Made By Hickory Chair

They Made It My Way!

The most amazing piece we saw being made this week was a Venetian Bed with a special construction request. (Shown is a queen size Venetian Bed with Upholstered head and footboard from our catalog in Sable finish.) The designer from Safaveih and their client felt like the Venetian Bed would be the right bed for their room but wished that it featured diamond hand tufting. 

They contacted their customer service representative and requested that we add diamond hand tufting to the headboard and footboard as a special construction request.  We reviewed what it would take to hand tuft the COM fabric and felt like it was very doable.  With approval from Hickory Chair for the diamond hand-tufting, the amount of COM needed and the fee for the labor, patterns and materials, the order was placed.

• The style number is 8807-71 King Size Venetian Bed
• COM purple velvet
• Silver Leaf finish
• NS-02 Pewter Small Nails
• Special Construction Diamond Hand Tufting on the headboard and footboard

Our talented craftsman enjoy the creativity that comes to us from designers and their clients.  They enjoy the challenge of determining how they may be able to accomodate the request of the client.  They enjoy visualizing the rooms these special pieces are made for.  They wish that they could see pictures of these rooms.

If our wish comes true, the designer will email us a picture of the bedroom with this custom made bed as the focal point for their room.  If they do, we can feature it in an upcoming My Hickory Chair Home! 

Are you ready to share your story?  Contact us a press@hickorychair.com.

99 Years And Counting - Part Three

  In the second edition of "99 Years And Counting - Part Two" we ended with the European styled collections such as The French Collection, San Marion Collection and Suzanne Kasler Collection.  The next milestone for Hickory Chair was to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the James River Collection!  This great achievement solidified Hickory Chair's reputation for classic furniture as the James River Collection became the longest continuously made furniture collection in the industry.  It is even harder to imagine that this collection will celebrate 70 years in 2011!  It is the great proportion and scale of the pieces with their timeless form that have allowed the collection to remain viable in an ever-changing world.  We have numerous pieces that have been continuously made since the 1930's!  The best part is that the pieces that have been made all these years were made as tomorrow's heirlooms - they are still in people's homes, on eBay, Craig's List, antique shops and can mix with the new pieces we make to order today!

Hickory Chair turned to the Winterthur Museum in April 1999 to introduce its Winterthur Country Estate Collection.  This museum houses the world's largest collection of American furniture and decorative arts.  In H.F. DuPont's lifetime he transformed his country home to a 275 room museum with rooms from every major city that contributed to American design.  There are rooms devoted to Rhode Island cabinetmakers such as the Townsend's and Goddard's from the 18th Century, to Boston cabinetmaker's such as the Seymour's, to Philadelphia cabinetmakers such as Aitken as well as Shaker, Pennsylvania Dutch, and more.  Each room is furnished as if it were new with every detail considered from the candles to furniture.  We have the license to almost all of the pieces at Winterthur. 

Watch for our next post as we launch the Thomas O'Brien Collection at the fall 1999 market.  Can you believe that the Thomas O'Brien is celebrating its 10th Anniversary!

My Hickory Chair Home - Shannon Murray Interiors

One of our HCC University Alumni, Shannon Murray, shared with us a beautiful home that she completed using mostly Hickory Chair pieces!  Her young client moved from Greenwich, CT to Boca Raton, FL.  She chose to work with Shannon instead of starting over with a new designer.  She trusted Shannon and knew that she would be able to guide her to create very personal interiors in her brand new Florida home. 

Shannon selected Hickory Chair as her primary source for this exciting new home. She knew that the Hickory Chair pieces were appropriate for this project and met budget.  She also knew that with the many options offered, she would be able to personalize the pieces for the color scheme and needs of this young family.  We appreciate that most rooms of the house are adorned with Hickory Chair pieces.

In the Living Room, Shannon chose the Elinor Sofa  and Guilded Lily Cocktail Table in Silver Leaf from the Mariette Himes Collection as well as a pair of Nanette Chairs with Slipcovers from the Suzanne Kasler Collection.  The Mark Desk by Alexa Hampton is used as a sofa table.  She chose our Antique Ivory paint with Antique Silver hardware from our Customer's Own Hardware^TM program.  The fabrics and finishes have created a warm, inviting room for this active family.

