Is the Modernica Case Study Planter Worth $200+?

I recently splurged on a case study planter from Modernica.

It was $189 USD, which is about $250 Canadian (yikes), but at least the shipping was free!  Because I live on a part of Lake Superior that is close to the US/Canadian border, I have access to a US address for parcels, which makes shopping online a lot easier because I can have things shipped within the States or Canada.  When I cross the border on my way back, sometimes I have to pop into the CBSA office and pay HST (although they usually wave folks by if the value of goods is under $100).  This time I had to pay tax and as I walked out with my receipt I was kind of stunned by the final price.  I only made it a little way up the road before turning the truck around and marching back in, certain they'd made a mistake calculating my HST.  They had not.  When the border guard I was harassing showed me the exchange rate for the day I actually blurted an expletive and he had a difficult time keeping a straight face.  When I drop an f-bomb with my 12 year old voice, it tends to be more amusing that combative.  Thoroughly embarrassed, I informed everyone who was eavesdropping that I have a PhD, and then I quickly egressed. 

All this to say that I experienced some serious sticker shock making this purchase.  When the dust settled, I paid around $282 CAD for my planter.  Despite that staggering sum, I actually saved $100 by ordering direct from Modernica and using my US shipping address, because to order from a Canadian retailer is $384 CAD.    

So, what possessed me to drop nearly $300 on a planter?

Truthfully, I'd been lusting after the case study planters from Modernica for awhile, but the price was too steep for me, even though I have been very happy with the two side shell stools and trio of bubble lights I'd purchased from them.  The stools and lights are functional pieces that see daily use, while a planter seemed like a bit of an indulgence.  I ultimately decided that I didn't deserve one because I'm terrible to plants.

As you know, though, I recently inherited some very precious plants.  You already saw me caring for the orchids by making over a plant stand, so they can bask in the perfect light, and then spending major bucks on fancy orchid pots.  In addition to these orchids, I also inherited a snake plant and I decided that it, too, deserved a fancy new habitat, especially after it spent two days in a bumpy, stuffy, over-packed u-Haul trailer.  I'd seen some really great DIY case study knock-off tutorials, but I really liked the actual ceramic planter Modernica sells.  The walnut frame would be easy to duplicate, but not the pot (Kim and Scott, from Yellow Brick Home, had a tough time finding a large, cylindrical pot for their cool, globe-turned-plant stand project).

I decided that I didn't want to hunt for the right planter and reasoned that this plant, of all plants, is special enough to warrant buying the real deal.

Was it worth the price?

I don't regret buying it at all (and I can say this having already paid the credit card bill with this purchase, so that's saying a lot!).  I've been really thrilled with the quality of the bubble light and side shell stools we purchased.  We experienced a bit of sticker shock with both of those purchases too but, almost two years later, we still love the looks and the quality.  So far, this planter is what I expected too.  The structure of the base is very simple (the legs just slide together for assembly), but the walnut is beautiful - no stain can hold a candle to genuine walnut.  The ceramic pot is very substantial (it must cost a fortune to ship) and it was flawless when it arrived.  I wish that the timing could have been better - only a few years ago the CAD and USD were at par - but I didn't want to wait.

If I ever stumble across a planter with the same shape and look of this case study planter, you better believe I'm going to take a stab at a knock off, but for now I'm super thrilled with my purchase.  

I read about some plants dying in the case study planters, but I suspect that might have something to do with a lack of drainage so I filled the bottom with large rocks before adding my soil and re-potting the snake plant.  Hopefully that helps keep the roots from getting soggy, but I'll also take care not to over water this fella.  After hauling rocks from the shore and completing the messy task of re-potting, I read about someone using packing peanuts, which seems infinitely lighter and easier (but is it good for plants to have that synthetic material near them?).  I'm not sure which method is better, but if you have any tips I'm all ears!

For now, at least, the snake plant seems happy with its new home.



The greenery that you can see from the kitchen, dining and living room really adds some more life to the lakehouse -  I've missed having plants!

