Window Shopping
Looking for a smart home improvement? Windows are just the ticket to make your home more energy efficient (and stylish). The process of learning what to look for becomes crystal clear with a visit to Portland’s Marvin Design Gallery, where you’ll find what you need to fit your budget.
Not to overstate the obvious, but buying American- made products keeps and creates jobs and is great for the U.S. economy. Yet over five million U.S. factory jobs have been lost in the past 15 years, and purchases of foreign goods keep increasing.
It’s important to recognize businesses that keep manufacturing stateside—and so this Shop Talk sheds a little light on Portland’s Marvin Design Gallery by Eldredge.
Marvin Windows and Doors is no newbie to the world of home construction and renovation. The Minnesota-based company just happens to be the world’s largest manufacturer of made- to-order wood window and door products. But it’s also family owned and keeps all manufacturing here in the United States.
The Marvin Design showroom in Portland is a division of Eldredge Lumber and Hardware, also a small-town, family- owned company with deep roots in Maine.
On Marginal Way in Portland, you’ll find 4,500 square feet filled with window and door ideas—everything from new construction to replacement to commercial and historical restorations.
Customers, from seasoned builders and architects to DIYers, can choose from three Marvin lines, all displayed at the Portland space. The first is the Marvin Made to Order line focusing on aluminum-clad styles with limitless flexibility and customization. Its sister lines, Integrity and Infinity, are Marvin’s less design-focused styles made with Ultrex, a pultruded fiberglass Marvin has patented that outperforms vinyl, aluminum, and other fiberglass composites.
Making the right decision about which window or door or what hardware isn’t always an easy one. The good news is, there’s no need to tackle this alone. Manager Jeremy Bate and his team of nine (with a collective 150 years of experience) are on hand to help customers work through every step of the process, from planning to installation. You’ll watch a dizzying array of demos: doors and windows that rotate, pivot, swing, shift, ventilate, let you control light, and so on, underscoring Marvin’s innovative design capabilities.
Partnering with builders and architects means more than poring over plans and project specs. Marvin Design Gallery also reaches out to the local design community by presenting regular Lunch and Learns. These programs are dedicated to architects and anyone else with a desire to learn about building products and practices. “It’s a great way to engage with our design community on market trends, new materials, techniques, and so on,” says Bate, who regularly takes local architects on behind- the-scenes tours.
Visit their website for a full schedule and to learn more about replacing or installing new windows and doors.
A little more shop talk.
WHAT ARE SOME CURRENT MARKET TRENDS?
Choosing windows that work well with both the interior decor and exterior design of the building. Additionally, energy efficiency in window and door selection has become an important aspect for architects and owners.