Sustainable Styles

(left to right) Gilbert Table, Hatton Lamp, Cecil Drinking Table

As a trend-driven team, Gabby designers strive to listen to customers and provide innovative products that coincide with current styles. A previous blog post, Seagrass Styles, expounds on this strategy of delighting customers through unique, trending materials. As the appeal of natural materials continues to grow, we sought a way to evoke realistic looks in a way that is both sustainable and stylistically relevant. Our solution is faux materials. Gabby often incorporates faux bone, horn, and shagreen in our designs to evoke ultra-realistic looks within an eclectic framework. Through the hard work of our creative, dedicated design team, Gabby answers the call for both “eclectic” and “natural.” Below, we highlight three of our unique faux materials, showcasing their purpose in our transitional, innovative designs.

Faux Bone

Natural Look:

For the most realistic look possible, Gabby’s faux bone material takes inspiration from natural coloring and texture. The shade is an elegant solid white with little variation in color, while the surface is smooth and consistent. The resulting aesthetic is pristine and polished, but this clean-cut feel does not deter innovation. Many of our designs using faux bone are unconventional, bringing a distinctive twist to a material with uniform attributes, such as coloring and texture.

Unique Designs:

Barnsley Lamp | Gabby

The Barnsley Lamp maintains the natural look of faux bone, but structurally, it deviates from the traditional use. Instead of cut into tiles, the faux material is sectioned into long strips. They are arranged in an angular, three dimensional silhouette with distinct panels. The metal overlay brings out a vintage style as the dark “antique gold” finish contrasts with the clean-cut, geometric base.

Cedric Side Table | Gabby

In the Cedric Side Table, faux bone is cut into straightforward squares for a subtle tiled look. Despite this classic feature, the overall design is dynamic and contemporary, due to the metal accents and circular motif at the table’s base. The natural white look of faux bone mixes well with the “brushed brass” finish for a look of high-end sophistication.

Faux Horn

Natural Look:

Woodward Coffee Table | Gabby

At Gabby, we’re inspired by the beautifully sporadic coloring of natural horn. On a white based background, shades of brown and black stand out on the surface, mirroring natural horn material that varies in color from piece to piece. Texturally, the smooth surface is ideal for table tops like the Woodward Coffee Table pictured in our headquarters showroom.

Unique Designs:

Sasha Chandelier | Gabby

Our faux horn material evokes an antique look in the Sasha Chandelier. An elegant off-white hue, it wraps around the center of this oversized orb design. Metal button accents finished in “antique gold leaf” overlay the outer ring. Although faux horn usually takes the stage in Gabby designs, the Sasha exemplifies Gabby’s creative thinking. In this piece, the thin metal onion shape is the highlight, while the faux horn ring is accompaniment.

Harriett Lamp | Gabby

The color variation of natural horn inspires the Harriet Lamp. Dark brown, black, and white hues are scattered throughout this design. Cut into small rectangles, the material is segmented for a look of intriguing inconsistency. Its tapered form has gold metal accents and a Lucite base.

Faux Shagreen

Natural Look:

Unlike faux bone and horn, our faux shagreen material is not smooth and consistent. Unless it is sanded down, the natural stingray skin is tough, bumpy, and highly durable. Because of its history as a high-end material in 1920’s European art deco furnishings, Shagreen is associated with elegance and class. At Gabby, we achieve this sophisticated look in a sustainable way. Using a resin cast, we ensure that its consistency is tough and thick, just like the real material. We then dye the faux material in colors like gray and navy to accompany our designs.

Unique Designs:

Sutton Coffee Table | Gabby

Fully clad in faux shagreen, the Sutton table closely resembles luxurious products from the era of European art deco. These premier designs were typically completely covered in shagreen material, whether it was a jewelry chest or hand mirror. However, she Sutton table also has a transitional feel with its curved, shield shaped frame and wooden base.

Brooke Side Table | Gabby

Our Brooke gold and black side table is a unique contemporary design, featuring a faux shagreen top. By segmenting diamond shaped pieces of this faux material, we created a dynamic, star shaped design. Whether it’s a solid material like the Sutton table or a detailed pattern like the Brooke, we use faux shagreen in versatile ways to offer our customers distinctive options.

Better Together

Isaac Table | Gabby

Independently, these three faux materials have delighted our customers who are searching for realistic, innovative products. Our design team pays close attention to customer preferences, responding to the trending appeal of natural materials. Not only do we incorporate these faux natural materials into our products, but we strive to do so in unique and interesting ways. For example, we include faux bone in pendant chandeliers like the Sasha, and we pair black shagreen with bright gold metal in the Brooke table. Finally, we even mix these three materials with one another, creating products like the Isaac Table. This accent table features a removable top made of faux bone that reverses, revealing an interior of black shagreen. Stylistically vintage, the combination of unique faux materials is eclectic in and of itself. This brand new design will be available on August 18th, this year.

For more information on Gabby’s use of unique materials in our products, see our latest catalog Bold.