Internationally Acclaimed Decorator Nina Campbell Offers Consumers Top Five Tips

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- With spring just around the corner, consumers are ready to freshen up their living spaces, and Stein Mart's newest designer has just what they need at a price they can feel good about. Internationally known decorator Nina Campbell has designed living spaces for rock stars and royalty alike. Through new merchandise for her Nina: Nina Campbell collection and the debut of her magazine, "Nina," it's easy to bring what she calls "The New Opulence" to any home.

"The very thought of opulence is appealing," said Nina Campbell. "Such a telling combination of luxury and comfort has always been an important aspect of interior decoration and design."

According to Nina, the new opulence is light and bright, luxurious but using fresh materials like velvet, taffeta and linen, colored in jewel-toned tints like pink sapphire, aquamarine and yellow diamond. As glamorous and elegant as the new opulence is, it is also modern in the way that is practical as well as beautiful -- the fabrics are rich to handle with a luxurious feeling, but they are also immensely practical.

"I want to instill the joy of decorating, not make people afraid of it," continued Campbell. "Detail and quality have become increasingly important, not just to those lucky enough to have big budgets, but to everybody who is passionate about how their home looks. Stein Mart's pricing makes it affordable to add a touch of elegance to any room."

"Our customers rely on Stein Mart for unique designer-quality merchandise for their homes," said Michael D. Fisher, president and chief executive officer of Stein Mart, Inc. "They want their style reflected in their home just as much as it is reflected in their fashion. Through our partnership with Nina Campbell, we are able to do just that."

  Nina Campbell's top five tips for creating "The New Opulence":

  1) Make your bedroom the centerpiece of your bedroom.  It is your own
     comfort zone and should reflect your personal style.  My bedroom has to
     be a real haven. For spring, I like a bed dressed in soft calm colors,
     the pale colors of white tea, maize yellows or watery aquas with an
     embroidered silky quilt and enough pillows to give a sense of peaceful
     luxury.  Later in the year I'll change to a more classical yet modern
     and sophisticated look featuring red damask mixed with silver-grey,
     spice and chocolate.

  2) Never underestimate the importance of light in a room.  Lighting is
     every decorator's secret weapon, and used with skill, it is one of the
     fastest ways of altering the look of a room.  Lighting is a
     manifestation of opulence, particularly decorative table and standard
     lights which light a room in a luminously soft and intimate way.

  3) Adding fresh table linens is one of the simplest ways to bring an
     instant touch of opulence.  Both elegant and sophisticated, they are
     also washable-that's the new opulence!  The best dressed tables this
     year give more than a passing nod towards the French countryside.  Set
     with cream and white china on a background of dusky damask and lit with
     candles both great and small, the look is subtle, soft and very
     relaxed.

  4) Mirror adds sparkle and sparkle equals glamour; mirrors and candlelight
     add up to magic.  Since it was first produced, mirror-glass has been
     recognized by all who have fallen under its reflective charm as the
     most delightful, the most evanescent of decorative devices.  "Gilver"
     is my version of silver gilt; subtler than gold, softer than silver, it
     is the perfect finish that I use often for mirrors as well as lamps,
     frames and accent furniture.

  5) Why not put a candle in your hallway to create your own very special
     ambience, letting your house scent become your signature.  Both
     evocative and beautiful, fragrance is an incredibly important aspect of
     the new opulence, and it is essential that any scented candles be of
     good quality; cheap scents will just give you a headache.

More tips and full-color photographs, including sketches for future designs, are included in "Nina," the designer's new magazine available exclusively at Stein Mart. The 72-page publication further introduces readers to Nina's line in her own words, brings to life the inspiration behind her designs, and offers tips for creating an elegant yet comfortable look in every home. This decorating handbook in a magazine retails at $4.99 and is available while supplies last.

Nina's new spring and summer merchandise arrives: Throughout spring and summer, Stein Mart will carry several new ensembles from Nina Campbell's bed and bath collection. "Savoy" welcomes spring in shades of sage and beige, with fabrics featuring embroidered flowers accented by stripes, satin ribbons and pearl beads with a scattering of whimsical bumblebees. "Jezebel" announces summer's arrival with crisp citrus hues popped with raspberry while butterflies flit among colorful stripes throughout the collection. Later this summer, Nina brings "Valentino" in rich spice and chocolate hues with a subtle tone-on-tone damask pattern.

For entertaining friends and family, set the table with Nina Campbell's new contemporary pierced creamware collection, rubbed white dinnerware with relief molded decoration, and table linens in garnet, sage and beige. To spread summer throughout the home, Stein Mart has added an array of Nina's latest decorative pieces inspired by nature, featuring butterflies, frogs, botanicals and flowers in shades of saffron, buttercream and raspberry. A splash of paisley adds a touch of tradition. Her distressed wooden chargers with a tulip print, antique-styled birdcages and petaled bowls are among the charming accessories customers will find at Stein Mart. Add drama with artisan metalwork and "gilvered" lamps, wall art, mirror-glass finished chests and bedside tables, plush benches and chairs, side tables and opulent frames and mirrors. Fill the air with Nina's signature fragrances using her pillar candles with a cut-out damask design, potpourri and diffusers with signature scents of White Tea, Moroccan Leather, Cambridge Spice and Brighton Blue.

About Nina Campbell:

Nina Campbell is one of the most influential designers in the world, a highly creative and successful businesswoman, the author of three decorating books and a devoted mother of three.

Her decorating career began at the age of 19 as assistant to John Fowler of the prestigious Colefax and Fowler fabric and wallpaper designers. Nina's elegant and comfortable style punctuated with rich colors and fabrics caught the eye of club owner Mark Birley. The duo opened a shop specializing in 'unashamed luxury' where Nina launched her famous 'hearts' print on fabric and china. Nina went on to establish her business in Walton Street, Knightsbridge, where she continues to explore decorative styles and ideas.

Nina Campbell's recent projects include redecorating the Campbell Apartment in New York City's Grand Central Terminal, the former salon and office of New York mogul John W. Campbell (no relation), which is now a popular venue for entertaining. Nina's design for this historic space was featured in the February issue of "Vogue" magazine. Nina has also recently appeared in the BBC2 TV series 'Home' as an authority on interior design. For more information, please visit www.ninacampbell.com.

She has designed living spaces for royalty and rock stars alike, and now makes her keen sense of style available directly to American shoppers through her partnership with Stein Mart. In 2006, the U.S. retailer asked Nina to design a line of home accessories specifically with their customers in mind. All items in the Nina: Nina Campbell collection are designed by Nina and are found only at Stein Mart locations.

About Stein Mart, Inc.:

Stein Mart stores offer the fashion merchandise, service and presentation of a better department or specialty store, at prices competitive with off price retail chains. Currently with locations from California to New York, Stein Mart's focused assortment of merchandise features moderate to better fashion apparel for women and men, as well as accessories, gifts, linens and shoes. For more information on Stein Mart, please visit www.steinmart.com.

The partnership between Stein Mart and Nina Campbell began last fall and has been a hit with customers. The acclaimed designer puts a modern American twist on European classics to blend seamlessly with any decorating scheme in her Nina: Nina Campbell collection for Stein Mart, featuring home décor, accent furniture, textiles and decorative accessories. All of the items in the Nina: Nina Campbell collection are designed with the Stein Mart customer in mind and are only available at Stein Mart.

Source: Stein Mart, Inc.

CONTACT: Kathy Schwartz Lussier, APR, Corporate Communications of Stein
Mart, Inc., , or cell , or

Web site: http://www.steinmart.com/
http://www.ninacampbell.com/