When people say they don’t have any style or décor sense I say, nonsense, you just haven’t found your décor guru yet. Thank goodness for the leaders in the field who present an array of options for us to accept or reject and, often unwittingly, define our own style. In an era when it just makes economic sense to shop at home, a Canadian manufacturer is celebrating its success and its star power as it marks 40 years of manufacturing without ever leaving the country.
Décor Rest puts to rest any perception that you can’t find well-made, beautiful pieces that aren’t constructed offshore on the cheap. It’s a source of pride for the family company that for four decades they’ve been crafting their wares on Canuck soil, using hundreds of craftspeople. Their lines are gorgeous and their MSRPs won’t give you sticker shock.
Besides being the company’s 40th anniversary, 2012 also marks five years since designer duo Steven and Chris came aboard Décor Rest’s fleet with their own line of area rugs, furniture, décor items and textiles. The Canadian-born lads behind a best-selling book, Designer Guys: Find Your Personal Design Style and several hit TV series, teamed with Décor Rest to create truly made-in-Canada items that have also infiltrated the US market. They include ottomans with gorgeous, rounded legs and deep buttons in dramatic and dark fabrics. Accent chairs have clean, masculine lines and generous proportions. A leather sectional that the fussiest family would love to show off, even as it stands up to the punishment from gaggles of small feet and hands. Their sofas range in looks from classic to contemporary, with obvious attention to detail and every stitch sewn on home soil.
The wide array of items Steven and Chris collection of décor items ranges in price from $6 to a few hundred. Those who don’t wish to commit to an entire sofa can incorporate a turned-wood stool or an aluminum serving tray or candle stick. Using materials such as brass, rattan, porcelain and nickel, the Designer Guys clearly want their pieces to be accessible to everyone wishing to add a bit of celebrity whimsy to their home.
Many Canadians have taken their design cues from Cobi Ladner. As the long-time editor of Canadian House & Home, Ladner’s eye for worthy trends and her sense of style permeated the magazine’s pages. She is the force behind CobiStyle, her own signature line also made by Décor Rest.
The company describes the focus of Ladner’s line as “bringing pretty back to the home furniture marketplace.” Ladner uses rich fabrics such as velvet as well as some fun graphic and bright prints meant to liven up a room full of neutrals. Like the Steven and Chris line, everything in CobiStyle is made with the same rigorous building specs of Décor Rest’s other products.
Standouts in the CobiStyle line are upholstered headboards and bases. Many DIYers armed with a glue gun and swatches of material has found that creating their own headboard is not as easy as some would have you believe. Ladner’s headboards are beautifully constructed. With no mess and a perfect finish, one of Ladner’s bed heads would set a bed apart from those with the run-of-the-mill department store headboards.
A testament to Décor Rest’s made-in-Canada success is the growth of its own home base. At launch in 1972, owners Angelo and Christina Marzilli occupied a 4,000 square foot space. Today their Woodbridge plant is 50 times that size. They also have a US retail base in North Carolina where the American market is also finding that there’s style and substance to the Made-in-Canada label.