Welcome to Ajijic!

 Gather 'Round the Table of Contents'

By Carol L. Bowman April 2009

It had a yellow, laminated top, with scratched aluminum trim and legs. The vinyl-covered chairs, torn from buckle shoes snagging the cheap material, needed repair.

My parents, three sisters and I gathered ´round every day at precisely 5 p.m. It was the only time our family converged each day; much ground needed to be covered.

Daddy listened impatiently between bites, as Mom relayed accounts of the Fuller Brush man and the grocery store bill. In between mashed potatoes and peas, my stomach turned sour whenever I heard her say, "Leroy, do you know what Carol did today? What are we going to do with her?"

On Friday nights, adult chatter, high-ball glasses and beer bottles crowded the space, while smoke curled above. My parents escaped routine one evening each week, playing cards for pennies with friends. On holidays, I unrolled the white, starched linens from the blue paper, my mother inserted the three leaves, and we prayed for steady hands, while placing the fragile, dusty china and crystal. A motley array of chairs, collected from around the house found spaces for the guests, and the Thanksgiving turkey, Easter ham or New Year's Day pork and sauerkraut transformed the everyday into "company special."

The kitchen or dining room table has served as the focus of family life for centuries with romantic dinners cherished, birthdays celebrated, holidays feted and successes toasted. There have been failures whispered, arguments shouted, taxes prepared, homework completed and those taken from us, grieved for. The events around this flat surface read like real life's "Table of Contents."

Decisions about what to bring and what to leave behind mounted as we prepared to move to Mexico. Our century-old solid oak, pedestal dining room set, which had served as our "Table of Contents" for at least 20 years, would never survive the trip. I passed it on to another family to start a new chapter.

As a compromise, I brought the kitchen table and chairs, but French Country never quite meshed with Mexican decor.

The search for the perfect table to chronicle our new life in Mexico began in Tlaquepaque. One shop after another showcased exquisite pieces, hand crafted, waiting for the chance to shape family memories. But the hefty price tags, delivery charges to Chapala and inability to rush home to measure the intended space delayed the dream.

Then recently we happened upon a newly opened store, Ajijic Art and Design, located on the carretera, right in our neighborhood of Riberas del Pilar. With the chocolate brown, wrought iron doors flung open, the visible assortment of massive tables and chairs lured us inside.

Melvin Pagan, the owner, greeted us warmly in flawless English, with a hint of Latino flair.

As I surveyed the 10,000 square foot showroom, the variety of textures, sizes, and finishes cemented the notion that I would find my table here. But with so many to choose from, I wanted to know about the tables and about the man selling them. Was he just a salesman or did he possess knowledge and passion to help me make the right choice?

I sat down with Melvin one morning to get the scoop on both, before making the decision on which table would host our first chapter of life in Chapala.

Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Melvin Pagan settled in Orlando, Florida as a professional landscaper. In 1994, a Mexican man approached Melvin about selling Mexican pottery. "I quickly sold all his pots. They just took off," said Melvin.

And that sparked a better idea. He started coming to Mexico, buying pots by the truckloads from wholesalers in Guadalajara. He opened a retail store in Orlando, expanding merchandise to include Mexican furniture and wrought iron. The demand just kept climbing. "I still use many of those same craftsmen and furniture makers today for this store. I know them and trust their work," he said.

"After 9/11 everything changed," he continued. "People in the US became more cautious and adjusted their buying habits. I knew I had to refocus."

"On a buying trip to Tonalá and Tlaquepaque, someone suggested that I come to Chapala for a visit. I stayed for a week," said Melvin, "and fell in love with the place. I noticed that with so many foreigners living here, the area lacked a store that carried high-end, quality, Mexican crafted furniture. I knew I could fill that need. With leg work and extensive building renovation, the idea of Ajijic Art and Design became reality," he said. "We opened in October 2008."

Melvin had answered my first question. He knew the business and had a personal connection to the Mexican craftsmen. It was time to find out about the tables. I meandered through the showroom's two floors and felt overwhelmed by the variety available. I looked at stone, polished marble, wood, wrought iron and a spectrum of shapes: rectangles, squares, rounds and octagonals. The options made me dizzy.

Marble - Polished and Unpolished/Stone Tables

Grabbing my attention, the unpolished stone tables stood out as most unique. Melvin surprised me when he told me that the stone is actually marble in its natural state.

His supplier provides four different shades of marble: yellow, red, grey and white. Slabs come from many different states of Mexico, but most are from Nuevo Leon and Oaxaca. Each table is always different — after all, no two cuts of marble are ever the same.

