Paola Lenti

Paola Lenti founded her company in 1994 in the Italian city of Meda in Monza e della Brianza Province (Lombardy Region). Meda is well known for hosting one of Italy's leading furniture districts.

Paola Lenti was quickly noticed for the innovative textiles the company was creating and quickly set the design world abuzz. Highly praised for it's constant research, experimentation and cutting edge entrepreneurial spirit, Paola Lenti designs incredibly sumptuous rugs in vibrant colors for both indoor and outdoor. These rugs are such a treat to the eye that you may be reticent to actually walk on them. My suggestion? Go ahead...throw caution to the wind and step onto these rugs. Once you've done so, you won't be able to resist again because they feel as amazing as they look

The flowers and leafs on these rugs are all hand crocheted then assembled and hand sewn onto a supportive netting. They are also stitched with a high resistant polyester thread that allows the rugs to be used for indoor or outdoor. Can you say colorful!







Designer Francesco Rota for Paola Lenti. The frame of the Wabi is stainless steel and the base material is iroko wood (often referred to as African teak.) Rota uses aquatech (a high performing signature yarn) or a modified polyolefin-based yarn
called rope to weave the frame over the base.






Design Francesco Rota's Sunset table is available in both a dining and side table size. The structure is colored varnished cement or anthracite. The top is available in natural iroko wood and in granite stone trademarked as Nero Assoluto. This stone is Gabbro from Africa and is sealed to make sure it is water and oil repellent. The table and chairs are shown inside a Cabanne (An architectural structure) and demonstrate the collaboration between Paola Lenti and BestettiAssociati. The design objective is to find the balance between "container and content."
The metal is treated with the latest innovations to guarantee resistance to the elements. The (Iroko ) wood is left untreated to allow for the for the natural process to evolve over time. The Cabanne is modular, leaving the owner to design and place the structure as they see fit in the desired space.
Inside the structure is the Haven sofa designed for Paola Lenti by the Scandinavian design firm of Claesson, Koivisto and Rune. The frame is painted through a process called cataphoresis (The motion of charged particles in a colloid under the influence of an electric field; particles with a positive charge go to the cathode and negative to the anode.) The sofa itself is made from varnished steel. Covered with Rete, a 100% polyester material that is strong and elastic in composition, the seat and cushions are completely removable.



At the hand of Paola Lenti, the furniture created for her company has a sensuous feel. The curves and lines are decidedly feminine while the structure of each piece maintains the strength and edginess for the most discerning consumer. I look forward to seeing what the offerings of this innovative design icon will bring to the the 2011 season.