The Master Bedroom has great natural light and Shannon used soft blues and whites to make a sanctuary.  The Left Bank Bed was selected and installed without its options four tall posts.  Removeable posts allow you to change the look of your room as your needs or wishes change.  In addition, a sitting area was created using an Oval Pedestal Cocktail Table from the James River Collection in a painted white finish instead of the standard Medium Mahogany traditional finish.  A pair of Stanton Skirted Lounge Chairs flank the cocktail table.  

A retreat was created using the Porter Divan by Mariette Himes Gomez, a Hallings Secretary by Thomas O'Brien and a Hunt Chair by Suzanne Kasler.  Shannon enjoyed selecting the right pieces for each room from the entire Hickory Chair assortment.  She was not bound to pick pieces from one collection so they would match.  She could pick finish, fabric and hardware to tie these pieces together so that she created 'her own collection' for her client. 

Shannon is a professional designer who continues to invest in her training and knowledge base.  She has visited Hickory Chair's workroom in Hickory, North Carolina where over 87% of its wood and upholstered pieces are made to order.  She knows that our talented artisans and craftsmen make each piece one at a time by hand.  We appreciate how she entrusted us to make pieces for her client. 

Do you have a Hickory Chair home to share?  Contact us at press@hickorychair.com

Michelle Obama's Chair of Choice

An Associated News Syndicate story printed in the Palm Beach Post on March 1, 2010, featured Michelle Obama's determination to fight childhood obesity.  The photograph by Marvin Joseph was first featured in the Washington Post. A gentleman from Florida recognized the hand carved mahogany chair as Hickory Chair's own Spool Chair from the Mark Hampton Collection.  We appreciate him forwarding the newspaper article to us this morning. 

 

 

As we looked closely at the chair, we realized that it was one of a pair purchased for the private areas of the White House.  The First Lady and her designer selected these Spool Chairs in a graphic dark brown and white fabric to complement the rich finish.  The chairs were hand made in the workroom in Hickory, North Carolina.    We are proud to have talented craftsmen with the ability to carve mahogany and other sustainable types of wood into heirloom quality pieces in our workroom.

Does it not seem right that pieces made by Americans adorn rooms in the White House today? 

A Hickory Chair With Personality

From our early beginnings as a dining chair company we at Hickory Chair have continued our affinity for chairs of all types.  Recently I discovered a blog that I had not visited before by Tracery Interiors.  The story that I discovered titled Subtle Elegance, featured a beautiful home in Mountain Brook, Alabama.  To my pleasure the designer had chosen Hickory Chair dining chairs for the beautiful dining room!

The Birmingham based designer, Doug Davis, worked with Hickory Chair to transform a set of simple Chippendale Side Chairs with graceful mahogany legs with stretchers to a soft and elegant form with the addition of to the floor kick pleat skirts. The graceful curve of the back posts that begin at the top of the back to the floor creates elegant lines with the kick pleat skirt.  The side skirts were custom made to follow the swoop of the back legs. What is typical is to only make skirts for legs that are straight.  Most would not have attempted a kick pleat skirt for a chair with this type of legs.  The resulting chairs create a soft elegance in the room.

Another designer asked that we make a mini-skirt for their set of Chippendale Side Chairs.  They wanted a box pleated skirt that was 6-inches long.  In addition they asked that we add a contrasting welt down the center of the outback and apply a pair of buttons at the base of the back just above the skirt.  The result was stunning!  We ordered a set for the Hickory Chair showroom and added a graceful motif monogram to the inback.  This mix of options created a unique personality for this classic.

Special construction comes easy for the talented craftsmen in the Hickory Chair workroom.  Every day we are challenged with one of a kind requests. Every day we learn new skill levels as we say yes to the vast majority of requests.  Every day our craftsmen leave the workroom knowing that they have more talent than when they arrived.  They return each morning ready to embrace the new opportunities to learn and please the many designers who entrust their client's pieces to us.  We know that as long as we can say yes, complete pieces in just a few weeks from order at a quality level that exceeds their expectations, then this humble 99-year old furniture company will be able to reach its 100th anniversary in 2011 and beyond making one of a kind pieces in Hickory, North Carolina. 

