Say hello to En Gold! Diehard fans of the coveted Australian furniture brand finally have a stateside gallery, right in Houston’s Upper Kirby District (3330 Audley St.). Cool and crisp, the vintage-inspired, handcrafted collections shine a spotlight on the long-forgotten craft of Fossil Stone artistry.
CultureMap caught up with En Gold founder Steffanie Ball in her new gallery space to talk vintage, Fossil Stone, and how En Gold has revitalized an all-but-extinct pocket industry in Cebu, The Philippines.
What began as a maternity-leave-induced search for quality vintage led to instantly-sold-out Instagram pop-up sales and a lively cult following that demanded more. The vintage Fossil Stone phenomenon drove En Gold founder Steffanie Ball to seek out the original artisans that produced these iconic pieces in the first place. Now, 45 years after making its debut, Fossil Stone furniture is being produced once again — by the same artisans who produced it the first time around. Only this time, the artisans are finally getting their flowers.
En Gold is the only brand in the world producing Fossil Stone furniture, and with their exclusive partnership with the artisans, it’s looking to stay that way. A form of limestone, Fossil Stone is native to the Philippines and contains organic inclusions that give it the appearance and character it’s known for. Quarried by hand, it’s then cut by hand into thin layers before being painstakingly sanded repeatedly until it is applied to a timber frame.
En Gold is all about sustainability, so any potential waste that comes from breakage is turned into a powder, then a putty, before finding new life as a decorative vessel, like the Laguna Vase or becoming a Paradis Mirror frame. “This craft is actually so beautiful because it has minimal wastage,” says Ball.
In 2018, the interior designer, turned industrialist, found herself in somewhat of a “nesting” quandary. “In Australia at the time, [furniture] was either mass-produced flat-pack, or crazy expensive and unattainable — there was nothing in the middle,” says Ball. “I couldn’t find anything interesting that had any kind of character to it, so that’s why I started to look at vintage.”
After more and more of the same pieces continued popping up on the secondhand market, questions about these beautiful stone works arose: “I couldn’t understand it,” she says. “Was it solid stone, was it faux marble? It was really hard for me to get any information about it.” All Ball knew was that she loved it, and kept buying all that came available. “I couldn’t pass them up! It needed a home. It needed to go where it’s appreciated,” she says.
Before long, Ball’s home started to resemble a warehouse. At the behest of a friend, the decision to part ways with some of these pieces had been made. She created an Instagram account to showcase vintage Fossil Stone pieces, and then two collections were dropped per week.
“The whole collection would sell out in three seconds — it was madness,” says Ball. “It grew into this engaged community with two-way communication. Customers would ask if we had more of certain things coming up. I could hear the things that they were looking for and really understand what I needed to be searching for.”
After countless hours of research, and discovering some dodgy European import practices of the 70s and 80s, Ball learned that every piece of Fossil Stone furniture had been made by skilled artisans in the Philippines, then stamped with either “Made in France” or “Made in Italy” once it had been unpacked abroad. Of the 80 Fossil Stone factories operating in Cebu during their heyday, only one remained.
“I found the last standing workshop that was creating furniture [back then]. He was not producing at all, but kind of still there — he said he didn’t know what he was still even holding on for,” says Ball. “Meanwhile, I’m searching all of Australia for this Fossil Stone furniture!”
For Ball, whose mother is Filipino, the discovery was kismet. Imagine the artisan’s surprise to learn that his creations were as popular today as they had been so many decades before. Ball struck an exclusive deal to get the factory operational once more and revitalize the industry, only this time with the craft as the main focus.
“Let’s tell the story about it. Where it comes from, whose hands make it. Let’s shine a light on the artisans who have been creating it this whole time,” she says.
They decided to reproduce three key pieces: the Tierra Petite, Isla Dining Table, and the best-selling Arena Coffee table. “We launched it online and the entire container sold out in one hour.”
Since that time, En Gold has expanded its offerings to include wooden, seagrass, and upholstery collections, but the ethos remains the same: “Always handmade, always traditional in its method. We try to use all natural materials,” says Ball. “All the timbers are native to The Philippines — native mahogany, seagrass, and another light timber called Gmelina.”
Ball is currently working on an iron collection as well. Fans of En Gold flock to the brand for its focus on craftsmanship, as well as the inherent individuality of each piece. Ball enjoys the love that En Gold clients have for the brand.
“When you’re working with handmade products and natural materials, there is an appreciation for the perfectly imperfect….you can see where they [artisans] were sanding,” she says. “When we talk about the fingerprints of our makers, that’s what we mean.”
The brand’s new Upper Kirby outpost will offer the entire En Gold line, as well as other female-owned Aussie favorites for shoppers to explore. Paintings and sculptures by Adele Naidoo, Karv Studio, White on Walls, and Denise Quah will be available for purchase, plus linen bedding by Cultiver. Australian-made skincare brand Gracious Minds will line the shelves along with top-tier Turkish linen bath sheets by En Gold’s luxe self-care sister-brand Yōli. Find dry-brushes next to Tiger’s Eye Gua Sha, essential oil dryer droppers, and hand-poured candles with En Gold’s signature blend of neroli, cedar leaf, and teak wood. A collection of Bordam candles will be on offer as well — everything one needs to tune into the Yōli playlist on Spotify and unwind at home.
En Gold has already opened their doors to fans looking to say hello, and invites fellow creatives, designers, and lovers of thoughtful design to celebrate the opening of their first U.S. gallery space on Friday, April 25 from 6-9 pm.
