Furniture, Design, Life...
Everything is on the table in our regular weekend newsletter. Will you learn something about furniture? Perhaps! Some design tips? Likely! Maybe something else? Frequently! Will we soullessly shill products? We will not. Scout's honor!
Below are archived versions of our recent newsletters. You can subscribe down below if you want to get them delivered fresh to your inbox every...uhm...well, whenever Chris gets around to writing one.
 | 4/7/24On SpringIf you'd asked me a few decades ago to name my favorite season, I would have said Autumn. The colors. The crisp in the air. The flannel shirts. Apple cinnamon doughnuts. Big fan of all of these things. But over the past few years, I have fallen deeply in love with Spring. Continue Reading |
| 2/4/24On HospitalityWhat makes a home great for entertaining? Is it a comfortable place for each guest to sit? Or a room decorated in the latest style? Flattering lighting? Attractive window treatments? A resting spot for every cocktail glass? I want to say, "Yes, those are the things that matter." And I believe that outfitting your home to be aesthetically pleasing and comfortable is a worthy undertaking. It is, after all, kind of what we do. Continue Reading |
| 1/20/24The Perils of ChoiceWhen asked what I do for a living, my answer is that I run a furniture company. But I suspect I'm actually running a long-term sociology experiment. After working with thousands of folks around the country since we launched Roger + Chris, I have a unique window into how people make decisions - the motivations, the concerns, and the stumbling blocks they encounter. Continue Reading |
| 1/7/24Happy Trail(er)sWe aren't major vacationers. As any fellow business owners know, "time off" is at best a relative concept. And with Roger having spent 12 years flying around the country every week to film his TV shows and me putting in plenty of time on airplanes for my own past career, travel is not something we romanticize. Continue Reading |
| 12/17/23Here's to the PilgrimsRoger and I took a quick trip to New York this week (which is why I must apologize for the late email). Our goal was to explore homewares stores to see what was up and coming in design. Would we get fresh ideas? Be tantalized by new styles or trends? Uncover anything amazing that changed our opinions on the future of design? Nope, not really. Continue Reading |
| 12/9/23On Doing Something UnsexyI wasn't supposed to be in the furniture industry. This, let's just say, was not on my radar as a young person. My domain was technology. I was going to found a very sexy tech startup and change the world and spend my weekends speeding down the Pacific Coast Highway in a Porsche convertible (probably red, though electric blue was a contender). Continue Reading |
| 11/23/23On GratitudeIf you know us, you know that we don't really "do" sales here at Roger+Chris. So there are no coupon codes or special links or any of that stuff to be found below. Worry not: The other 75 emails that just popped into your inbox offer plenty of never-before-seen, once-in-a-lifetime markdowns on televisions and cookware and probably, for some inexplicable reason, furnace filters. Continue Reading |
| 11/19/23The Real Story Behind Those Big Rustic SignsYou've seen them everywhere. Perhaps you even have one or two in your home. "EAT!" they demand. "GaThEr!" they implore. "Home." they proclaim, within an outline of your state. How did this faux-rustic typography artwork trend come to be? Continue Reading |
| 10/14/23A Challenge to Step Outside of Your Comfort ZoneThe concept of risk is a funny thing. Even the most conservative of us take big risks every day. This doesn't mean we're all jumping out of airplanes for the thrill of it - some of the riskiest activities we undertake are quite mundane. Hopping in the car to drive to the store. Walking down stairs while wearing socks. Sprinkling too much salt on our dinner. Continue Reading |
| 9/22/23The Subtle Art of Ignoring Design TrendsWe live in a fast-paced world. Judging by the rate at which new interior design trends are invented, named, marketed, and subsequently discarded, that world is moving faster than ever. Here are four reasons for you to totally, absolutely, positively ignore those silly trend articles published by every lifestyle blog and magazine. Continue Reading |
| 9/10/23Why Furniture Got So BadThe Washington Post recently ran an article entitled "Why Furniture Got So Bad." In it, reporter Rachel Kurzius digs into the market forces that have led to the, let?s say, "junkification" of so much of today's furniture. The article is worth reading and we're mostly in agreement, but here's our take on why today's furniture is so bad and how to avoid the worst of it. Continue Reading |
| 8/30/23A Call to ActionThis newsletter isn't about sofas. Or interior design. Or finding the very best stain-resistant fabric to hold up to your Labrador. Sorry. We'll talk about that another day. I don't feel like writing about any of those things, frankly, because the last few months of our life - for Roger and Chris the humans, not Roger+Chris the company - have been really rough. Instead of being smiley and happy and trying to talk you into buying a sofa from us (which you still should, because ours are the best), I want to talk to you about the importance of appreciating what you have and never taking a moment for granted. Continue Reading |