99 Years And Counting - Part One

Yesterday a writer contacted us about a story he was writing on licensed furniture collections.  He had heard of the Alexa Hampton Collection and knew it would be a licensed collection.  Little did he realize the rich licensing experience of Hickory Chair.  I asked if he would like me to start at the beginning and he said "please!"

Hickory Chair began 99 years ago in 1911 as a dining chair company henceforth how we named our company.  By the Great Depression we were making bedroom, dining room and living room furniture.  The country was in the midst of a Colonial Revival as the country started slowly improving from the Depression.  Manufacturers in Michigan, New York and other northern states had introduced licensed collections that were historical in origin.  No manufacturer in North Carolina had licensed collections.  In 1931 Hickory Chair introduced its first licensed group, The Dorothy Robinson Collection.  With immediate success this first licensed collection flourished.  Mr. Parker, co-owner of Bishop Parker Furniture in Montgomery, Alabama shared with us "...Times were hard in 1931.  We were barely able to keep the store open.  We decided we had to go to Chicago to the Furniture Market and try to find something that was a good value and style for the type homes in our area.  We visited Hickory Chair and decided the new Dorothy Robinson Collection was right for our need.  We bought a boxcar load to test it.  It was an immediate success! Our business soon flourished and am proud to say that now 70 years later (quote made around 2001), we are likely still in business because of the success we had with Hickory Chair's Dorothy Robinson Collection.  Without it, we may not have survived..." 

By World War II, all manufacturing efforts turned to support the war effort.  Hickory Chair signed a licensing agreement with the James River Plantation foundation in 1941 and launched the James River Collection.  These plantations line the James River in Virginia.  Four of our early presidents were raised in these homes and most are filled with fine 18th Century antiques from America's early cabinetmakers and England.  Another huge success for Hickory Chair!  The Dorothy Robinson Collection waned and eventually ended production in the 1940's.  The James River Collection is still in production and is the industry's oldest and continuously manufactured collection!  It is hard to imagine that the James River Collection will celebrate 70 years as the company celebrates 100 years in 2011!  The Sherwood Forest Plantation is where we found the antique reproduced as the Sherwood Forest Wing Chair.

Stay tuned for Part II in the series as we pick up with the Mark Hampton Collection...

Made Not Manufactured

Because of our talented employees abilities at Hickory Chair, we have transformed our factory into a giant workroom where one of a kind pieces are made every day!  Walking through the workroom this week opened eyes as unimagineable pieces were being made for clients.

For example, the Morgan Media Cabinet by Thomas O'Brien is a stately piece with a television lift that operates by remote control.  The designer loved it for their client's room but it was too large at its length of 89 1/4 inches.  They only had room for a piece that was no more than 70 inches long.  The designer asked if we could shorten it by 19 inches.  This proved to be more than we were prepared to do but offered that we could eliminate one door section.  The piece then would have the stack of drawers and one door section.  The customer chose to have the door on the left facing side.  Our craftsmen were able to make this custom piece for the client! 

Need something special for a client?  Give the craftsmen at Hickory Chair the opportunity to create a custom piece for you!

My Hickory Chair Home - Gabberts, Minneapolis, MN

In this third edition of My Hickory Chair Home, we are pleased to feature a room shared by Randy Nelson, ASID.  We enjoyed getting to know Randy during HCC University this week. He shared this beautiful room that he and his design partner for this project, Lori Berg created.  Randy and Lori are part of the talented design team at Gabberts in Minneapolis, MN.  The room was selected for the front cover of the August/September issue of Midwest Living Magazine .  The issue was devoted to luxury homes. 

