We all remember our grandmother's house. It was either warm and welcoming or smelly and stark. Her couch was either the kind you sink into and never want to leave or the kind that when you sit on it your behind actually bounces off, as if the inanimate piece of furniture was trying to catapult you across the room.
A piece of furniture can look nice but not feel nice, which is why everyone ends up gathered in your kitchen when you have parties. That couch you thought would bring the room together so nicely did such a good job that you feel guilty breaking the monotony by entering the room. Unless your house is a wing in the Louvre, your furniture shouldn't be museum pieces-or else you're destined to be the type of grandparent with the "smelly" and "stark" house. And no one wants that. So, put away the Scotch guard and protective covers. New furniture is in order.
The good news is that you don't have to choose form over function. Barbara Barry, whose line of classic, yet modern, highly functional furniture is now being carried at Robb & Stucky Interiors, who claim the largest staff of licensed interior designers in Florida and Arizona and recently earned a spot in House Beautiful's "Top Five Furniture Stores" in addition to their five-year stint as recipients of the ARTS Award.
A likely partnership, given that Barry's own achievements include being named to the Interior Design Hall of Fame by Interior Design magazine, and Architectural Digest's "AD100" for three consecutive years, received the "Star of Design" award for lifetime achievement, won "Designer of the Year" from Traditional Home magazine and "Best in Residential Design" from Interiors magazine. Despite all those fancy awards Barry's furnishings create warmth and continuity with a distinct form that is pleasing to the eye and inviting to the body. Homes outfitted with her furniture are as comfortable as they are beautiful, simply stated, yet refined. So, you'll never have to choose form over function (or vice versa) ever again.