February 26-March 3, 2004

cover story

Analyze That Living Room

A seat on the couch: When it comes time to redecorate, some sit back, take a deep breath and talk to a counselor. Photo By: Michael T. Regan

Our intrepid writer gets a furniture counseling session in Old City.

by Alexa James

It’s that unavoidable kind of rain. You know the sort. It switches directions on you, using the umbrella like a funnel to soak you from every angle. Damp and nervous, I’m on my way to my 3 p.m. session in Old City.

This is my first visit, so I'm wondering what kind of questions I'll face. What will I have to tell them about my family, my love life, my finances? Just how much can I blame on my parents? I'm nervous, but at least I'll get to relax on a sofa. Actually, I'll be analyzed from a variety of seats with designer names like Cassina, B&B Italia, Zanotta and Knoll.

You see, my therapy session is with Joseph Schiavo who's been selling luxury furniture and lighting lines at OLC on North Third Street since 1981. Schiavo studied sculpture and furniture design in college and his partner, Janet Kalter, has a psychology background, which proves useful in this business. Today, we will explore my emotional and physical desires. Then, we'll mold those needs into a vision for my dwelling.

Though the years, they've learned to read body language. For example, if a client squints and moves her hands toward her eyes while describing the lighting in her kitchen, Schiavo sees a fixture that's too bright.

The pair ask lots of questions. "How do you use your bed?" sounds personal, but if the piece is for a couple, knowing who wakes up first, who's the light sleeper, who's hot or cold, helps them better understand furniture needs.

"Sometimes it's a little more of a therapy session than people are expecting," says Kalter.

And with that, it's on to the first question: What are we working with?

Home these days is a University City apartment building, a shoddy place -- one bedroom, one bath, one mouse (for now) -- that is best measured in square inches. My wallet matches my surroundings, but even though I can't afford the masterpieces I'm seeing, I can appreciate good taste.

The showroom is gorgeous with tall ceilings, flawless white walls and heavenly lighting. Leather, cashmere and glass is surrounded by spa music. I feel like an imposter, but Schiavo and Kalter have agreed to spend the afternoon with me anyway. They want to prove that the quest for home furnishings involves the same core elements at any income level.

"Anything you buy, it's not how much you pay for it," explains Schiavo. "It's how well it serves you."

Before wandering into a furniture showroom, warehouse or auction, people should ask themselves a few questions. Who is going to use the room? How will they use it? Is this a sitting room for conversation or reading? Will you entertain guests in this space or fall asleep watching movies after dinner?

Schiavo and I focus on my living room. Like most, it's a space for entertaining, reading and watching television. But my living room is also the dining room, the gym, my boyfriend's study hall and my 19-year-old brother's bedroom.

Schiavo listens, suave and unruffled, as he guides me through the serene showroom, highlighting critical elements in each piece.

We start with a Le Corbusier armchair, designed in 1928 by European architect Charles Edouard Jeanneret-Gris (a.k.a. Le Corbusier). This cubic chair, crafted in black leather and chrome, sits alone in OLC's store window, basking in it's iconicity like a celebrity on Palm Beach. The Italian company Cassina holds the license to exclusively reproduce Le Corbusier designs, including this LC2, which sells for $2,815.

I settle into the armchair and notice that despite the cubic shape, my forearms rest comfortably on the arms and the squishy fill allows enough room to cuddle into a corner.

"Most chairs command a particular position," says Schiavo, noting that the piece is fabulous for conversation, focused reading or active contemplation, but without a high back, it won't naturally allow me to lean back or relax my neck. You won't drift off in this seat, but it is personable -- ideal for sharp, stylish entertaining. Buyers of such a piece are looking for a useable work of art, an investment, a status symbol.

Schiavo says furniture shopping is like "attempting to buy a pair of shoes that will fit the whole family."

I can see them now, piled near the radiator. Beat-up Doc Martins, black stiletto boots, Birkenstocks and Pumas. I think the three of us could agree on flip-flops, but a "flip-flop" sofa? Not likely.

When it comes to ergonomic seating, customers should note the depth and pitch (or angle) of a piece. For taller bodies, a shallow seat leaves more leg to fend for itself. Deeper designs simply cover more ground, giving the knees and ankles a break.

"Lean back," Schiavo coaches. "Notice your shoulders. Where does your gaze rest? How does that make your feel?"

It makes me feel silly and self-conscious but as we shuffle about the room, I gradually gain confidence, propping my feet up, slouching and bouncing. The more I learn about each item's fill, fabric and form, the more I enjoy discussing my concerns and observations.

"Shoppers sit in things and think everything has to be comfortable," Schiavo notes, "but that's not always the case, even in designer models, and that's OK."

Look at the market's current affection for unusually low, extremely deep sofas. The severe lines create an interior landscape with verve, but try getting intimate with the pieces. Their strong personalities can bully the body.

