Denise McGahahas had a busy year. Less than a month after debuting her fabric collectionat High Point, the Dallas-based designer was on hand at Coverings in Atlanta to talk about her latest rollout: a line of customizable mantels (manufactured by Materials Marketing) made to please discerning designers.
While it might seem like a lot for one season, the mantel line has actually been in the works – albeit unofficially – for years.
“I never set down a path to create a line,” laughs McGaha when AD PRO catches up with her before a talk at Coverings. “But there aren’t a lot of offerings on the market for hand-carved at a certain price point. I do a ton of remodel work, and our offerings were mainly cast stone or wood, which weren’t quite right. ” So, McGaha found herself doing what any savvy creative would: She made her own.
“In Dallas, we do a lot of elegant spaces which deserve these,” McGaha explains. “I started designing my own a few years ago, and designers would see them in my finished projects and ask where I got them. So I realized there was a market. ”
The Maurice mantel.
McGaha crafted her collection with three requirements in mind: “One, they need to fit a budget. Two, they need to fit a timeline. Three, they need to work with multiple stones. ” The finished result is a collection of seven designs in six stones, all infinitely customizable and available with a lead time of four to six weeks. Prices range from $2,500 to $10,000, depending on customization options.
The Etienne.
“Materials Marketing is based in Texas and they own their own quarry, so that makes customization a lot easier and lead times a lot shorter,” explains the designer. Customers also have the option of ordering mantels in pieces, which can be assembled by the installing mason, or in one piece – if the preferred slab is large enough. “The possibilities are really limitless,” she says. Music to a designer’s ears.
