ICFF 2007: Autoban & Hale

Autoban - These two got a lot of attention this year. Seyhan Ozdemir and Sefer Caglar are located in Turkey, but they have a deal with De la Espada to manufacture and distribute their furniture, which is good news for both of them. These designs are creative and hotter than De la Espada's, while the all wood construction makes them delicious and something that will grow better with age. Check out the Starfish dining table with the X leg structure above...

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Hale - Jonathan Nesci had a beautiful booth that proclaimed his brand loud and clear. A Chicago native, Jonathan's line of shelving, tables, bookends and stools are all made of powder-coated aluminum so that they are light, colorful and strong. Colors can be changed, but the Tidal bookshelf seen here is based on the famous "Homage to the Square" paintings by Josef Albers.

Comments (6)

That x-leg design is great-looking, but not practical. Just look at where the legs meet the chairs. Even if you arrange the chairs differently, people will still bump their shins on the legs.

The x base is a coffee table Julie.

It's a dining table - it says so in the description, plus it is in the proper height for dining. And yes, it does look problematic.

I'm torn about Autobahn, even if I like their aesthetic: the King lamp they first showed at last year's ICFF is a near-complete knock-off of Jonathan Adler's lacquered Trousdale Lamp.

http://jonathanadler.com/shop/product.php?productid=17236&cat=386&page=1

The turned wood was pretty much identical in its variations. And considering Jonathan Adler brought his version out over a year before, it was fairly obvious the minute we saw it. Oddly enough, I like Autobahn's better, because I think the lampshade they put on their King Lamp works better than Adler's.

"Check out the Starfish dining table with the X leg structure above..." I agree with Julie :)

BE VERY CAREFUL WITH DE LA ESPADA.
FURNITURE IS LOVELY. PRICES ARE WHAT THEY ARE.
BIGGEST ISSUE IS CORPORATE CULTURE:
OUR TABLE CRACKED, AND THEY WOULDN'T DO ANYTHING TO FIX IT. LITERALLY TOLD US TO PUT BROWN WAX IN THE CRACK. THEY TOLD US SOMETIMES IT HAPPENS - FOR $5,000, ZERO CUSTOMER SERVICE.
THEN OUR SIDEBOARD WAS 6 WEEKS LATE, WHEN WE ASKED TO SPEAK THE MANAGER, THEY TOLD US THERE IS NONE. WE ASKED TO SPEAK TO THE OWNER, THEY TOLD US TO GET THE NAME OFF THE WEBSITE.
BE VERY, VERY CAREFUL BEFORER GIVING THEM YOUR MONEY. THIS IS NOT A TRUSTED OUTFIT.
EVEN THEIR SALESWOMAN ADMITS THEY LIED ABOUT WHY OUR PIECE IS LATE (THEY TOLD US NO WOOD, IT'S REALLY THEY SCREWED UP THE ORDER).