Trendex Updates Traditional

At the New York Market — Trendex Home Fashions' design tilt still calls for traditional, but this market the company has recognized a need for "less fussy," more contemporary lifestyle looks.

So the company is taking the two and pairing them this market for a fresh perspective on its table linen line.

More specifically, it's about taking a traditional check pattern and mixing-and-matching it with a modern floral, for example, to update it.

"The trends in furniture are dictating the trends we're seeing in our categories," explained Lorraine Ragland Maberry, senior vp. "We're more aggressively than ever going after modern looks, clean lines and fewer trims. We're going away from fussy looks like tassels and instead using square edges and clean lines."

This is the first time Trendex has taken a strong contemporary design position, and is also its first move into lifestyle presentations, where it romances its new assortments in themes rather than by specific design looks.

Another example in this market's collection that speaks to the updated traditional perspective is the use of a varying stripe design as a diagonal pattern accented with shiny metallic accents, noted Maberry.

"We took a basic stripe, turned it diagonally and instantly came up with a more modern look," she said.

There are eight new mix-and-match design stories for market, heavily centered on textured solids, sheens, boucle-like finishes and others.