Finishing Touch: Nurturing Nature
With one fallen tree, Brazilian company Moura Starr produces 300 home furnishings.
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A 300-year-old walnut tree harvested from the floor of a Brazilian forest makes Moura Starr’s Totem Lounge Bench one of a kind. "Each piece naturally varies from 10 to 15 percent in grain and coloration," says Wilian Badauy, who, along with his wife, Shelley, owns Moura Starr, the exclusive U.S. distributor of a line of eco-friendly Brazilian home furnishings.The company follows strict standards of sustainable production, using only trees that have completed their life cycle. From one tree, the company’s design team of Graça Kazan and Luis Mario Moura can produce as many as 300 pieces, including sideboards, tables, dressers, and beds. Moura Starr also offers home accessories and glass pieces, such as the Espinho handblown crystal vase. The piece, whose name translates to "thorn," is a tribute to the vegetation found in the countryside where the company does its manufacturing.
Moura Starr’s new factory in Uberlândia, located just north of
São Paulo, adheres to the Brazilian government’s sustainable design
requirements. "Our factory and our furniture are built on the same principal:
how to use less resources," Badauy says. In this case, however, conserving
resources does not mean the pieces will lack in style or substance. Moura Starr,
310.854.9100, 212.219.1110, www.mourastarr.com
The Totem Lounge Bench, for instance,
is composed of two chaise longues with a table sandwiched in between, providing
a resting spot for the country’s national drink, the Caipirinha. A lever on the
Totem, which starts at $25,000, controls an adjustable hydraulic back, and
wheels ease the transition from inside to out. The piece’s nautical
leather—typically used in speedboats—can withstand a tropical downpour.
