Chicago
John Parris Frantz -- Gifts & Decorative Accessories, 10/1/2000
Your own hair stylist-in-a-bottle comes from Kusco Murphy, an Australian line of hair care potions designed by renowned stylist Kerim Kusco and available at Sarm & Nostovski, showroom 1575 in the Chicago Merchandise Mart (CMM). Lucky Chick personal care items come in themed packaging featuring bright whimsical drawings. Examples include the Blushing Bride gift set, Sole Survivors foot care, and Lucky In Love Romance. Good Home is a unique line of sheet sprays, dryer sachets, and laundry fragrances.
Dress for the holidays with Christopher Radko's new Sweaters Collection at CMM 1415. The apparel maker Bellepointe manufactures the sweaters that are adorned with embroideries depicting Radko ornaments from the past. Although Sugar Frost Follies sounds good enough to eat, it's an inedible 100-piece collection of mouth-blown glass ornaments with frosty pastel colors. Starlight Gems are slip-on covers for mini-lights that replicate issues of the Little Gems collections such as "Just Desserts."
Get the jump on spring 2001 at North Star by Premier, CMM 1572, with new spring collections of wood frames, decorative birdhouses, odd-shaped boxes, bears, and other items.
Chalk up a winner at Casa Bella, CMM 1583, with Chalk Board's new vintage picture frames with purple and green jewel adornments. Global Views offers a copper double wine cooler. GV also has an attractive leather magazine dump. New tan leather boxes have arrived as well.
Have Harry Potter and friends over for Christmas. The Harry Potter Seasonal collection at Kurt S. Adler, CMM 1481, features ornaments and accessories for Christmas and other holidays. Potter's friends-Hermione, Ron, Hagrid, Dumbledore, Scabbers, and more-are now depicted in holiday ornaments and accessories made of resin, glass, tin, fabric-mache, wood, and decoupage. Look for stockings, stocking holders, light sets, light covers, and Christmas tabletop decor to follow.
The newest showroom on the block is Blue Ridge Designs. The four-year-old importer of decorative accessories is located in CMM 1528. Founded by CEO Steve Hoover, formerly of World Bazaar, BRD offers a diverse selection featuring nautical themes, garden items, porcelain, lamps, animated gifts, and other items. BRD is probably best known for its animated items such as the "Dancing Santa," which has since grown into a licensed business of dancing Scooby Doo, Peanuts, Warner Bros., and Disney characters. There's more than just animated characters at BRD. Garden items with large figurines, statuary, urns, wooden birdhouses, and water fountains are hot. Also hot is the nautical collection of sailboats and lighthouses. Other items include candleholders, metal-and-glass accessories, wall sconces, mirrors, and clocks. BRD appointed Kim Stanley as Chicago showroom manager.
Catch the vibrant beat of Samba, the new collection of wild South American colors in candles from the Pocomoto division of Dadant Candles at Leclerc Sales Agency, CMM 1554. Samba has orange, lime green, squash yellow, and teal colors in votives, jar candles, pillars, tapers, and floaters. Ceramic pillar and taper holders come in coordinated colors. Pocomoto also has the French Arbor collection of softer colors such as Bordeaux plum and champagne pear.
