Enlightened elegance

By Susan Pyle Dickenson -- Home Accents Today, 11/1/2006

"Jewelry for the home" is how Lisa Nardone of rosienyc describes her illuminating work — eye-popping color combinations of Italian crystals, beads and baubles dangling from classic chandelier, sconce and lamp designs. Based on traditional and vintage pieces, rosienyc's lighting products have captured the attention and imagination of a clientele as eclectic as her work. "It's such a range," Nardone said. "From Neimans, Horchow and Sundance to smaller shops like On a Whim in Oklahoma City — a lot of really cool, edgy stores."

Rosienyc (rosienyc.com) also is carried at New York's ABC Carpet and Home, where Nardone spent 10 years learning the trade and honing her tastes as creative merchandise director for owner and CEO Paulette Cole. "My first trip to Italy was with Paulette," Nardone said. "The more I did, the more she sent me out there, working with different buyers, the factories in Italy, learning about fabric, accessories, product capabilities, price points. It was a great experience and a big education."

When Nardone left ABC she was ready to try something on her own. "I couldn't see myself working for anyone else, so I decided to give it a shot." She had a lot of ideas but settled on the one product category where there appeared to be a void. Armed with an advertising degree from Philadelphia's Moore College of Art, years of international buying experience and a practiced funky-elegant aesthetic, she took aim at the high-end lighting market. "I decided to go into wholesale — took a trip to Italy, spent time hunting and finding, put together a line of samples, took them to the next New York gift show and started taking orders."

The glass artisans and production team are Italian, as is Rosie, Nardone's maternal grandmother for whom her company is named. She is inspired by many sources, including the scenery, props and furniture of old movies. Sunset Boulevard inspired a moody collection of brass fixtures fringed with Murano beads in four styles: Norma, Max, Peacock and Ruby. "I also look at fashion magazines for colors and different combinations," she said of her unique pairings such as the turquoise and lime green beading of Blue Bud and milky pinks and banana yellows of Rose Bud, both from the Confection collection.

Since the launch of rosienyc seven years ago, Nardone has seen a lot of new players enter the field. "There's more lighting out there now at all different price points, which is why we decided to do Sparkle," she said, referring to her recent joint venture with Meredith Clark of California-based Chandi. Sparkle (sparkledivine.com) introduced more than 75 SKUs at August's New York gift show as a moderately priced option for buyers. "A lot of our customers who buy for high end also have to mix in more moderately priced pieces, so we created Sparkle. It's out of India, with a different, simpler look."

Additional staff has enabled Nardone to take on bigger projects this year including her largest project to date, a commission for nine 4×4-foot multicolored pinwheel chandeliers to hang in a candy store in Truckee, Calif. "The owner carries rosienyc in several stores but this was the first purchase she's made for store fixturing." The multicolored striped pinwheels, individually blown and handcrafted by Murano glass artisans, had not been produced since the 1950s.

Nardone credits her grandparents' Italian-American restaurant, where she worked growing up in northeast Pennsylvania, for her early entrepreneurial motivations. "Growing up in a family that owns a business, you learn early what to expect — more work, bigger rewards," she said. Now it's the enjoyment others find in her designs. "When you create something that is cherished by someone in their home, that is the ultimate reward."