousand words, perhaps it’s best if we share a few. As mentioned in a previous post, Team Portland gathered around and did it together.

Yes, we had fun

The Tao of Sample Displays

Inventory Control Expert

Neither the First, Nor the Last...

Refinements

the "Ultimate" Break

Tackling the Technical

One of our longest journeys to fruition is complete; Atelier Lapchi Portland’s door is now open

It’s a glorious fall weekend in Oregon. The streets of NW Portland are full of people riding bikes, walking dogs and heading towards the hilly trails to the west of our new showroom, trails so close you can see the dense evergreens of the park and the beautiful homes nearby. Also to the west and east of our showroom rise both the historic and Leed Certified condominiums of the Pearl District, the Park Blocks and the Willamette Riverfront. Which of the people walking into our showroom and gasping delightedly live there? We are finding out…

Here are a few of the photo stories on the path to the showroom opening.

Atelier Lapchi buildout begins

Atelier Viewpoint East

Pacific Northwest details

A friend visiting approves

An infinite amount of light, when it's not raining.

This is just the beginning – we will share more. No matter the long journey, right now, this instant, we are ready to work. Congratulations to everyone in Lapchi and we do mean everyone. We couldn’t have created such a beautiful, lovely working space for design clients and friends if the entire company had not banded together in support.

Kerry and John enjoy the moment

Atelier Lapchi, West Hollywood, Celebrates Change

Fall Markets in LA can be fun, but “Fall” with its variegated warm coloration, may visually exist only within showrooms in the Pacific Design Center.

The Display Stage at a Glance - Atelier Lapchi

Atelier Lapchi’s Display Stage – it’s the first glance that captures the client. Coordinating patterns command the long view and all sides of center stage.  Clients recognize in an instant installation possibilities for Manhattan Beach, Wilshire condos and a Chelsea Brownstone – bi-coastal designing being the norm these days.

2011 Fall Market Variation

Staging allows designers to visually coordinate entire homes while working comfortably in our Atelier. Samples line the walls and are easy to transport. Small stacks of standard size carpets demonstrate technique and are available for purchase yet “Bespoke” is Lapchi’s specialty — Atelier Lapchi was designed to facilitate interesting and challenging projects requiring custom production.

Texere for Lapchi Display

Displays change continuously; color and texture cues are derived from history, fashion, or simply the season. This fall, visit Atelier Lapchi in Suite G-176, the Pacific Design Center, West Hollywood. It’s very difficult not to glance – so easy to enter.

The 30th Anniversary of the Ohio Design Centre – And the day Atelier Lapchi, Cleveland won for “Best Tasting Cake” in the Let Us Eat Cake contest! Congratulations to Thom Capretta, Showroom Manager, and Sasha Goldstein, Lapchi National Sales Director, and to the staff of the Ohio Design Centre on a great turnout and a wonderful design day.

Atelier Lapchi's winning cake from Phyllis Lester Designs

In honor of the Ohio Design Centre’s 30th, each showroom teamed with a local baker to present a cake during the Fall Market Day events.

Atelier Lapchi paired up with Phyllis Lester, a lovely & highly acclaimed Ohio cake designer, who created a three layer, sinfully rich Black Forest Cake, with Chocolate Mousse filling and Italian Meringue butter cream frosting. Phyllis borrowed the graceful Quill pattern from Lapchi’s André Arbus Design Collection for the exterior, but wowed the crowded Atelier showroom judging with her award-winning cake.

The only way to top the cake was to spend the afternoon with Thom and Sasha as they spoke about Lapchi and the creation of the André Arbus Collection on display in Atelier Lapchi.

An icon of French 20th c. design, Arbus re-defined the traditional language of the French decorative arts in a clean, stylized manner. Trained within a family heritage of fine furniture manufacturing, Arbus further extended his personal interests and education to include interior design, architecture, and landscape. Maybe even cake……

For more information on André Arbus, Lapchi and our collection of both iconic and inspired interpretations of his design archives, please visit Lapchi.com or contact your local Atelier Lapchi showroom.

For information on fabulous cakes in the Ohio region, please contact Phyllis Lester, www.phyllislesterdesigns.com/

And if you would like to read more and see more of the cakes designed and enjoyed during the ODC Fall Market, link to DecorGirl.net – a design blog written by Lisa M. Smith of Interior Design Factory, Ltd. who provided wonderful photos of her favorite cakes – which we thank her for (see link below).