Randy and his associate Lori Berg took the challenge presented from the new Medina, Minnesota home.  The article, Serene Design, features the new home, its builder and the contributing businesses.  Randy and Lori worked together on the design aesthetic. They selected several Hickory Chair pieces in their quest to furnish this home.   Image courtesy of Midwest Home - August/September 2009

In the living room, Randy and Lori selected a pair of M2M Knole sofas.   Because Hickory Chair can make custom length upholstery, they determined that 90 inches would be a better scale than the standard longer length.  They chose a Hickory Chair fabric for the body of the sofas and then provided a COM fabric for the pillows and seat cushion along with COM tassel ties.  They requested that we replace the standard smooth finials for a more ornately carved style that was standard on another sofa and finish them in American Antique finish.  Image courtesy of Randy Nelson and Midwest Home - August/September 2009

 In the dining room, a pair of Emma Arm Chairs by Thomas O'Brien for Hickory Chair were selected as the host chairs.  The intricately carved chairs finished in a rustic painted finish provide the balance to the upholstered balloon-back side chairs and dining table finished in a dark wood stain.  Notice how the top rail of the Emma Chair is repeated in the shape of the mirror behind it.  These talented designers think about these elements.  By repeating motifs, colors, textures, fabrics, finishes the room is tied together.  By mixing styles such as the dining chairs, it adds interest to the room and enhances the head of the table.  Image courtesy of Midwest Home - August/September 2009

I am sure that many of you have great Hickory Chair product stories to share.  Please send your story and pictures to lholland@hickorychair.com.  We would love to share with everyone!

A New Feature for 2010 - "My Hickory Chair Home"

This new series, My Hickory Chair Home, is dedicated to sharing with you amazing rooms that were created with Hickory Chair pieces.  The stories may be about the designer's own home or homes that they created for their clients.  These inspirational rooms inspire our talented craftsmen to build their skills so that they can offer even greater personalization. 

Our first story is dedicated to a HCC University graduate, Kirk Holt.  He is the owner of Cisar-Holt, a design firm that he and his late partner, Robert Cisar, began 23 years ago.  Published in the January 2010 issue of TulsaPeople.com online magazine, is the home that Kirk and Robert began building in 2006.  Kirk completed the home in 2009.  As a result of his visit to Hickory Chair, Kirk was inspired to select many pieces for his home.  He loved the fact that he could request not only the pieces, but select from over 60 finishes, dozens of nail head trims and hardware selections, over 1,500 stocked fabrics, leather and trims to create one of a kind pieces for his home. 

 
Photography courtesy of Tulsapeople.com.

In Kirk's living room, he selected the Made to Measure Gallery Sofa at 84-inches wide and the Vendome Cocktail Table (now retired) from the Thomas O'Brien Collection along with the San Marino Bench by Hickory Chair.  The room is fresh and modern feeling with the use of color, accessories and arrangement of pieces.  Do you not love how the room is anchored by a really ornately carved traditional mantle and then is surrounded by classic modern pieces?

 
Photography courtesy of Tulsapeople.com.

In Kirk's sitting room, a Regency Oval Writing Table by Mark Hampton was custom finished in a black finish and facing it is a Reading Chair by Mariette Himes Gomez finished in Modern French Grey finish, a Hickory Chair fabric and then was trimmed in two sizes of Black Pearl nail head trim.  These classic forms perfectly complement the black mantle with quatrefoil motifs.

To read the complete 4-page article published in TulsaPeople.com, click here.  Want to learn more about HCC University? click here or contact press@hickorychair.com.

We invite you to share your home or client's home with us.  We want to publish a new edition of "My Hickory Chair Home" every week!

Thanks To You!

 

 

Our talented craftsmen at Hickory Chair give thanks to you, the visionary that can see our classic form and see how that form would be perfect for your room.  We give thanks to the way you thoughtfully select from ourdiverse finish and hardware options to design an heirloom quality piece for us to make by hand.  We enjoy making these special pieces because it allows them the creativity to do something outside of standard.  Because we make almost 90% of our entire product assortment here in Hickory, North Carolina, we can offer you the opportunity to personalize pieces just for you!

   
 
For example, the Tuxedo Cabinet by Suzanne Kasler is made as a Chest and as a tall cabinet that is available with your choice of bar interior or an armoire/entertainment center interior.  We offer 68 finish options along with our Customer's Own Hardware^TMprogram.  With these options you can make a really unique piece. However, recently we have had the opportunity to take personalization to the next step!

In this example, the designer provided a finish panel for us to match and then requested that we hand stripe it in our solid Ivory paint.  Another client asked that we add clear mirrors behind the pulls on the doors. 

 

Unleash your creativity!  Let us help you create a distinctive heirloom quality piece for your project!