What’s the inspiration behind these new collections?
Modern Mist & Veil has its roots in modernism but doesn’t replicate midcentury style. Design-wise, we relied on clean lines, geometric shapes and simple forms, interpreting them through the lens of luxury.

“The world never seems to slow down, but your home can”—that’s the thought behind Oasis, Universal Furniture’s latest collaboration with the Coastal Living brand. It’s the epitome of cool refinement and laid-back elegance.

What was the starting point for the collections?
Mist & Veil is the sixth collection under the Modern name. What began nearly 10 years ago as a strategic move into modern-day interiors has evolved into a wildly successful and enduring group of furnishings known for its bold lines and simple forms.

Oasis marks the fourth indoor Coastal Living collection, part of Universal’s highly successful partnership that began in 2018. Each series breaks new ground with its use of materials and finishes. All of them begin with a mindset—from design to production to marketing—of calm and relaxation.

How do you feel these collections push the brand forward?
Modern Mist & Veil takes a risk. Our designers put themselves out there and introduced wild-card elements—the blossom-covered credenza, for instance—knowing they might not be well-received. The phrase “Nothing changes if nothing changes” comes to mind. If we aren’t doing something new, are we growing as a brand, as a company?

Oasis brings an element of contemporary style to the mix—and that’s new for our Coastal Living collections. You can see the influence in the Oasis dining table and its tulip-shaped base, or the pierced metal bases of the Coral cocktail and dining tables. There are also organic shapes, like the suggestion of the tree section in the Cliffside occasional tables; what makes that style modern is the white finish. It gives a fresh new feel to a familiar form.

How do the collections build on or complement your other offerings?
Modern Mist & Veil is the sixth in a series that began nearly 10 years ago. All of the Modern collections work together. Many forms and materials are similar, but they differ in finish—from light and airy to dark and bold.

Like Mist & Veil, Oasis is the latest iteration of an existing series—in this case, Coastal Living. It shares similar materials, like rattan and woven cane, allowing designers to use pieces from this new assortment with the collections that came before: Escape, Getaway and Weekender.

What about the collections feels fresh and exciting?
In every Universal collection—Modern Mist & Veil is no exception—our designers always include some pieces that just wow you and push the design envelope at bit. The Blossom credenza does that. Where else have you seen a case piece overlaid with thousands of leather flowers? The Nimbus nesting tables, made of fiberglass-reinforced concrete, use a hydrographic finish that imitates travertine marble. These pieces are rated for outdoor use, under cover. For the Oasis collection, we designed a new chairback using Danish cord in a grid pattern, and played with acrylic legs in some dining and office designs.

What piece are you most excited to unveil?
In Mist & Veil, most definitely the Blossom credenza. Available in both light and dark oak finishes, and featuring 5,712 hand-shaped leather fleurettes, Blossom appears to grow before your eyes. Four doors with touch-latch hardware are covered in blooms, each hand-applied for a showstopping effect.

The Coral dining table features a round glass top supported by a coral-inspired, cast-aluminum base in an elegant antique nickel or modern white finish. It feels contemporary, while reflecting Oasis’s natural materials of the coast.

Tell us about the materials in these collections. Are there certain materials used throughout, and/or a material that is a highlight on a particular piece?
Modern Mist & Veil distills luxury to its essence—quietly powerful silhouettes rendered in two core finishes: Mist, a soft light oak, and Veil, a rich dark oak, set a striking backdrop, while Haze, a figured walnut accent with a clear, subdued finish, adds organic movement. Elevated material moments—white quartz, pyrite, emperador stone and smoked gold metal—infuse the collection with a refined glow. Sculptural cast aluminum and leather finishes create depth and dimension across bedroom, dining and living spaces.

Oasis features more than 87 thoughtfully crafted pieces that bring coastal calm to interiors. The collection is grounded by two primary wood finishes: Dockside, a warm natural oak, and Shoreline, a softly textured, sand-blasted pine. Accents like white quartz stone, seascape-textured grasscloth and twisted abaca add depth and dimension. Hardware in the Oasis collection varies from oversize round acrylic knobs to textured bar pulls and cast- aluminum oyster shell–shaped pulls. Sculptural details, like the offset X-base on the oak dining table and acrylic desk, offer modern flair to classic forms. 

Can the collections be customized? What options are possible?
Many of Modern Mist & Veil and Oasis’s new upholstery designs are bench-made in North Carolina, where artisans build and assemble all the frames in house. The domestic facility gives customers the ability to select from 500-plus stocked fabrics, more than 100 leathers, or COM. You can try out fabric and leather selections for each design using Universal’s online 360-degree draping tool, which takes the mystery out of how a fabric pattern will scale when applied to a sofa, chair, ottoman or bed frame.

How do you envision designers using these collections?
Although its pieces are clearly modern in style, Mist & Veil is a remarkably versatile collection that works in many interior genres. Designers can select individual pieces and use them in transitional and traditional spaces. The styles are bold, so it doesn’t take much to make an impact in a room. I see designers creating unforgettable spaces. It’s not an assortment for the shy!

Designers understand the point of view of the Oasis collection, and will use it to infuse calm and relaxation into interiors, no matter the geographic location of the home. You don’t have to live by the shore to enjoy casual and carefree interiors.