I couldn't pick a pose in the "Charles" left and right arm chaises by B&B Italia. With all that depth behind me, it seemed wrong to perch on the edge of the seat, but the low back and nonexistent pitch made leaning back feel awkward. I tried reclining on one of these popular chaises (price: $4,367 each), but the plane was too short for a bed. Clinging to the corner, I found myself eyeing the rest of the sofa suspiciously.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears were on to something. What's good for Papa ain't necessarily going to fly with Mama, Baby or the unexpected houseguest.

Furniture showrooms can easily lead to showdowns between significant others, so discuss shopping goals beforehand. Different responses to furniture can expose underlying issues. Sometimes clients want to accomplish more than just an aesthetic change by redecorating, so Schiavo says it's important to understand what each person is looking for. Does she want a more organized lifestyle to begin when the new office furniture arrives? Does he expect business as usual, just in a more comfortable desk chair?

It seems that replacing furniture is personal.

We connect it to our moods (That eggshell ottoman would be so wonderful to come home to every night. ), reminisce about our past (My grandfather loved red; he'd smoke his pipe and puff circles from his red chair. ) and plan our futures (I can see it now--I'm 10 pounds lighter in my new dining room.).

Schiavo and Kalter won't discourage passions, but they will help you navigate your needs, both realistic and fantastic. It's a concept I'd never thought about, but during my session, I realize that yes, I do blame my furniture when I forget to pay bills or spend all day on the couch instead of working out. It's always the tiny kitchen counter's fault when I order in.

I mean really, why do we frantically scrub bathroom tiles and hide clutter before visitors arrive? Because we directly connect home interiors to personal abilities.

With their help, I find a sofa that may complement my household's psyche. I want a contemporary, uncluttered space that clears my head. I'm willing to fluff cushions, take my shoes off -- even stand if I have to, just to admire the scenery. But my other half demands an unhindered view of SportsCenter, ample leg-propping room and a coffee table big enough to hold a pizza box and a couple of bottles of beer.

We could use a sizable, sheltering piece like B&B Italia's "Harry" system, which includes sofas in three lengths. Harry also offers corner-piece and end-chaise options that provide flexibility without sacrificing contemporary refinement. Plus, segments of the upholstery can be removed for cleaning or replacement. The sectional model at OLC is $8,732.

Still, mediating between parties is one of Schiavo and Kalter's biggest, and most common, challenges.

"You can't take sides," says Kalter, who just spent two-and-a-half hours in negotiations with clients, "and it doesn't matter who's more capable as a designer."

Customers can usually work things out if they've discussed compromises. What is each person willing to sacrifice? What's most important? If you wait until you're in the showroom to begin collective bargaining, you'll set yourself up for stalemates.

"Do you like this color, honey?"

"No."

"How about this shade?"

"No."

"Do you like any of these fabric samples?"

"No."

Any final diagnoses? Well, buying furniture is a big commitment and "none of us do it enough to get really good at it," says Schiavo, so don't buy until you're ready. Peruse catalogs -- stores usually have company books available. Surf designer websites like www.baleri-italia.com, where a rooster crows while sketches of armchairs flash by the screen.

Take fabric samples home, and make sure items looks good on paper -- literally. (Schiavo recommends taping newspaper sheets together to recreate the measurements of your prospective furniture. It's much easier to move an 8-by-3 piece of newspaper around than an actual sofa.)

Even if the dimensions mesh, remember that most of your time will be spent sitting on the furniture looking out, not standing in a doorway looking in so you don't want your magnificent Maxalto lounger to relegate your eyes to a boring corner or make you strain to admire your favorite print.

That's why I adored the Cassina K10 Dodo by Toshiyuki Kita. Schiavo calls it "the Italian La-Z-Boy." It's shapely and refined, but feels like a hug, and it swivels, meaning when I escape from my lease, I can rest assured that the recliner will jell with my new geography. The floor model sells for $2,785.

Schiavo then points out that I'm attracted to pieces that are open to the room, meaning they don't dominate their surroundings. "The Dodo lets the room breeze in and out of the chair," he says, leaving a smaller "footprint" in the space. Other designs regulate a room, dictating quadrants for conversation, work or play.

As closing time draws near, we conclude today's session. I think B&B Italia's Harry ensemble, Cassina's Dodo swivel recliner and a low oval table by Maxalto would serve me best.

The total: $13,306 plus tax.

Schiavo fetches my coat and hands me some catalogs. No follow-up appointment is scheduled -- that pesky price issue again -- but the home furnishing counseling is refreshingly universal. The flea market, the Internet, the gallery: You can apply the same techniques to those sources to refurbish any room at any cost.

"You'll start to gain some control," Schiavo says. "You can trust that. Bring the space to resolution and you'll feel at ease."

It was still cold when I left, but the rain had stopped. In fact, I almost forgot my umbrella in the $382 Acerbis umbrella rack.

OLC, 152 N. Third St., 215-923-6085.