Official Blog of Gallery Furniture's Mattress Mack of Houston, TX

Unique Deco Pieces and... furniture made from FOSSILS??

 
picture may be worth a thousand words, but a fossil has a word count that is beyond counting.  New to the retail wholsesale business, custom furniture designer John Strauss uses materials such as fossils from lakebeds - you read that right, fossils - to make gorgeous works of art as well as coffee and accent tables.  So, it's not often you get to set a drink down on a piece of stone where you can see the fossil bones of millions and millions of years ago right below your glass of Coca-Cola, but Gallery Furniture's High Point Market team found just such a piece you could accomplish this on.

 
 
Though Strauss has branched out - and the Gallery Furniture High Point Market Team found him as a result of Twitter trends on the High Point topic - he still has not fully engaged in the retail sales experience, and so he's pretty lucky to get found by the Gallery Furniture High Point Market buying team.  Carol Dougherty, Nancy Burke, Lori Murphy, and a Gallery Furniture staffer checked out the very chic showroom John Strauss had in Interhall at High Point Market.  John Strauss only brought a few pieces in, but the pieces he brought in had an impact on Lori, Carol, and Nancy. 

"The use of the fossil in the stone is innovative, this is AIA Home quality material here," she said flatly, referring the Architectural Association's annual pick of homes in Houston, TX.  Beyond that, "I liked his catalogue of material and pieces he does, many are hard to peg down in style - and I like that - are they transitional?  Traditional?  Contemporary?  When you can't pin down a type, that means the furniture will last your family a while."

From dining to occasional, from benches tbold fossil art pieces, John Strauss had a lot of bases covered beautiuflly, though he extent of his catalog was not done one bit of justice by the smaller space he occupied.  A great find by the wonderful team for Mattress Mack to go through!

Cabinet Sideboard? Dining Table? Both.

 

 

The coolest cabinet that becomes a dining table.  Lori (of the Gallery Furniture High Point Market tea composed of customers) found, at Jasper Cabinet, a small side cabinet that expands out to become dining - with middle leaf leg support and you can size the dining table based on how many leaves you want to have.  This is just one of the many gems Gallery Furniture found while at High Point Market that were unique and functional.

"I like this," said Lori, "when you live in tight spaces, or you are just needing the extra seating space, it works to have something that can serve a dual function as a sort of sideboard.  I think it's also mindblowing - what guest what know it was there?"

Additional leaves are located below, for easy storage.  Gallery Furniture believes in you, the customer, which is why Gallery Furniture sent the world's greatest customers to find storage and space savings solutions in your living room, dining room, and other rooms of your house. 

"Seriously, this is the coolest thing on earth.  And it's practical."

Traditional Furniture Find at High Point Market

Patricia Brinker found a gorgeous traditional chair with a fine fabric pattern that she absolutely adored by Sandmore Furniture.  In this Gallery Furniture High Point Market, Gallery Furniture sent the world's greatest customers to scout for not just the new and contemporary, but new vendors with a traditional sense of style and taste to match the wide demographic of our wonderful home city of Houston.

From Katy to Kingwood, from Conroe to Sugar Land, from League City to Humble, and from inside the loop with the Museum District, Midtown, Montrose, Washington Corridor to the Heights, the variety of places to live matches the variety of citizens that make Gallery Furniture's home city such a melting pot.

 

 

Serving those tastes means finding the best in every category and style, and Patricia Bricker did a great job on this video finding one product she wanted Mattress Mack and Gallery Furniture to carry.  Patty is having a fabulous time selecting pieces in every look and range for her fellow great Gallery Furniture customers not to just save money on, but to have available TODAY.

Eco-Friendly Furniture Find at High Point Market!

Going Green, and Finally at a Normal Price

 

 

Lots of times, when it comes to upholstered furniture in the furniture industry, folks can't seem to get a price that works.  You look around, and to be quite frank, the idea of sacrificng little Johnny's tuition money for a new loveseat or couch doesn't seem to weigh against saving the planet.  So, it was a neat find for the dedicated customers who went to the Gallery Furniture High Point market trip, who each found new and novel pieces in every category, to stumble upon the likes of BKIND3 - a company dedicated to an American-made piece of quality furniture that not only is affordable, but is eco-friendly, too.

It was a visit that lent itself to the concept that price can be normalized in the eco-furniture lines, and with its sustainability model, BKIND3 was a unique and fun find that allowed Gallery Furniture to finally see some progress in comfortable price points for consumers who, yes, want to care about the environment in every aspect of their lives, but wanted to do so affordably and without breaking the family budget.

Lori Murphy, local Houston architect and member of the Gallery Furniture High Point Market trip, found this collection at the High Point market and wanted to show Gallery Furniture customers and Mattress Mack this find in a sectional whihc looks similar to pieces on the floor already at Gallery Furniture!

