Former Importer Now Puts The Accent In Décor

By Kaaren Valenta

MONROE — Jennifer Ruspini was in Turkey, visiting members of her brother-in-law’s family, when she fell in love with the flat woven rugs called kilims that have been used for centuries by nomadic tribes throughout the Middle East.

She also found hand-carved 19th Century wooden bowls and troughs, old pottery food storage jars that sit on cast-iron stands, and many other treasures.

“I met a lot of farmers in the countryside and I took their belongings,” she says, smiling. “I brought back a lot of the things to Connecticut and started a whole business supplying antiques dealers and decorators in Woodbury and Litchfield.”

But with a three-year-old son, Mrs Ruspini found the traveling was difficult. So two months ago she decided to open her own business, C. Emerson Designs, in a shopping plaza at 494 Main Street (opposite Roberto’s Restaurant on Route 25) in Monroe.

“This space formerly was a karate studio so I have lots of room – 2,300 square feet – to fill up,” she said. “But right now I only am using the front part because I want to see how the business develops before I bring everything from my warehouse in New Jersey.”

C. Emerson Designs is named for her son, Christopher Emerson. Her husband, Carl, is a consulting engineer.

Mrs Ruspini’s family originated in the Middle East but her great-grandparents, who were merchants, emigrated to Jamaica, where the family operated hotels. Her parents came to the United States when she was nine years old, settling in the Stamford area. But when she traveled to Turkey, she found she was drawn to the culture and the objects she found there.

She returned home with old wooden butter churners and bread risers, iron cooking vessels, and many pottery pots. She imported chairs and ottomans upholstered in kilim.

“These are accent pieces that go with any décor,” she said. “They complement country French, all the [early American] pine furniture.”

The storefront also features pieces from Peru including a handmade wooden mirror with a surface that resembles cloissone, on sale for $375, as well as Indian dolls, and jewelry. Old pottery is $99-$235; bowls, $275-$600. Pillows made from pieces of old kilim, start at $31. A wing chair upholstered in kilim is $1,545, a large markdown from its $2,800 retail price.

“I’m a wholesaler so I can offer these prices,” Mrs Ruspini explained. “I’m just trying to see if there is a market for these pieces in this area.”

Because the pieces are handmade, and many are very old, no two are alike. “They are all handpicked,” she said. She fell in love with 19th Century horse carts and brought many back to the United States. One sits in the front yard of her home on Pepper Street in Monroe and is decorated differently for each season. The rest are in storage but Mrs Ruspini has photographs of each of them, as well as photos of other furniture available in her warehouse.

“I gather the things that I like,” she said, “so I also have pieces like Danish and English sideboards. I have someone who is getting old hotel silverware from France for me, and I may add French farm tables and armoires at a later date.”

C. Emerson Designs is open Wednesday from 12:30 to 5 pm; Thursday, 10 am to 5 pm; Friday, 12:30 to 5 pm; Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; and Sunday 11 am to 5 pm; or by appointment. For information call 452-5968.