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Categories
Furniture
Services & Specialties
Traditionally refined, contemporary furniture
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RECOMMENDATION
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4.5]
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WORK QUALITY
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COST EVALUATION
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VALUE ANALYSIS
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ADD YOUR REVIEW
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FR Review:
The ruggedness of bench-made and the softness of luxury design combine to create what clients call DLV’s “future antiques.” Working with rustic materials like American black walnut and hand-dyed saddle leather, polishing with antique bronze and finishing with ancient Vietnamese eggshell techniques, DLV manages to create a collection of surfaces and seating that, with one glance, clients know is a worthy investment. The studio’s atmosphere alone—an open, unfinished loft space overlooking the Statue of Liberty from the bay of Red Hook—illustrates DLV’s credo that at the core of elegance is an authentic simplicity.
Owner Mark de la Vega is like a piece of his own furniture, sophisticated with rustic roots. He was born and raised in Colorado where he went to the state’s Art Institute, then relocated to NYC and worked directly under Bill Sofield. Soon after going out on his own he got his big break—custom-making a coffee table for Madonna. At Pratt, Maggie de la Vega, Mark’s wife and business partner, studied Design Management and together they opened DLV in 2009. The studio is a combined 7,000-square-feet, with 2,000 used as a workroom on one level and the “chic” showroom-in-the-making directly upstairs.
The company itself is small, with only six employees handcrafting each chair, table, bar cart and mirror. The projects, however, are usually big: several vitrines for Bergdorf Goodman and a 50-piece order—including upholstery, screens and lighting—to furnish an entire townhouse in the West Village. But DLV is in the works of designing small-scale items too, like hooks and handles, adding a hint of fl air and boldness to otherwise simple home goods. A typical project takes about seven weeks to complete if it’s DLV’s design, but they will make time to take on custom jobs, too, which take just a bit longer. The company admits that clients—both trade and retail—sometimes get “sticker shock” when they first hear the price of a piece, but the level of detail is “stunning.” DLV aims to create a legacy within its products and they do so by staying “married to the clients and married to the pieces” throughout the process. Their commitment goes so far as to taking height measurements of everyone in the household to ensure the final product is a comfortable fit.
Representative Client Comments:
“I rely on them so much and really value their opinions.” “I suggest them to all of my friends. One is having work done by them right now.” “They are the perfect fusion of clean and standing out.” “I love the studio/showroom space because it reflects Mark. He’s an artist and it’s an artist space. It reflects his work too: raw, unique and nothing faked.” “The process was seamless, they were like little mice when they came into my home.” “As a designer, I go to him when I need the good stuff, the highest quality.” “Mark gets excited by big challenges, and that’s great to work with.” “They are able to make something utilitarian look beautiful and residential.”
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