The sectional shown in the video as manufactured by BKIND3 carries recycled cotton and sustainably made wood framing, all done right here in the United States - Gallery Furniture believes in quality, and pieces made here in the United States are often done with care and pride and an eye on quality.  Gallery Furniture's customers - the world's greatest - spend hard-earned money on their furniture, and deserve the best.

Reclaim, Reuse, Recycle, Reborn... finds by Gallery Furniture at High Point Market

Nancy Burke of League City, a part of the Gallery Furniture High Point Market team, wanted to show the great Gallery Furniture customers, the world's greatest customers, about a find that she came across of some gorgeous reclaimed solid wood furniture from Sarreid furnitu re in a style that is part European, part American, and all very environmentally conscious.  With an eye on style and a penchant for pieces that allow the end user to do some customization of their own, these pieces (like the cocktail table shown above) are not only unique, they are solid, gorgeous, and each has a story.

Sarreid says that each piece has a story, and in some cases it appears you can make one.  "What I found most interesting," said Nancy, "is that with this cocktail table made of reclaimed wood they displayed it with used wine corks inside - I think that is great and I honestly thought it came like that until they told me I could fill it with whatever I want."

"That is what I loved the most, that I could craft the piece a bit and make it mine.  I liked that very, very much.  I did a quick Internet search using the NHFA's Retailer Resource Center that I saw tons of stuff talking about Sarreid's that I know it will be great call if Mack and Gallery Furniture carry a line that is a bit chic and still has a green aspect to it."

More than that, apparently, was the stylish use of things such as wine barrels that Nancy found extraordinarily attractive when used as seats.  Leather padding on top and still showing the type and style of grape that had been processed, the barrels become a center piece of conversation.  Said Nancy "They're just gorgeous. They are cute and an innovative way to make use of something that would ultimately be destroyed because the wine maker may not have another use of it."

Chic indeed, Gallery Furniture loves to find the new and innovative, and for all the great Gallery Furniture customers who wander the store, they know they will find stylish and gorgeous lines of eco-friendly pieces such as solid mango wood dining tables Home Trends & Design of Austin, TX, as well as solid wood country style furniture such as those found by Groovy Furniture with their commitment to sustainability.

And along with a commitment to sustainability comes style - because the customer comes first and the Gallery Furnitrue customer is style-conscious at all price points.  And this line provided a host of pieces that are very stylish indeed and even construct furniture that reproduces old antiques they feel are stylish and should be brought back, such as the pieces shown below:

 
And beyond stylish is practicality, "This sideboard is perfect and I hope Mack sees it, you need a thinner piece in some Houton homes, this works nicely."

 
Gallery Furniture's High Point Market team, made up of a set of the world's greatest customers - our customers - and they continue to find great product lines and great items to show even after long days and long hours.  This crew really has highlighted the Gallery Furniture way.

Style in Stone - a High Point Market Find by Gallery Furniture

 
  
Growing a business is tough stuff.  Ask the men and women who work at Gallery Furniture, who work every day for the world's greatest customers to find them the best and greatest of new and innovative products for the world's greatest furniture store.  So, when the Gallery Furniture High Point Market Team, composed of customers from Gallery Furniture to help along the normal team, went into a showroom at High Point called Stone International, new and innovative took on a whole new meaning.

You see, Stone International has built their business on the backs of sticking to what they do best - gorgeous travertine, marble, and granite tables.  They did not waiver, they did not pursue anything new, they did what they did best from their founding in 1977 to around about 1992: stone.  Like Gallery Furniture's commitment to the TODAY philosophy, and always striving to do what you do best (such as Gallery Furniture being customer centric and customer focused) - Stone International worked on some key values and did what they did best.  Now they have expanded to other categories in furniture, much as Gallery Furniutre has expanded to offering even wider selections of living room, dining room, bedroom furniture, and more.

 
 
And Gallery Furniture's High Point Market team, composed of real customers - just like you - found these gorgeous, sturdy, and unique pieces at High Poingt Market and wanted to make sure Mattress Mack and the entire Houston area saw exactly what they want to have sold at Gallery Furniture, home of the world's greatest furniture customers. 

By the way, Don't Forget the Bark!

Innovation is often found in companies that go through the trouble of using materials in new ways.  With Gallery Furniture, finding companies that share the common value of thinking outside the box is always a great thing. 

 
 
That's why, when Gallery Furniture decided to let the consumer make some choices at High Point Market, the world's largest furniture showcase, it was viewed by many in the industry as thinking outside the box of normality and as a result, it may have been viewed by some with skepticism. 

