Thursday, January 22, 2009

Celebrating 40 years with new Eco-Friendly Collections


Maya Romanoff, the artistic creator of the luxury wallcovering line by the same name utilizes both ancient and new production techniques. He has created some of the most innovative and exotic surfacing materials available -everything from glass bead and seashell encrusted papers to vinyls and inlaid wood veneers.

The design philosophy of the Maya Romanoff company, based in Chigaco, is simple: “It has to be beautiful”. While everything they design is governed by their collective definition of beautiful, Maya remains the ultimate decision maker, guiding color choices, and pattern repeats based on his feeling for what is most pleasing to the eye. The company also likes to support American jobs - more than 50% of Maya Romanoff’s wall coverings and surfacing materials are made in their Chicago studio by long-term employees. “Instead of exporting jobs to India and Asia, we export wallpaper,” says Laura.


Their products are consistently intriguing and increasingly eco-friendly. Existing collections include: the Mother of Pearl wallcovering made from a thin layer of Capiz sea shells; Bedazzled, a wallcovering featuring glass beads; and True Metals, flexible tiles of brass, copper or aluminum.

“What all these have in common is that they are flexible and made of natural materials. We strip away the unnecessary finishes so the material itself can be appreciated. The glass beads are right there on the surface; nothing covers our woods; and there’s only a thin layer of varnish on the seashells,” explains Laura Romanoff, daughter of the firm's founder.



In honor of their 40th Anniversary this year, they’ll be releasing the Meditations collection-an entirely green product made of Tibetan prayer papers and produced without electricity, and putting a more contemporary spin on the existing collections.


A very exciting new addition to the line is Sunburst, a wood veneer made of Paulownia, a fig tree that is flexible and fast renewing. Sunburst is part of the Ajiro collection, a product which recently received Interior Design Magazine’s Best of Year award. The veneer’s extraordinary hand-inlaid pattern and sustainable aspects make it an ideal product for today's eco-conscious luxury homes.

The Maya Romanoff company has never been a slave to design trends, but instead creates products with the timeless appeal of natural materials. With this focus, Maya Romanoff will certainly be celebrating many more anniversaries in the years ahead.

Maya Romanoff wallcoverings are available exclusively through the Trade - contact your designer for samples, pricing and ordering.

1 comment:

Annabelle said...

Love, love, love this new eco-aware furniture. I just got a green office chair at officedesigns.com that's almost entirely recyclable. I got it for a really good price too! They have a ton of different LEED certified chairs.