Pine Cone Hill debuts colorful lines

By Andrea Lillo -- Home Textiles Today, 6/2/2003 12:00:00 AM

PITTSFIELD, MA —

Colors rule over the latest collection from bedding manufacturer Pine Cone Hill, with bright, cheerful hues mixed in with playful details like pantaloons, dance ruffles and ticking.

"It was such a long winter; bright colors seemed to come out of me," said Annie Selke, president. "We started with color in a variety of forms, in pink, green and aqua, and took off from there."

The bedding, about 80 percent of the company's line, is complemented by a growing accessory line, such as chunky throws and handwoven rugs.

Customers viewing the latest collection were looking for something different, she added. "Some are looking for a wacky bit of color and fun and others are looking at the updates to our classics collection. In every case, however, they buy things that make them smile."

Hand embroidery also highlighted many of the new patterns, she said. "We reinterpret retro fabrics with a new look."

New collections include Loretta, which centers around a bright interpretation of a traditional pieced quilt in mango and rose. Also included are an accompanying rose embroidered pillowcases, Loretta whole cloth quilt, Loretta patchwork quilt, Loretta Stripe bedskirt and Amelie mango embroidered sheets.

The Gigi collection consists of a bright, floral pieced quilt paired with a colorful tiered Flamenco bedskirt. The Water Lily duvet and sheets, inspired by Monet, includes coordinating woven cotton rugs.

The Alistar and Alice quilts are designed to mix and match and layer, with the company's Classic Stripe sheets as one possible coordinate.

In sorbet colors of mango, lime, yellow, red, blue, pink and lilac, the Gingham collection brings a fresh look to the bed and coordinates with many sheets in the line, including Amelie.

The Americana look is the inspiration behind the Vermont Star Quilt, which coordinates with the vintage white sheets of Lila, Louisa and Lucy, which are open work sheets and bed skirts inspired by vintage French lingerie.

Pine Cone Hill generally works with sheet counts ranging from 200 to 330. They can be print or embroidered, as well as machine or hand embroidered. Retail prices on quilts range from $250 twin to $450, depending on fabrication.

Wool and cotton hooked and cotton woven ticking rugs are the major components of the company's rug collection, generally offered in five sizes, from 2' x 3' ($25 to $70) to 9' x 12' ($375 to $1,050).

The chunky wool throws, available in rose, citrus and mango, will retail at $115.

The company also recently bowed furniture, offering couches and ottomans in a range of velvets as well as in four Pine Cone woven checks.

The company's Potluck Studios also has new tabletop ticking and prints including quilted place mats in azure, chocolate, peony and scarlet, printed place mats and napkins in Wild Vine peony, Wild Vine key lime and Wild Vine scarlet, and ticking place mats and napkins in peony, azure, framboise and truffle. Bedding coordinates in some of the ticking were also introduced recently.

The Williamsburg collection, its license with Colonial Williamsburg, saw the addition of pink to the Raleigh Rose Toile and the William and Mary matelassé offerings.