Italy Recap: Adige Artisan visit
We describe the Adige brand as discovering special people, producing extraordinary products. In order to find these special people, we do our research, network and visit the factories and showrooms to find the best of the best. These visits lead us to artisans that have years of experience in their craft, many of which are not represented in New England, or even the US. We are then able to curate an exclusive product selection that we can bring directly to our clients. While we were in Italy for the Salone Del Mobile in Milan, we met with 8 of our suppliers and artisans located in Emilia Romagna and throughout Veneto, Italy to talk about new products, business, and to see the progress on our custom pieces that are currently in the works.
RADOMONTE
Our first stop was to visit with Dajana and Stefano of Radomonte, an artisanal bathroom fixture brand. Designed by Stefano himself, all the fixtures are fabricated and hand-varnished in their factory, allowing Radomonte to deliver beautifully crafted, quality bathroom pieces that are all created by their skilled artisans inhouse. During our visit we were able to see their artisans create, assemble, and package their products.
Il Fanale
Next we made our way to San Biagio di Callalta to visit our lighting artisans at Il Fanale. Hand-crafted in their workshop, Tomas and his team create beautiful works of art using timeless and elegant materials and thoughtful design. We took a walk through their showroom and saw their three new lines, one of which will be included in every kitchen at Maison Commonwealth: the Madame. Tomas gave us a special demonstration on how they attain certain finishes. Not very often you see the owner of a company fire up a torch like this!
Armonia Group
Armonia Group, our kitchen and millwork artisan was our next stop. Armonia Group is a fully custom brand that can create anything you dream up. We’ve worked with them to build high-end kitchens, custom installations and custom furniture. We toured their showroom and got a close up look at their latest commission for a high end client.
Bassano Parquet
We ended our first day with a visit to our newest wood flooring supplier, Bassano Parquet. This was our first time meeting in person, so we had a look around their showroom, reviewed their available finishes, and toured the factory. Bassano separates themselves from competitors by providing a product that is hand-treated, beveled and varnished inhouse, which at a larger corporate company is often done by machine and doesn’t have individual character. You can see the craftsmanship of their work in the little imperfections of the wood, as they demonstrated for us below.
Tailormade Stocco
Our second day started with Tailormade Stocco, our bathroom vanities supplier. We discussed business, then had a tour of their factory and showroom. They showed us their newest line, Stilo, that launched at the Salone Del Mobile. We also were able to take a look at a custom vanity we designed for an upcoming project on Newbury Street.
Mingardo
Next we drove over to Monselice to visit our metalwork artisan, Mingardo. Over the years, Mingardo has created beautiful pieces of metalwork for us, ranging from tables and chairs, to mirrors and banquettes. Listed in AD’s 2022 Top 100, his catalogue of metalwork products are unique, beautiful and customizable, with many different finishes. We stopped in to have a look at a custom bookshelf he fabricated with an antique glass backsplash, designed by our very own Director of Design, Federica de Biase.
True Design
Our last stop of the day was with True Design, our office furniture artisan. Similar to our “living” showroom, True has a unique approach to their showroom in Sant’Elena. A two-story space, their showroom features their product in the environment of a home restaurant. The patio, where guests can enjoy a homemade meal, features True’s outdoor line, fit with their various lines of chairs and tables. Inside you’ll find a chef’s kitchen, along with seating areas and meeting spaces, displaying their product in an unconventional way. We shared lunch with Lorenzo and his team, discussing how the office environment has changed and how we are working to change the narrative of how we think about the office. Afterwards, we took a quick drive over to their office and factory, where we were able to see more of their product in action. Additionally, we were able to take look at some of the custom orders we placed for a lounge bar project on Newbury street.
Olivieri Mobili
Our last stop of the trip was with our closet supplier, Olivieri Mobili. We traveled down to Emilia Romagna, where we met with Marco and his team to discuss new product and future business. We toured the Olivieri factory, and learned more about their honeycomb structure called Tammel: TAM (honeycomb in Italian) and MEL (melamine in Italian). A material of their conception, the honeycomb-plywood is made by a frame in solid and carefully selected fir wood and an internal alveolar structure, with everything covered by MDF panels. Tammel guarantees non-deformability over time, lightness, and practicality.
And that’s a wrap! Interested in learning more about a certain product or production method? Send our team a message!
