Eixample de València
One evening, when walking to a new movie theatre we wanted to check out, Sagrario took us through an area of València I haven’t really spent much time exploring: Eixample. If the name sounds familiar, there is an Eixample in Barcelona as well and both have very similar in look and feel. It is an affluent area, with large parts of it lining the famous Gran Via, the main avenue that cuts through the city like a giant letter V, with Ciutat Vella in the middle. It is also where many of the cool furniture stores are, as we found out on that movie night. As we caught glimpses of the gorgeous furniture–and they were only glimpses, Sagrario is a fast walker–Ewa and I vowed to come back one day and spend some time getting to know the local vendors.
That day finally did come and on a very sunny Saturday we marched off to find us some nice couches to try out. Why, you say? Why not? I say back, it’s something to do. If you knew me at all you’d know I love design of all kinds but architecture and interior design, particularly, are pretty much my favourite things ever, other than Lucy, books, and shopping for spring plantings, but I divagate. The number of houses I’ve designed in my head (and some on paper), the number of architecture and design pages I follow on Instagram, and the weight of CasaViva magazines I have lugged from continent to continent (before I got it on Zinio where they weigh nothing) are all testaments to my visual obsessions. So, a chance to spend an afternoon looking at beautiful furniture? Yes, Please!
As we walked around the part of Eixample with the largest concentration of furniture stores, we also found a number of other stores that catered to the home decorator. One favourite one (Verdecora) was an interesting combination of flower shop, decor warehouse, and a pet store! It was a rather odd combination but they did have some very cool things and now I know where to go if I ever get to do floral design again. Or need to buy a litter box for Lucy.
The highlight was going into the Natuzzi store, however. If you’re not familiar with Natuzzi, you’ve clearly never looked at an architectural magazine: the company is one of the best known Italian designers and their gorgeous couches are often part of my dream living rooms, yeah, the ones in my head. As you may expect, the furniture is expensive though not as expensive as I had predicted. If you’re going to be buying a couch that should last you a lifetime, these prices are quite reasonable. I’ve picked out a couple of favourites, after sitting on them, of course. Other pieces were lovely too but I am partial to the couches. The saleswoman was even kind enough to give me a catalogue that probably cost as much to produce as some of the credenzas and weighs almost the same; it may weigh a ton but it does give me lots of ideas.
The tour took us to a few more places where I found a really nice tall table I could see being my stand-up desk, a very nice round dining room table, and a much cheaper couch that not only turns into a recliner, but also comes in a variety of colours of plush, just the Lucy’s claws-safe material so important in any covered furnishings I own. I’m sure it’s not a surprise that anything I look at for my future house (whether in Spain or back in Canada) must include Lucy-friendly finishes; I still remember all too well what she did to my lovely white sofa set back in the day.
I know this wasn’t exactly the type of adventure you’re used to reading about but it was a lot of fun for me and Ewa and also resulted in my finding many new buildings to photograph so mission accomplished.
