“I hope you are planning to stay for lunch,” Selma Cisic said waving graciously from behind a 1920’s Tuscan carpenters block.

“Everything we do around here typically happens over a meal,” said Ms. Cisic, the chic proprietress of Adesso Eclectic Imports, located in Old Town Pasadena. Dressed in a ruffled dark gray cocktail dress and South American equestrian boots, she arranged a platter of figs and cheese on a recent sun baked afternoon. Her husband and business partner Suad Cisic popped open a chilled bottle of Pinot Grigio from Argentina.

A casual meal and furniture talk is par for the course around here. They both agree that the industrial stainless steel kitchen is the heart of the 3,200-square-foot former horse stable-turned antique store, which opened in November 2005, even though there’s nothing old about it. “It’s where we meet clients and dealers – have conversations over an espresso – or an impromptu dinner. Even in a shop, everyone always ends up hanging around the kitchen,” she said laughing and noting that the harshness of the super modern stainless is softened by all of the older things around it.

A weathered brick wall and polished cement floor is the backdrop for a sophisticated array of European and South American collectibles. Gem like vintage Murano glass light fixtures hang throughout the space, a Giuseppe Scapinelli bar cart elegantly sits next to a rare 60’s chair and ottoman designed by Jean Gillon – both notable Brazilian designers.  Not too far away a pair of 70’s lamps designed by Guzzini compliment a 60’s desk by Ico Parisi and a 19^th-century oil on canvas portrait hangs seamlessly above.

It’s really all in the mix and that is the shop’s strong suit. A creative maverick in her own right – trained architect, clothing and jewelry designer, painter, furniture restorer, wonderful cook and entertainer, Ms. Cisic takes that energy and funnels it into the creatively eclectic vignettes in the store. She is complimented regularly on her “great eye” and is quick to point to her daily inspiration. “It all comes down to shapes and colors and interesting design,” she said. “One day I find inspiration in a beautiful piece of fish at the market, the next day a tiny antique button or the vivid color of a leaf on a tree. It is the simple power of observation and channeling it into something others can enjoy.”

The name “Adesso” means now. “It was really now or never,” said Mr. Cisic of their hunt for the perfect space for the shop. “We instantly felt like this was something special, a place where we could showcase the amazing pieces we collected over the years.” They chose to live in Pasadena, when a job opportunity for Suad arose in Southern California, and both agree the shop is a culmination of years of travel around the world. They met in the former Yugoslavia (they still regularly visit Dubrovnik, the city where they were married and both have roots that date back to the fifteenth century) and raised two boys in cities all over the world – Paris, Sao Paolo, Buenos Aires, Alexandria to name a few.

“Buenos Aires is the South American Paris and Sao Paolo is the South American New York,” Ms. Cisic tells us. “I was fortunate enough to live in both cities and soak up the culture.” It was that time period that she attributes to enhancing her taste level and aesthetic. On a quest to furnish a 5,000-square-foot Italian style Villa in Buenos Aires and also learn Spanish, she started ferreting through the local junk and antique stores. That led to learning how to restore furniture, understanding the regional woods and how to revive their patina, a crash course in gold leafing and be-friending the local upholstery community. “I wasn’t aware that I was collecting. I just thought I was furnishing a house.”

As each subsequent house filled, the collections grew and so did the passion for furniture. But it always came back to creating a network of reliable, trustworthy local dealers and artisans. “We committed to learning the native language of each city we lived in and really living in the city, not experiencing it as a tourist,” she said. They both speak five languages. They have friends all over the world that they rely on to scout for unusual pieces and they still insist on speaking the language of the country they happen to be buying in. (IN RED) “Conversing about a piece in the sellers language makes it come alive. The nuances and the subtleties of a provenance or particular background become so much more vivid.” (IN RED)

Glancing around the shop she points to particular pieces and begins to rattle on about which city they found it in or what friend happened upon it when traveling. “Every piece has a story and that story gets passed along as each collector takes it on,” she said. “And most of those amazing stories get told over a drink or a meal,” she added laughing. She pointed to a gleaming 1940’s Brazilian dining table made from Jacaranda wood and announced it was time for lunch. Sizzling seared scallops, tossed greens, figs, cheese and bread perfectly complimented the table. “Getting to socialize with my clients is just as important to me as the pieces in my shop. It also insures that the stories get passed along.”