Let us Eat Cake at the Ohio Design Center’s Market Day 2011

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Lapchi is a member of GoodWeave, an organization dedicated to ending illegal child labor in the carpet industry and offering educational opportunities to children in South Asia. For information on Lapchi and our network of Ateliers, please visit lapchi.com.

Lapchi's Quill from the Arbus Collection

Atelier Lapchi Open House – Join Nathan, Iwona and Catrina during Design Chicago in the Merchandise Mart. On display – the Lapchi André Arbus Design Collection and our new Répertoire Collection.

Attendees will receive two complimentary raffle tickets for André Arbus: Architecte-Décorateur des Années 40 by Yvonne Bunhammer, an inspiring compendium of the Arbus legacy to be raffled at 5pm on Friday, October 14th.

Atelier Lapchi's Book Raffle Prize

Atelier Lapchi - Design Chicago Open House: Suite 6-160, Oct. 12th-14th, 9am-5pm. House-made tea breads served with coffee and tea. Contact: atelier.ch@lapchi.com, 312.321.0090, in the Merchandise Mart, Chicago

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Returning to Atelier Lapchi from its New York premier, is the André Arbus Design Collection. An icon of 20th c. French interiors, André Arbus re-defined the traditional language of the French decorative arts in a clean, graphic, stylized manner.

Lapchi - Arbus NYICS Premier

The Répertoire Collection by Lapchi is a luxurious series of designs in tonal colors and subtle textures. It addresses the designers desire for abstract organics, twills, and linear patterns that express movement over the rug surface. Woven in Tibetan wool and fine silk, Répertoire Collection designs can be completely customized.

From the Lapchi Répertoire Collection - Modified Ikat

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What is Design Chicago? The Interior Design Educational Conference at The Merchandise Mart, was created to educate and inspire residential interior designers. Seminars highlighting color trends, new wall covering techniques and financial management for design firms as well as new product launches in residential showrooms dominate the agenda.

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Lapchi continues to support GoodWeave in its efforts to end illegal child labor in the carpet industry and to offer educational opportunities to children in South Asia. For more information,visit goodweave.org

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For information on Lapchi, our philosophy and products, please visit lapchi.com

Lapchi recognizes that many of our design clients assume responsibility for projects that require shorter delivery times. We created the “Quick-Ship” Program to help designers compete for this business without sacrificing quality and beauty.

We originally committed to having twenty-two of our most popular “made-to-measure” carpet designs available or on-loom in order to shorten fulfillment times. Updated recently, we will be adding two carpets from our newest collection, the Lapchi André Arbus Design Collection to the Quick-Ship program based on their popularity.

It’s the impossible, delivered: A Lapchi or Texere, indistinguishable in quality from the fully customized, woven-to-order carpets we are famous for; in your client’s space in a fraction of the time. Small thumbnail photos follow as an on-line reference for our 2011 program recommendations.

Alpujara, Anthemion, Arrowroot & Aurora. In Pearl, Oak, Stone, Terra Cotta & Frost

Jardan, Mirage, Mosaic, Nebulous & Playa. In Silica, White Poplin, Steel, Dusty & Lettuce

Renaissance, Sash, Satori & Sutra. In Sea Glass/Ocean, Range Brown, Wheat, Range Brown & Ginger

Thalia & Victoria. In Frosted Green & Foggy

When a project could be perfected by placing a standard sized 8′ x 10,’ 9′ x 12,’ or 10′ x 14′ carpet in a design color way from our “Quick-Ship” program, check on availability, weaving and shipping schedules by contacting your local Lapchi Client Showroom (for listings: lapchi.com).

Lapchi Carpets are GoodWeave Certified. GoodWeave is working to end illegal child labor in the carpet  industry and to offer educational opportunities to children in South Asia. Visit www.goodweave .org

Lapchi proudly unveils an exclusive line of carpets honoring André Arbus — an icon of 20th century design — re-introducing his genius to today’s interiors.

Lapchi’s Iconic Series showcases two designs from the master himself — Palladian and Néoclassique — and forms the cornerstone of this initial Arbus Collection. The Interpretations Series, inspired by elements and themes across Arbus’ work, explores the joyful balance of classical and modern, line and curve, the architectural and the organic at the core of his aesthetic legacy.

