plaza design

High Quality, Stylish & Earth Friendly

The makers of LEE fine upholstered furniture are innovators, custom creators and impeccable craftsmen. They are industry leaders who build comfortable furniture in fabrics and leathers that make a big impact on style and a small impact on the environment. And, they’ve been doing that since the day they started in 1969.

Like Plaza Design, LEE adheres to a set of values that focus on its customer, community, and the environment. In doing this, they have been committed to manufacture earth-friendly products, using sustainable processes by people who care about the environment. For decades they voluntarily chose to use products that eliminated the use of chlorofluorocarbon gases (CFC’s), which have been known to deplete the ozone layer. They are by far the industry forerunner in custom style with a conscience.

LEE has always been a pioneer of innovative styling, fresh fabrics and environmentally conscious measures. In fact, in keeping with their longstanding commitment to nature, they were the first manufacturer to use soy-based cushions. This clear vision is a testament to LEE’s unwavering leadership. By building an innovatively styled, high-quality product that is kind to the environment, LEE customers continue to come back to Plaza Design, time after time, for all their custom furniture needs.

Learn more about Lee’s environmental impact, heritage, and furniture styles.

We consistently stock and special order LEE furniture. Come in and check out LEE at any of our showrooms or call us at 707-441-1380 for more information.

Plaza Design carries the widest selection of solid wood fine furniture collections on the North Coast. We hand pick our merchandise from dozens of local, regional and global artisans. Every piece tells a story and fits a perfect picture. We carry both simple-construction and finely handcrafted furniture made from superior woods, including exotic, domestic, sustainably grown and harvested, and reclaimed hardwoods.

Our furniture is made in the tradition of some of the finest furniture ever created using time-honored joinery techniques, top quality hardwoods, shop-cut veneers, and traditional and contemporary designs. Our artisans use natural, hand-rubbed finishes that best highlight the beauty of the wood and the expert craftsmanship.

Come into any of our stores to see our collections and learn more. And, if you can’t find what you want, you can special order from our catalogs and local artisans direct from our stores.

At Plaza Design, you can update your upholstery with LEE fabric. LEE is an industry leader in custom upholstered furniture, fabrics and leathers that make a big impact on style and a small impact on the environment. And, they’ve been doing that since the day they started in 1969.

Come in and view our fabric walls, choose from hundreds of colors and textures, take samples to try in your home, and select the ones you love the most at 20% off.

You can order custom pillows, slipcovers and fabric by the yard at 20% off regular prices.

Click here to request up to 10 fabric swatches free of charge.

Click here to see suggested companions to help you visualize a well-correlated room.

Tips for Choosing Fabric

Cotton holds patterns well, comes in many finishes, and make up nicely for draperies, furniture covers, and accessories like pillows and table linens.

Velvets are formal and come in many colors. Though they feel luxurious and elegant, they are very durable. A chair or sofa upholstered in a cotton velvet will last through generations if properly cared for.

Nylon and polyester fabrics can be woven to resemble natural fibers. They can also be fashioned into interesting sheers for draperies. In fact, with modern finishing techniques, synthetic fibers can be made to look and feel like almost anything, including leather, suede, snake, and straw.

Denim gives a casual look and is durable for children’s rooms and family rooms. Though most often thought of as blue, denim can be dyed to many colors including black and red.

Silk is fragile but has a wonderful sheen and is available in a wide range of textures, from velvet to smooth, nubby to soft. It’s best used on pillows or draperies.

Linen looks beautiful when it’s just been pressed but will get wrinkled immediately. You have to love the wrinkled look or decide to not even touch it. It’s best for drapery panels that will not move–unless you don’t mind the wrinkles.

Bringing new color into a living space is an easy and fun design project. For a color palette to work in your home, it has to meet some criteria, from logical to emotional.

Styles & Themes

First, identify your preferred style (i.e., formal, semi formal, casual, eclectic) and themes (i.e., country, rustic, modern, etc.) for your room. Room styles and themes are all about your lifestyle, personality and the purpose of the room you’re decorating. How would you describe the styles and themes of your living space?

Anchor Fabrics

With style and theme in mind, choose 3 or more colors. One way to do this is to pick an ‘anchor’ fabric that best represents your style and theme. You can choose colors from a patterned fabric or choose solid fabric colors. We have a fabulous selection in our stores and you can order samples direct from our biggest supplier, LEE Industries.

In rooms that are not used as frequently, you might consider a chenille, linen or cotton fabric with some color or a pattern. For more frequently used rooms, you can still add color but choose durable, soft and stain-resistant fabrics. Click here to learn more about choosing fabric.

Space & Color

Lighter colors create a more open feel which most big rooms need where dark colors create an intimate mood that may be appropriate for smaller spaces.

Use your instinct to determine what colors you like and dislike. If you love yellow and hate blue clothing, you would most likely love a butter color in your living space. Also consider the wood finish that best suits your room. For instance, do you have wood floors or carpeting?

Use pictures or places you love to pull color from. You don’t have to be totally original when choosing combinations. There’s so much beautiful color in the world and you’re free to copy it.

Tips for Painting…

Repeat colors evenly throughout the room, and in at least 3 places. Adding details in cording and trims is one way to disperse color and add interest.

Divide color use to approximately 60% of the room in the background (lightest) color, 30% in the mid-tone color, and 10% in the brightest, accent colors.

If you’re not sure of what colors to use, there’s another method to finding out how a color will look in your room. Ask us for a cutting of the fabric you’re considering and keep it in the room for 24 hours.

Same goes for paint. Buy a quart and paint a small section of your wall and see if you still love it the next day. If you do, go with your intuition and you can start building beautiful color palettes for your living spaces.

More information…

Our designers are available to help you with your interior design projects. Please contact us for more information.

Holistic interior design is an approach to design grounded in ecology. Holistic concepts can be applied to building architecture as well as the design of living spaces. This approach to design incorporates concerns about the environment, considers how design impacts the natural world, and attempts to reduce environmental impact.

Holistic design is a different way of looking at how we live and work within the buildings we occupy. Its aim is to achieve a balance between ourselves and the natural environment. Most modern design looks towards fashion for inspiration, focusing on the creation of an investment rather than a nurturing living space. Holistic design considers form and function as well as the health of the space itself, and its effect on the occupants and the wider environment.

Greener Living

Reducing pollution is a key element of Holistic Design. Many “modern” materials are often non-sustainable and produce vast quantities of waste during their full life-cycle e.g. production, use and disposal. They can also ‘off gas’ producing atmospheric pollution which can cause many symptoms ranging from asthma to Multiple Sensitivity Disorder. In contrast, holistic interior design focuses on creating ‘therapeutic interiors’ using sustainable materials, color therapy & natural themes to provide a balanced and healthy living space.

Aesthetics

Aesthetics are central to holistic design. Designers consider how the design will look and feel, thinking about different ways in which people will view and experience a space. For example, when designing a room, a holistic designer reflects on the larger environment connected to the room, and how it will integrate and change depending on time of day. Holistic designers consider the intention, purpose and feelings a space evokes.

The integration of a consistent look and feel is an important aspect of holistic design. Holistic designers try to design spaces with future needs in mind so that additions which change the nature of the space will not need to be made. They make spaces flexible and easy to maintain to reduce the need to make major changes in response to changing needs.

If you would like more information on holistic design or need assistance designing your interior spaces, please feel free to contact us.