 
 
Likewise, when a couple members of the team - Debbie Spurr and Nancy Rawson - found their way into Mayland Court to look at various pieces of furniture for Gallery Furniture - they themselves may have had just a bit of skepticism when told the company actually uses the bark of the tree in its construction technique for panels, inlays, and drawer fronts.  Though seemingly strange at first, as they were quick to realize, it's often the radical ideas that will work the best - especially these from the Natural Elegance collection by Mayland Court.  They had to show Houstonians these great pieces.

 
The bark, specficially treated to gain a strength and durability that matches the wood used throughout, was most often used in a decorative, non-structural capacity.  Mayland Court used the bark to bring a very natural look to case good pieces that were at once transitional and powerful, merging mother nature's beauty directly into the piece fit for the home.

"Making full use of the tree is a plus.  It kind of speaks to a commitment to full use of resources, and I can respect that," said Nancy Burke.

"Another thing," added Debbie Spurr, "it's really neat what they did with the bark - adding things like silver leafing and other features to bring the beauty of the bark to life."

Indeed it is, and Gallery Furniture customers love the new and innovative when it can become a part of their every day life.  Furniture is more than a place to put the clothers, pack a shirt, or hold your jewelry - furniture is a statement, furniture is a lifestyle reflection, and furniture tells the world more about you.

A Children's Furniture Bonanza at High Point found by Gallery Furniture

Lea Furniture was visited by the Gallery Furniture High Point Market in full force, if for no reason than the fact that no matter where you turned your head in High Point, there was a Sponge Bob Square Pants or Dora the Explorer everywhere, and all because Lea paired up with television network Nickelodeon.  Gallery Furniture, the world's greatest furniture store, understands being ubiquitous in marketing, but the fun part was going to check out just what all the hoopla was about and do the due diligence test.

 

 

The ladies that make up the Gallery Furniture High Point market team were certainly not fooled, and passed by the cartoon-branded product line and found a higher-quality, more durably constructed set beyond the initial cartoon-created line.  They found the Lea furniture elite collection for children.  A line that truly exhibits the form, functionality, and beauty that your child deserves.

Nancy Burke said "as a mom, I grow tired of seeing big, bulky same old, same old bunk beds and children's furniture that makes me yawn.  Look!  It's also the same panel bed that everyone has.  This line offers a serious love of diversity in style, form, function, and at a retail price that rivals the current lines you see.  This is not some big national chain nonsense that everyone has, this is unique and it is beautiful, and your child will grow with hit."

Patricia Brickner, former photographer for the Houston Chronicle, was quick to add: "this line has your regular style bunk beds, and they make them well, but they also have your standard sleigh and panel beds - but the fun difference is storage, Houston families need storage to grow because not everyone has space to spare."

 
And the furniture thinks about kids, offering a media chest for a youth room that has room and a special area designed for XBox or Wii systems and a place for a Playstation.    Also modular, like the vanity and chest set shown below.  Move out the chests, and you have a freestanding vanity.

With trundle options and more, the sets from Lea were a hit with the Gallery Furniture High Point Market team.  The storage, the modular ability, everything you can think of to grow with a child for a time to come, are encompassed in the various collections they want to show Mattress Mack and the Gallery Furniture team.
 

Gallery Furniture Customer Carol Dougherty Showcases Two Upholstery Lines for Mack

Gallery Furniture's great customers have been fanning out all over the High Point Market - the world's largest furniture market - and more than just finding new and exciting products, these great customers are also expressing the latest and greatest in styles in trends for living room, dining room, leather, upholstery, children's furniture, and occasional tables and more.

In the videos below from High Point Market, Gallery Furniture customer Carol Dougherty goes over her finds and discusses topics such as upholstery design and scale of style.  

Carol Dougherty is a shining example of the  greatness of each and every member of the Gallery Furniture buying  team - all of them insightful and a joy to work with with their style and their observations into the various styles of the customer demographics of the world's greatest customers.  This valuable insight is something that has been flowing freely to the core vendors of Gallery Furniture as well as the staffers of Gallery Furniture.

Carol Dougherty Goes Over her Children's Furniture Finds for Gallery Furniture

Gallery Furniture's great customers attending the High Point Market had a meeting about a week ago wherein they spoke with Mattress Mack himself and waxed strategy on the various items being sought after for Gallery Furniture, and one of those was some new and innovative ideas in children's furniture, especially since so much of what is seen these days can often be seen as the "same old same old." 

Gallery Furniture leads the way in innovation and finding exciting new products in the children's category lines, and to showcase that, see the exciting items that Gallery Furniture carries in the children's category such as Berg Furniture.

In the video below, Carol Dougherty, a member of the Gallery Furniture High Point Market Team, goes over a children's furniture find from In Room Furniture.

Gallery Furniture's customers are hard at work in the High Point Market, and the continued excitement is literally invigorating the industry.  It's been a benefit no matter what category - children's furniture, living room furniture, bedroom furniture, and more.