The Three Flavors of Drexel (Marvin J. Perry)

Drexel, a U.S. furniture company out of North Carolina, supplies much of the furniture for U.S. State Department residences around the world. From our experience to date, the furniture is solidly built and heavy to move (!), unlike some of our IKEA furniture.

From a recent livelines discussion, there appears to be three common furniture lines purchased: (my own labels) the American heritage, coastal compliments and garden rattan. We happen to have all three collections in our apartment so I thought I would share a few furniture details.

Garden Rattan, my personal favorite:


Coastal Compliments, brings back memories of U.S. beach vacations:


and American Heritage:

One funny story about the same furniture used around the world was recently shared on FSParent, a Yahoo group for FSO parents. It was about a family that had just arrived at their new post with only items in their suitcases. After unpacking them, the kids became really upset and asked, “where are all our toys?” The parents explained that it would take a while since UAB and HHE had to arrive at different times. The kids screamed back, “but our furniture is already here!”

Update: Although most of our current furniture is Drexel Heritage, I learned that the State Department orders from Marvin J. Perry which carries other manufacturers. They also supply Marriott hotels and Sunrise Assist Living Centers. Find company information on their website.