 

Kitchen Progress: Side Shell Stools from Modernica

I have good news and bad news.  The good news: the turquoise kitchen is done, and it looks amazing.  It exceeded my expectations and I've been spending my days staring at it wistfully.  Every now and then I sigh, in a decidedly contented way.  The bad news: I spent some time last week trying to photograph it, with little success.  I'm not sure if my six year old camera is slowly dying or if I've forgotten how to use it, but it's taking really grainy shots - plus it's really fighting me when it comes to capturing aqua true to life.  By Friday I gave up, and Hubs and I spent the day in Duluth, MN.  He will be working on my 30th birthday next week, so that was our celebration: a full day of thrifting and antiquing across the border (all I found was this turquoise pyrex piece and a blue McCoy planter, but the mini road trip was so much fun).  I'm going to try to photograph the kitchen again today, but in the meantime I wanted to gab about a key piece of kitchen furniture, and provide a review of Modernica's customer service.



Surprise!  The hard and uncomfortable wood stools left with the lakehouse were the first thing to sell at a family yard sale recently.  I'm so happy to have replaced them with something that looks, and feels, much better.  When Modernica had their 15% off sale I bought the triple bubble lamp fixture you already saw, as well as two fiberglass shell counter stools.  These were also part of my original plan, but I ended up ditching the gray.  I really liked the diamond blue shell colour that was a limited edition with different legs, so I emailed Modernica and asked if I could combine the diamond blue colour with the dowel counter stool swivel base.  Surprisingly, yes!!  They promptly added my preferred colour choice to the website and ... voila: 

Fiberglass shell chair, solid walnut dowel base, and the perfect aqua hue (I found their standard turquoise - Ocean - to be far to blue for me).  And here is the pair at our smashing DIY solid maple kitchen counter:

Sadly, my experience with Modernica was not completely awesome.  The moment we opened the box, we noticed that one of the shock mounts had slipped during the gluing process and did not align with the base so it could not be assembled.

I contacted Modernica right away and received a cool request for photos to ascertain the problem and determine if they could/would help me.  After I emailed the photos, the process picked up speed a little bit.  They sent me a shipping label via email and instructed me to return the shell in the same box I received it.  Sadly, the replacement fibreglass shell that came was very different from the one I sent back - the colour is a bit lighter and the edges are very white.  I understand that irregularity is part of the process, but the first pair were perfect for each other because they were similarly irregular (if that makes any sense).  I just didn't want to go through the hassle of returning it again.  I don't notice it as much anymore. 

Hubby asked me if I would order from Modernica again.  Hmmmm.  Good question!  I LOVE our lights and I would probably want them again if we ever moved.  I was thrilled that they agreed to a custom combo on the stools for me, but they were a little nonchalant about my defective shell and did the bare minimum there.  The stools look good, but now that I've seen the real deal I think the construction is a tiny bit sloppier on the repro, especially concerning the adhesive used on even the properly installed shock mounts.  But, other than that, they do seem well built.  The bases are incredibly substantial and heavy enough to prevent any tipping, even after enthusiastic spinning.  The solid walnut legs are beautiful and the chrome accents gleam.  There are these little plastic caps that refuse to stay put, but I think a little sticky tack can solve that.  They suit the look I'm trying to achieve in the lakehouse and even though they aren't licensed reproductions, I'm convinced of the authenticity of the production (there is some debate).

Ultimately, I can excuse the flaw because they are handmade, in America, and that's a beautiful thing.  I like supporting companies that keep jobs in North America, and I can forgive an assembly flaw.  Plus, they made something just for me, and that's pretty special.

