Museum Quality
When it comes to everyday dinnerware, people often look for options that are durable and low-maintenance. The Museum of New Mexico Foundation in Santa Fe and porcelain tableware manufacturer BIA Cordon Bleu stepped up to the plate by launching a mix-and-match collection that is both microwave- and dishwasher-safe. Developed by internationally acclaimed designer Mimi Robinson and BIA Cordon Bleu, the Museo Mundo™ dinnerware borrows bold hues from pieces in the Girard Wing at Santa Fe’s Museum of International Folk Art and simple graphic patterns from Pueblo pottery designs at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture,
also in Santa Fe.
 
The 36-piece collection includes dinner, salad and bread-and-butter plates, soup/cereal bowls, serving bowls, square and rectangular platters, and mugs. Available color combinations are black and white, avocado green and grass, and chocolate brown and sand. Gift sets of square dessert plates (pictured above left and right) and espresso cups and saucers (pictured above center) are offered in additional colorways.

Learn more about Museo Mundo™ by logging on to museumfoundation.org. To place an order, go online to worldfolkart.org.

Cool Cover-ups
Dressing up an outdated sofa with a fabulous slipcover is an easy fix, and one that makes a stylish statement. Shabby Slips in Houston, a 2,000-square-foot shop offering custom-made slipcovers, among other things, is the ideal destination for an instant furniture makeover.
Wanting to jazz up their clients’ tired sofas and chairs, Renea Abbott and Barbara Carlton, both interior designers, founded the company in 1991. Shortly thereafter, the successful twosome added custom upholstery, European antiques and home-decor accessories to their inventory. Not at all shabby as the store’s name might imply, the showroom displays an elegant mix of Traditional and Contemporary wares. According to Abbott, who now runs the business on her own, the shop’s specialty is “custom furniture with slipcovers in beautiful natural Belgian linens” in such neutral shades as white and flax (a gray-brown undyed linen).

The designer also frequents Decorative Center Houston to pick out fabrics, often opting for lines from Clarence House, Holly Hunt, Donghia and David Sutherland. Shown here is a dining room vignette found in the showroom; the chairs’ seat slipcovers are fashioned from Belgian linen.

To slip your couch into something more comfortable, go to 2304 Bissonett St. For information, call (713) 630-0066, or log on to shabbyslipshouston.com.


Sustainable Sophistication
Sustainability and style go hand in hand at Environment Furniture’s 2,800-square-foot store at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, Calif. The furniture company, which also has locations in New York, Los Angeles and Dublin, offers eco-friendly designs in “green” retail outlets. The showroom features walls coated with low-VOC paints and panels made of 100-percent recyclable paper, as well as flooring of soy-based concrete.

In addition to eco-chic dining tables, sofas and beds, the shop carries such home-decor items as bedding, lamps and rugs that are all organic. The woods used to make the furnishings are either reclaimed or responsibly harvested. Pictured here are the Bina sectional with upholstery made of reclaimed truck tarp canvas, the square Santos Coffee Table in peroba rosa wood and harvested mahogany, and a Jute Sumak Rug.

To check out the wares at this environment-friendly showroom, visit 3333 Bear St., Suite 225. For details, call (714) 557-3100, or go to environment-furniture.com on the Web.