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How to buy high quality Italian furniture: ten useful tips

How to buy high quality Italian furniture ten useful tips

Buying high quality Italian furniture can be an exciting and rewarding experience, but it can also be a complex undertaking if you don’t have an interior designer who takes care of your project and a trusted supplier that helps you to select.

Here are some useful tips to help you choose and buy high-end Italian furniture.

1. List of needs

Amura Palmo

Amura: Palmo

Before shopping, make a list of the furniture you want. This way you can focus on priorities and select the furniture that best meets your needs. The list helps you a lot during the selection phase, so don’t underestimate it!

2. Design that fits your style

Sovet: Arkos

When choosing furniture, make sure it fits your style. Italian decor is known for its elegant and sophisticated design, so choose furniture that fits your personal preferences. There are many different styles to choose from, you will surely find the right one for you.

3. Space

MisuraEmme: Palo Alto

Before buying a piece of furniture, measure the space where it is to be placed and make sure you have adequate space to be able to use it.

For example, if you have to buy a wardrobe, you need to leave a free area in front of it, to allow the doors and drawers to open without problems. For chairs, sofas, and armchairs, make sure the furniture you choose fits the size of your space and that people can sit comfortably.

4. Functionality

Roberti: Atollo Day Bed

When choosing furniture, consider its functionality and usefulness. You can select products with a refined design that offer a perfect combination of functionality and aesthetics. This is a good way to enjoy your home and surprise your guests at the same time.

5. Materials

Riva 1920: Craftsmanship

High-end Italian furniture is known for the very high quality of the materials used. To choose products that will last a long time, also make sure that the furniture is well made and well assembled.

6. Colors and fabrics

Giorgetti: Production

Choose colors and fabrics that suit your environment. The best Italian manufacturers use high quality padding and the skilful use of materials such as leather and velvet have made Italian furniture famous all over the world. So, in addition to the colors you like, also choose upholstery that fits your lifestyle.

7. Variants

Secolo: Pingu X Side Table

You must follow this advice very carefully, because it’s really important!

Many furnishing products are available in different variants, so carefully evaluate the different solutions, dimensions and finishes. These characteristics are very often decisive, not only for the aesthetics, but also for the price.

When making comparisons between different variations of the same product or between different suppliers, always be sure to dig into the product details.

8. Brands

Choose only Italian furniture manufacturers and suppliers you can trust.

At Salbini we select the best furniture brands that guarantee high quality materials, workmanship and construction. We also ensure that the company choices of the producers respect the best environmental sustainability procedures. Natural resources are not infinite and it is our duty to take care of the earth.

9. Get ahead of the times

Salbini: Shipping warehouse

Decide precisely when you need the furniture and start the selection right away. In this way you will not have to settle for the availability of the local retailer’s warehouse, and you will be able to have a wider choice, as happens with us at Salbini. You can even have a bespoke product made just for you!

Furthermore, if you decide to import the furniture directly from Italy, consider the time required for shipping, delivery and assembly.

10. Budget

miniforms: Botera Sofa

miniforms: Botera Sofa

Before buying, plan your budget and keep in mind the price of high quality Italian furniture. There are many options available, so choose furniture that fits your budget and meets your needs.

In summary

Purchasing high-quality Italian furniture takes research and planning. Make sure you choose reliable manufacturers, invest in quality, consider functionality, respect the environment and plan your budget.

By following these tips, you will be able to buy high-end Italian design furniture that perfectly suits your needs and style.

Cover image: Longhi Cohen

The importance of collaboration

To create a harmonious project it is necessary for the designer-architect to involve all the professionals who must be part of it from the very beginning.

The collaboration between architect / interior designer and lighting designer

In this video interview we talked about it with the Lighting Designer Filippo Cannata, who has been collaborating for over thirty years in the realization of residential, commercial, urban and hospitality projects in various countries.

Cannata explains how the lighting project also begins with the architectural project.

In fact, light is a fundamental element of architecture and interior design, which is why it must be designed when the idea for the project is born.