Source

Comfort-wise, these stools are pretty phenomenal.  The seats are shaped so that you slide and sink into them.  Even without padding, they don't uncomfortable because they follow the shape of a body.  Happily, they are generous enough for wider bums.  Szuka has even taken to them, licking them, using the foot rest as a head rest, and doing whatever this is:
 

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Three Saucers in the Dining Room - Triple Bubble Light Fixture from Modernica

Let's take a break from kitchen progress and peer in the other direction, toward the previously neglected dining room.  You already saw that we hung the floating Ikea credenza.  Eventually we'll make a waterfall top to finish the look (I fell in love with this plank of purpleheart wood but, alas, it was too narrow).

Moving at a glacial pace, we unwrapped our vintage teak dining table and brown leather chairs brought from the townhouse.  Truthfully, I've been over the look of the chairs for a long time but I can't find anything as comfortable so I'm thinking of having them recovered in something bright, but I'm secretly hoping I'll find more Eames chairs for a steal!  I have a good feeling about the upcoming yard sale season . . .

The townhouse dining room, to refresh your memory

At least now we can also enthusiastically check off dining room light from our to-do list: 

I've long known what light fixture I wanted for the dining room, but then I waffled.  The dining room electrical box was, in my opinion, positioned weirdly and so at I first wanted to move it.  After polling electricians, the unanimous answer for how hard it would be to shift over the box (given its location, the structure beneath, and then repair of our popcorn ceiling) was a unanimous, "oooooo, uggggghhhhh, pretty difficult".  I started looking at lighting options that could keep the box where it was but move the light fixture over, but none had the mid-century look I craved.  Undeterred, I started moving the dining table around nightly, to find the ideal position for the new box I was determined to have, and ended up right where the builders had put it.  Elsewhere it blocks the stools at the kitchen counter, impedes convenient access to the patio doors, prevents flow from the living room to kitchen, or results in a crummy view.  We actually have plans to widen the kitchen when it gets its phase two remodel, so I realized that even if we are going to move the light permanently, it makes sense to wait until our plans are firmed up.

After all of this waffling, I ended up back at square one: three George Nelson saucer pendants, please.  But I still dragged my feet.  The price . . . I learned that ordering direct from Modernica was a bit cheaper than purchasing through a Canadian distributor, but when Modernica recently held their 15% off sale I finally decided to go for it.  Modernica actually doesn't deal direct with Canadian consumers.  Lucky for me, besides the gorgeous scenery, there is another perk of living in Northwestern Ontario, in a city that borders Minnesota: an American shipping address!  I'm not normally one to cross the border just to save a buck (I like keeping jobs in Canada!), but I saved $348.  It was still a huge purchase (plus we bought two kitchen stools), but this house might be my only chance to bask in 14 foot tall ceilings, which call out for a statement-making fixture.  To make this splurge possible, I spent only $25 per piece on the other nine light fixtures we replaced, so the total lighting cost for the lakehouse feels balanced in my mind. 

As a reminder, here's the old dining room light, swagged to perfection by the former owners. 

And the dining room now:

I'm pretty impressed with the quality of the pendants.  I was worried about the ceiling fan clanging them together but, even on the highest setting, they barely budge because they're quite substantial.  The fibreglass is beautiful - just really, really stunning in a way I didn't expect, even though I'd seen a whack of these in store and online.  It has the softly sparkling texture of freshly fallen snow on a sunny day.  That sounds unnecessarily poetic, but it's the best description.

For installation tips, I'll refer you to the instructions:

The tricky thing for us was hanging on to all three saucers while wiring.  Also, once you trim it to length, you have to end each cord with a knot beneath the plate and my only complaint is that they don't totally fit.  We got it 98% flush but they really should offer a larger cover for the triple bubble fixture option.  It took a few hours, and two sets of hands, but it wasn't any trickier than most light fixtures - just triple the work.

Here one last look at the house when we bought it (with the previous owners' belongings):

Still more to do, but it's so nice to actually be able to relax and enjoy a meal in here now.  It took us far too long to set up the table, and even after that we were using the dining room for painting, sewing, and piling stuff.  Now we can really start living in here!  With temperatures soaring (ha!), now we need a BBQ . . .

Szuka is ambivalent about the new lights, but a BBQ sounds good to her.

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