[A/S] Airstream *Style* Furniture

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Furniture with glide
Furniture manufacturer Alan Price has long been convinced that his beloved 
vintage Airstream trailer would be the perfect inspiration for a line of 
sofas, tables and chairs.
"I've always admired the aesthetics as well as the utility and function of my 
Airstream," says Price, whose North Carolina company, William Alan Furniture, 
makes high-end wood and upholstered furniture. "I thought it would relate 
well to furniture design."

So when he saw an ad that Airstream was looking for licensing partners for a 
furniture line, he got on board. The first 30-piece Airstream Furniture 
collection was introduced last month at the fall International Home 
Furnishings Market in High Point, N.C.

The collection reinterprets the modernist features of the aerodynamic icon of 
1930s design: the rounded yet sleek shape, the gleaming riveted aluminum 
siding, the walnut and cherry trim and distressed leather upholstery.
One end table in the collection resembles the trailer's window frame; an 
aluminum magazine locker follows its aerodynamic contours; a small wood-frame 
sofa (rivets optional) is curved as if to fit into the vehicle's rounded 
back.
Price says the collection will be available early next year at New York's ABC 
Carpet & Home and Kaplan's in Philadelphia, priced at $1,000 for occasional 
tables to $5,000 for a leather sofa. Details: (336) 885-6095.

The Airstream trailer — so named to describe how it cruises the highway like 
a stream of air — still is made by the Jackson Center, Ohio, company, 
although it now is owned by Thor Industries. The silver bullet trailer is 
riding the retro boom that seems to show no signs of slowing.

"Mid-century designs are so popular now. Nostalgia is big," says Robyn Malin, 
vice president of marketing for Product Lounge, a New York licensing and 
product development company representing Airstream.
"Airstreams are so homey. In this sort of threatening environment, they evoke 
simpler times."

There's more. Pottery Barn is featuring a $49 cast-metal desktop model of the 
Airstream. Plans are in the works for Airstream lighting, fabrics and 
decorative accessories. And the first licensed Airstream Diner, with a design 
based on a vintage Airstream, just rolled out in Beverly Hills.