Born into a family of fine cabinet-makers, André Arbus quickly mastered both the craft of furniture making and the language of the Beaux Arts. Soon after founding his studio in Paris in 1932, his diverse work plumbed the essentially beautiful, the essentially human in classical forms which he contemporized for his devoted European design clients. Today’s designers familiar with André Arbus, recognize that he re-defined the traditional language of the French decorative arts of the 16th century to the 19th century in a clean, graphic, stylized manner.

Arbus - re-defining traditional French decorative arts in the 1930's

Our challenge: to respectfully weave the design vision of Arbus into Lapchi’s overall contemporary line of carpets. Andrew Neave, Lapchi’s Artistic Director, was given access to historic folios under the guidance and support of Patrick and Nathalie Aubriot, stewards of the Arbus archives. Completed patterns had to bridge both an Arbus aesthetic and Lapchi’s design palette and viewpoint, while still maintaining a comfortable dialogue with André Arbus signature furnishings and reproductions being re-issued today.

Lapchi's Palladian and Arabesque from the André Arbus Design Collection

With an architect’s eye for line and precision and an artist’s desire for grace and elegance, Arbus changed the direction of modern French décor with an aesthetic that was alive, timeless, and utterly chic – precisely what made him one of the most influential and innovative designers of the time. Lapchi’s André Arbus Design Collection with two timeless re-creations and ten inspired Interpretations shown in dozens of colorways, will add a brushstroke of sophistication to any room.

Atelier Lapchi Chicago Premier announcement

Following a successful Chicago Premier, the Arbus Collection debuts in Los Angeles during June, in Atelier Lapchi,  Suite G176, the Pacific Design Center.

To schedule a private presentation of the Arbus Collection on display in the showroom, or for information on our To-the-Trade policies, contact atelier.la@lapchi.com – 310.967.0087.

All Lapchi carpets are GoodWeave certified. GoodWeave is working to end illegal child labor in the carpet industry and to offer educational opportunities to children in South Asia. June 12th is remembered as World Day Against Child Labor. For information on GoodWeave, please visit goodweave.org.

For information on Lapchi, please visit lapchi.com.

Our own thread to Marilyn and Creation Ground Media is through our video Lapchi, A Tibetan Wool Story. Marilyn and her partner George Cohen, in conjunction with Lapchi’s owners and overseas staff, shot and edited our DVD on carpet production. Traveling to Kathmandu, Marilyn and George quickly developed a love for the diverse culture of Nepal, which is exhibited in their respectful treatment of the land, the people and the traditions of the Tibetan and Nepalese weavers.

A short 3 minute version is posted on our web site, lapchi.com. Full length DVD copies are available to share with anyone interested in the weaving culture of Nepal and the complex process of producing a beautiful hand-made, custom-made carpet.

Congratulations Marilyn from everyone at Lapchi, Hand-made Carpets in Silk and wool.

Creation Ground Media photo - taken for Lapchi video research

For details on Marilyn’s award and the work of Creation Ground Media, see the link provided below. If you would like a copy of the full length DVD of Lapchi, A Tibetan Wool Story, please contact Lapchi Client Services, lapchi@lapchi.com.

Creation Ground Media CEO Marilyn Ritter Named Silicon Valley Woman of Influence.

Lapchi's Tiger Ikat, From the Tribal Category, shown in Seaweed

“It is better to have lived one day as a Tiger, than live a thousand years as a sheep.” – Tibetan Proverb

ELLE DECOR - Site Spotlight October, 2010

Inspired by a rare late 19th century silk Ikat velvet from the Bukhara region of Uzbekistan, Lapchi’s Tiger Ikat, was designated for October’s “Site Spotlight” by the editors of ELLE DECOR.

The Uzbekistani areas of Bukhara and Samarkand were jewels on the famous “Silk Road”, a meandering trans-continental trade route connecting Asia with southern Europe. Tiger Ikat silk velvets may have traditionally originated in China or Russia before the style re-emerged in Bukhara. This distinctive tiger pelt velvet was a “Baghmal”.

