Runway fashions inspire latest Joe Ruggiero fabrics for Sunbrella 

Seven new groups debuting for June Showtime

-- Casual Living, 5/21/2008 7:22:00 AM

Runways fashions in New York, Milan and Paris are providing design inspirations for designer Joe Ruggiero as evidenced by some of the new offerings in seven Sunbrella fabric groups that are being unveiled during Showtime in June.

“There has always been a correlation between trends in apparel and home furnishings, and that correlation becomes closer each year,” Ruggiero said. “Our newest Sunbrella fabrics are inspired, at least in part, by the colors, textures and patterns for women’s and men’s wear we see on the runways.”

Ruggiero will introduce one of his largest Sunbrella introductions in June in High Point, N.C., with collections that reflect broad design influences ranging from the California coast to the south of France. Look for rich textures and a broad color pallet from soft gray to the warm colors of Tuscan Italy.

South Coast – California colorful, a bright new viewpoint 
Leading Ruggiero’s South Coast group is the pattern Giorgio in the color Lily, a highly textural, tear-shaped herringbone with an apparel look and feel. Nature provides the inspiration for Joe’s Garden in the color Spring and for Grand Fleur in the color Ocean. Both of these patterns have the signature Ruggiero approach to nature, offering abstract interpretations, from scattered leaves to large leaf silhouettes.

Sienna – Harmony of warm Italian colors
Giving a nod to his Italian heritage, Ruggiero is offering a new collection inspired by the rich colors of Italy. Ping is a thin-lined pattern with the look of silk, featured in the color Curry, a cinnamon hue. Groten in the color Teak is a classic stripe created through a dot pattern for texture and depth. Rounding out this group is Lisboa, a fashion influenced, textural pattern in the soft brown color Taffy.

Cote d’azure – Beautiful blues of the water and skies of the south of France
The sensual blue skies and cool waters of the south of France inspired this collection which features Prague, a decorative pattern in the color Mineral that is reminiscent of old world tapestries.  Also in the color Mineral is Santini, an innovative pattern created through a series of variegated stripes of different sizes placed atop florals. Trax, one of Ruggiero’s most popular patterns, is featured in this collection in a rich graycalled Smoke.  

Mellow Lark – Warm glow of California sunshine
Leading the Mellow Lark group is Tandori, inspired by the silk hand and nubby textures of shantung fabrics and offered in Classic, a shade of Caramel. Adding a fashion sense is Chex in the color Flan, a pin dot weave offering an ideal “go with” complement.   

Greige – Beige and gray combined to project knock out glamour
Ruggiero features two of his favorite colors – gray and beige – in his Greige group. Fleur du Mai (Flowers of May) in the color Truffle is based on his unique floral sketches, again reflecting an abstract representation of nature. The pattern Chex in the color Bark appears in this group, creating a distinctively new look from a shift in yarn color.

Sandpiper – Pale grays almost white much like the Malibu mist
A leaf motif returns in the pattern Leaf Line in the color Mushroom, with branches of leaves forming a stripe against a lattice effect ground. The pattern Chex also appears in the Sandpiper group, taking on a new look in Vellum for a tone-on-tone textural effect.

Tuscan – Colors of the Italian earth with touches of terracotta and herbal  
Again turning to Italy, Ruggiero has created Cross Town in the color Autumn, a contemporary cross-hatch line pattern. Meg in the color Sahara is a herringbone stripe, while Beth in the color Mocha is a small stitch pattern influenced by Italian-tailored men’s and women’s suiting.  

“Because I believe that good design stands the test of time, I design collections for the long term,” Ruggiero said. “My goal is to create fabrics that not only look good today but will look good for years to come.”

Designing Sunbrella fabrics since 2002, Ruggiero says he has gained insights into consumer preferences.

“Our June Showtime collection is one of our strongest ever,” he said. “It is not only based on my design inspirations, but also on data on what is selling at retail.  Trax – our best seller – is a great example of this market intelligence. We are adding four new colorways to Trax – Nutmeg, Fawn, Truffle and Earth – and continuing our growth of this successful pattern with each season.”