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By Sharon Sanders
Award-winning consultant Richard Frinier is a major player among outdoor-living designers.
There are designers who create beautiful designs, and then there are designers who change the way that we think about design. Internationally known designer Richard Frinier has transformed outdoor-living design, his way, through the use of innovative materials, styles and colors.
A fashion-forward innovator, Frinier was the chief creative director for Brown Jordan Furniture for two decades. Since forming his own design consultancy more than four years ago, Frinier has continued to apply his talents throughout the industry. He designs for some of the most highly regarded manufacturers of outdoor-living products, including furniture designs for Century Furniture, fabric designs for Sunbrella and lighting and home-accent furnishings for Currey & Co.
His focus is on creating performance furniture, fabrics, lighting and accessories that are functional and durable, but that evoke the feeling of a resort-at-home or luxury-resort experience. “I call my designs experiential because I strive to capture the experience of world travel in my designs through original and authentic design details,” Frinier says. He is a true innovator, with a strong sense of what consumers want that does not already exist in the marketplace. His designs have helped pioneer the notion that furniture and lighting can flow both outdoors and indoors with ease.
Fabulous Fabrics
Frinier has been developing fabrics with Sunbrella for the past 25 years. Sunbrella has successfully translated his original designs into tonal textures and authentic patterns that are popular with consumers. “The nature of Sunbrella's performance yarns and fabrics allows me to create virtually any texture, tone, color combination or pattern,” Frinier explains. His current signature collection for Sunbrella includes over 160 fabric styles. He has had tremendous success in virtually every market across the country due to his innate talent for creating fabrics that work just as well inside as they do outside. His detailed, multifunctional designs have helped remove the question of whether an item is meant for use indoors or outdoors because they are truly suitable for both.
Frinier encourages retailers to consider several things as they select fabrics, including brand, style, variety, uniqueness and overall marketability. “You know your customer best, so take care to offer fabrics that fit the furniture that matches their lifestyles,” he says. Frinier also stresses the importance of offering fabrics that complement and enhance furniture-frame designs. “The frames set the stage for the fabrics and the fabrics bring along a distinct sense of personality to a furniture frame,” he explains.
Lighting That Shines
Lighting is an aspect of outdoor design that is often overlooked and underrated. Frinier has brought outdoor lighting to a level that has not existed before this. “Nothing sets the mood or illusion of an environment quite like lighting,” he says. Like all of his work, Frinier’s lighting blurs the line between the indoors and outdoors. His lamps and specialty lighting are durable enough to withstand the elements, yet so elegant in design that they are equally at home in a living room. He is particularly excited about the Japanese- and Balinese-inspired lanterns that he recently created for Currey & Co. using Sunbrella fabrics and brass. “It’s amazing how something so simple, like the glow of a lantern, can absolutely transform a space,” Frinier says. He encourages retailers to put thought into which lighting will work for their customers and to merchandise a variety of lighting options (from direct to ambient) on their showroom floors. “Don’t be afraid to offer something out of the ordinary; it will inspire your customers,” he says.
Furniture and Function
Frinier has earned a reputation as one of the most innovative thinkers in the United States in the creation of casual furniture, continually pushing the envelope in designing furnishings to grace the finest homes. Many of his pieces have been fondly described as architecture on which one sits. Their interesting, functional shapes and innovative materials defy the conventional, yet provide the comforts of home. He engineers his teak, mahogany, stainless-steel, aluminum and woven Hularo® designs for full-time outdoor exposure, but designs them for either indoor or outdoor use. Frinier stresses that casual furniture should be both functional and comfortable. Right now, he sees a trend toward luxurious relaxation: oversized daybeds, canopy chaises and lounge chairs are making their way into outdoor spaces across the country.
Frinier truly believes that people want to create an experience in their outdoor spaces. It is not about the components themselves; it is about the overall feeling that they evoke. “We are all moving at such a fast pace that there is a compelling need to take time out for ourselves, our families and our friends,” Frinier says. “What better way to do it than in our own homes, and in a way that makes us feel like we are away on vacation.”
PHPR March/April 2007
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