Uzbek homes were decorated almost exclusively in textiles with comparatively little furniture. In Central Asia “cloth made the man” as luxury textiles were indicative of social status – the male ruling elite and rich merchant class often used Ikat textiles as gifts in negotiations. Carpets, walls, bolsters, pillows, throws, window and door openings were adorned with layers of patterned Ikat and embroidery. The Chapan, a highly decorative garment, was layered over tunics and trousers, often in sumptuous silk velvet Ikat patterns.

IKAT is a labor intensive multiple step process in which the warp (vertical) and weft threads (horizontal) are dyed and patterned before weaving. The warp threads are stretched over a wood frame and patterned by applying dye resistant layers of wrapped cotton, wax or rice paste to the threads. Layers of  “resist” are applied before each dye bath, protecting the emerging pattern from successive colors. Each time threads are bound and dyed they are replaced on the frame in the same order from left to right to check patterning. The finished threads are then transferred to a loom and woven. The Bukhara Ikat textiles are often “Warp Faced” – warp threads alone are patterned with color. Double Ikat is patterned on both the warp and weft.

Silk Chapan-Rau Collection-V&A Exhibit

Ikat Silk Velvet-Rau Collection-V&A Exhibit

In a technique similar to traditional Tibetan-Nepalese pile weaving, Ikat silk velvets employ a wire and knife cut to form pile height. Two sets of vertical warp threads are traditional. Layered on top of each other on the frame, the first warp layer is a backing and provides structure while the second warp layer is patterned. The patterned warp threads are intentionally longer in length for their height above the structured layer will become the pile.  To raise the pattern warps for pile cutting, a thin wire is inserted between two rows of horizontal width running weft threads during the weaving process.  Every few rows, another wire is inserted with the weft, the rows are battened down, and the raised weft thread loops are cut free from the wire beneath. The velvet pile is formed and a lush and elegant surface is created.

Lapchi’s Ikat designs embody a culture for whom vibrant colors, patterns and a developed textile culture was part of everyday existence.  As 2010 is the year of the Tiger, Lapchi’s Tiger Ikat carpet in particular, offers a timely walk on the wild side….

Ikat Check by Lapchi

Honeycomb by Lapchi

The aromatic herb rosemary has been associated with the Greek Goddess Mnemosyne and through her, the human rituals of life, death, rebirth and memory. In the age before the written word, Mnemosyne’s gift to mankind was to name everything in the world, enabling collective reasoning, recognition of the past, the present, and the memory of all.

The Greek name Rosmarinus means “dew of the sea.” The Goddess Aphrodite, a personification of love, beauty, rapture and the mother of all living beings, rose from the sea adorned by a wreath of rosemary and myrtle. Because of this mythical association, rosemary was considered an aphrodisiac, traditionally worked into bridal wreaths, strewn about as a carpet for every nuptial pair, and planted by newly wed couples as a good omen. If you were tapped by a flowering rosemary sprig, true love would be yours.

In England, churches were adorned with rosemary in honor of the divine ability to protect and save one from evil. Rosemary sprigs were placed under pillows to prevent nightmares and hung in doorways and windows to safeguard homes. The narrative “Rose of Mary” tells of Mary being sheltered by a rosemary bush while escaping into Egypt.  Mary threw her cape over the white flowers of rosemary turning them blue – a color forever associated with Mary.

Like the plant is so gracefully represents, Lapchi’s Rosemary simple and elegant in appearance, is more than just a decorative surface, it is a part of a cultural heritage made visible.

Transitional Botanicals

A visual spark is created when objects and design influences from divergent places or historical influences are brought together.

The term “Transitional Design” can be applied to individual objects, as well as the juxtaposition of two provocative objects in space. To design in a “transitional” manner is to be able to see contemporary possibilities in the traditional, rewriting history with fresh eyes. Transitional carpets and transitional decor blend and contrast the time honored and the contemporary, shifting the visual ingredients to balance elements of the past and present equally.

The Lapchi botanical patterns Arrowroot, Belle Leaves, Thalia and Rosemary have roots in the past. Freshly interpreted by Lapchi, they bring transitional qualities to classically inspired interiors.

Within contemporary interiors, botanical Transitional patterns provide serene and subtle organic contrast to edgy or geometric furnishings.

Lapchi Transitional Botanicals Arrowroot, Thalia, Belle Leaves and Rosemary