Filippo Cannata

“Light becomes the language through which architecture and interior design are expressed, to which the client’s identity is added”.

Benefits for you

The Cannata / Salbini partnership offers our customers the opportunity to rely essentially on a “genius” who takes care of every detail of the project for what concerns lighting.

Contact us now

Salbini Experience: Vittoria Chiarilli from Australia

Our Australia manager Vittoria Chiarilli is an Interior Designer. She has a small studio called Marly Hemisphere which operates out of Melbourne Australia.

She has been in Milano for the Salone del Mobile and then we interviewed her in Pagani.

Childhood

She has always been artistic as a child.

“As a very young girl l would accompany my father to his work – he was a builder and l would find small objects on his building sites and make sculptures to take home and show my mum. I learned to sew at 14 and draft all my own patterns for clothes l made. I was happiest when l was creating and making things.”

Favourite design style

Some of her favourite design styles are: Neo Classic, Post Modern, Scandinavian, Midcentury Modern and Art Deco.

Functionality or appeal?

When asked if she prefers functionality or appeal she says she prefers to try to combine both.

“It means l can have something look beautiful but also importantly provide the client with an easy to use space that meets most of their needs”

What are a couple of questions you’d ask to discover your client’s requirements?

Some of the questions she usually asks a client are:

  • what are you trying to achieve in the space?
  • are we using some existing items/furniture you have
  • how do you live in the space
  • Are you looking for locally made furniture or are you wanting to consider furniture manufactured overseas
  • And then most importantly what is your budget”

These are important questions to ask a client to begin a good collaboration.

Keeping up with industry changes and with the latest Interior Design styles

Keeping up with industry changes is at times difficult in a fast changing world.

“I try where l can to go to trade shows such as Salone del Mobile which often provide a great source of inspiration… I keep myself up to date with the latest design styles by following interior designers and architects on instagram and the internet that interest me.” 

It’s also important working in collaboration with other designers.

Imagine your client asks you to design a room in a way that is visually pleasing but not practical. How would you react?

“If they are just wanting a room/space to look beautiful and it be never used then we don’t need to be practical, but if the space is an area that is used frequently it is my job to highlight to the client the disadvantages of being in a space that is not practical.”

It’s important to create spaces that are thoughtful, reflect the client’s personality and ultimately give the client great satisfaction to move within these spaces.

When a client rejects all your design concepts

The design process needs to be a collaboration between client and designer and in order to achieve this successfully there must be a level of trust from the client.

“When a client rejects all my design concepts it usually means they have perhaps not chosen the right designer for their project. Initial meetings with clients are crucial, they establish if we will be able to work together and if there is a potential to clash.”

Vittoria Chiarilli at the Auditorium Theater in Pagani

Why Salbini for the supply of European design products?

Using a company like Salbini means that clients are dealing directly with an agent out of Italy. One of the benefits is that a customer can buy different type of products all through one agent. 

Moreover, “Things are done more quickly if there is an issue or drama.” Another reason would be cost saving. It’s all advantageous.

With Salbini Experience we will open the doors of the best Italian companies to you.

Do you need to carry out projects with the best design products? Come to Italy!

Find out more

Salbini Experience: Chan Yoon from South Korea

Chan Yoon is our South Korea Manager and came to visit us in Italy in June 2022. 

Before going to Milan together for the Salone del Mobile 2022, Chan was our guest in Southern Italy. 

It was a pleasure meeting him and having the opportunity of interviewing him. He has been part of our family for more than 2 years.

The first contact and collaboration with us

Chan met us for the first time as a client and he was very satisfied with the service:

“It was not about money, but it was more about solving my problem to make my room the most beautiful place in the world.”

And that’s how he got confidence and decided to work with us.

His role 

“At the beginning, I was a one-man show. Now my business has gone to 5 people”.

He handles B2B projects, sometimes B2C as well, meeting the clients.

The interesting aspects of his job

There are two interesting aspects in Chan’s job: being able to provide great furniture to his customers; being able to provide new brands in South Korea and seeing excitement in the clients.