The customer can decide on the finish that suits their home, taste and style best. For a natural, unpolished effect, an applied acid wash enhances the texture and veins of the stone. The final surface can be either matte or satin depending on the type of protective sealer that is applied. Table edges can be beveled or uneven.

The more common polished marble results in a luster finish with continuous shine. Price for a particular piece of marble is the same regardless of finish, table edges, polish or protective sealers—the price is determined only by slab thickness, length and width.

Sizes and shapes can be customized to exact specifications. Melvin tells me that their best seller is a seven-foot rectangular table top. Separate hand-forged iron bases serve as the support for the heavy tops, which start at about 400 pounds. The price of the base varies according to the thickness of the iron requested by the customer and needed to hold the top. The base and top of these tables are never fastened together. Once attached, the weight would make it impossible to move the table.

Although most marble tables are custom ordered, I asked Melvin for a price range for a table with specific dimensions and specifications to give the reader a point of reference. "A four centimeter thick, seven foot long rectangular marble table, regardless of finish or edge work, resting on a one inch thick iron base costs, at present, between $15,800 and $17,900 pesos," he calculated. At the current exchange rate of 14 pesos to the US dollar, this enduring "Table of Contents" would cost $1128 - $1278 US; I think that's an incredible price.

Wooden Tables

As we visited, our conversation turned to wooden tables. The examples throughout the showroom exuded richness in color, satin-like finishes and a variety of wood types. "The tables on display give clients ideas, but we specialize in custom design here," said Melvin. "Any one of these tables can be made from the customer's wood of choice, including: rosewood, mesquite, pine or mahogany. People even have brought in pictures of a table they want constructed and our craftsmen can duplicate their preferences," he said. Price, of course depends of choice of wood. Mesquite ranks as most expensive and heaviest.

Wooden tables, unlike marble, usually have legs or pedestals attached, although some people prefer wooden tabletops with iron bases. Melvin explained that using massive tree trunks or cactus roots as bases is becoming increasingly popular. Design is limited only by the customer's imagination.

Depending on the space allotted for the table, sometimes the base is bolted to the table top after delivery. These massive pieces of furniture must be delivered in pieces in order to squeeze them through doorways. "We've had some interesting deliveries, but we always find a way," said Melvin.

Accompanying Chairs

Unlike buying a conventional kitchen or dining room table set, where the accompanying chairs are predetermined by the manufacturer, here choice reigns supreme. A loose leaf binder containing pictures of custom pieces gives the buyer at least 20 different styles of chairs and a variety of materials from which to choose. Mesquite, pine, wrought iron, upholstered, leather bound seats; you name it, they make it. The most popular style is called the cirica chair and after trying out many different types, the most comfortable too.

Although the majority of clients custom design their own pieces, buying floor models directly from the showroom allows Melvin more leeway for price adjustments. "When I sell a piece from the floor, as constructed, it is awesome," said Melvin. "We do the custom finishes here, like crackle, matte or satin protection coats, so the customer still has some input for personal preferences."

Armed with all this information, I wanted to know Melvin's favorite type of table before making a decision. "I prefer the marble tables with wide iron bases. The texture, the touch of the stone and the veins running through the slab make them so unique. I sell more stone tables than wood. People want something different," he said. For durability in the dry climate here at Lakeside, I favor marble or other stone over wood.

With 99% of his clientele being foreigners, Melvin's customer base is much the same here as at his store in Orlando. I asked him how selling furniture to foreigners living in Mexico differed from US residents buying Mexican furniture in Florida.

"I sold a lot of tables in the US, but after the sale, people never bothered to come and give me feedback. Here, customers return just to tell me how much they love their table. When I see the joy a piece of furniture has given a customer, I feel so gratified," he said. "Dining tables, especially, are so important. Whether a family reunion or dinner with friends—you usually end up at the table, and those are the memories you keep."

When selection time came for us, it didn't take much deliberation.

My husband and I both felt drawn to the seven foot, unpolished, red tone marble from the moment we saw it. We chose a less ornate iron base, but one with an unusual style. It has inverted rounded U's at each end. The leather upholstered cirica chairs we chose make a stunning presentation on our large open terrace.

Let the dinner parties begin. Let the children, grandchildren, old friends and relatives visit. Let the Sunday morning breakfast after tennis unfold. Let new friendships develop over good food and shots of tequila. Let us make Mexican memories at our new "Table of Contents."

For more information:
Ajijic Art and Design
Melvin Pagan, proprietor
Av. Hidalgo (the carretera) #96
Riberas de Pilar
Call (376) 765-5882
Hours: Monday - Friday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m
Saturdays: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. and Sundays: 11 a.m. - 2 p. m.