Chan Yoon is an interior designer, founder of Stretta Furniture and Stretta Studio in Seoul

Favorite brands

When asked what are his favorite brands, Chan told us that what he loves more about Italian furniture is that they make the best use of materials.

“The very first furniture that I came to import was Poltrona Frau. I really love their leather and its luxurious use”.

He also appreciates DV Home and Misuraemme.

The future of the market in South Korea 

“I think that our company could become number one in terms of luxury brands”.

The meeting with the Italian team

Chan had the opportunity to spend time with our Italian team to take care of the details of some projects under construction in South Korea and also to spend some relaxing moments on the Amalfi Coast, in Pompeii, Salerno and with the Salbini family.

Chan Yoon, JInho Shin and Francesco Ferrara in Amalfi
Chan Yoon, Carmela Salbini and Filippo Salbini in Corbara

Dinner and relaxation with the Salbini family

With Salbini Experience we will open the doors of the best Italian companies to you.

Do you need to carry out projects with the best design products? Come to Italy!

Find out more

The sinuous anatomy of nature in Michael Sean Stolworthy’s design

Serous Bar Stool by Michael Sean Stolworthy

Michael Sean Stolworthy’s unique style is characterized by sinuous shapes inspired by nature in a continuous exploration of forms.

Who is Michael Sean Stolworthy

Michael Sean Stolworthy
Michael Sean Stolworthy.

Michael is an internationally acclaimed designer.

After earning a degree in Media Arts and 3-D Animation, Michael decides to move away from the world of corporate design and to fully explore the fusion of art and product design.

In 2010 he founded MSMD | Studio, his design studio based in Las Vegas, NV USA, where today he designs and creates visual effects, theatrical events, staging, furniture and objects, combining traditional production methods with computer-aided production.

Its clients also include major brands such as Marvel Studios, Ferrari, Microsoft, Samsung, Royal Caribbean and many more.

We had the pleasure of meeting Michael in 2021, for a great project that we took care of in Australia and we immediately appreciated his personality, professionalism and his unique style.

For these reasons we decided to ask him some questions and post his answers on our blog.

Nature as inspiration.

“I’m fascinated by the sinuous anatomy found in nature and the ocean. Fluid organic forms in the beauty of the raw world around us.”

Michael Sean Stolworthy

In his works it’s very important the relation between art and design.

He affirmed: “I aim to translate the sinuous language of nature into curvaceous fluid forms infused with a subtle balance of modern and contemporary flare. Harnessing technology with a digital workflow, I capitalize on the power and vast possibilities of design software, 3D printing, and automated machining. These tools give me the freedom to push at the boundaries between art & design and ultimately bring my organic design visions into the real world”.

The dream project.

Michael says his dream project is the Serous chairs: “My “Serous” chairs were featured in the Oscar winning Marvel Studios film Black Panther! I was contacted by the studio while they were still filming and was commissioned to make 15 exclusive pieces for the Vibranium Technology Lab scenes. It was surreal to see my work on the big screen. The film won the Oscar for Best Production Design & Set Decoration as well! To add to that, I was invited again to design for the sequel Black Panther II film releasing later this year. You will see some very cool organic works with my signature on them.”

Inflection table and Plexus drink table.

Among his best designs there are the Inflection table and the Plexus drink table. We asked him how they were conceived.

“Like many of my works I start out by studying and manipulating platonic solids and geometric primitive geometries and let my imagination do the rest. These pieces were conceived in such a way of bringing function and beauty to a mathematical form in the computer and having it transcend into a real world piece.”

Inflection Table

Derived as an exploratory computational design. Inflection points in differential geometry are the points of the curve where the curvature changes. Hammer forged in bronze and hand polished.

Plexus Drink Table

Geometrically morphed from a dodecahedron platonic solid into a chic network of subdued pentagonal & hexagonal voids. The Plexus table has a beautifully polished bronze exterior with a contrasting dark patina interior making it a curious piece for conversation.”

Image credits: MSMD | Studio – Marvel