Mermeladae Estudio is co-founded by Juan Miguel Juarez, Laura Blasco and Alex Estévez. Their projects aim to be distinctive, and are, at the same time, able to create a charming blend between individual character and neutrality and understatement. Their philosophy is to look for what is outstanding in everyday life -challenging the parameters of design, pushing the boundaries and trying to find new perspectives capable of drawing the right path toward the achievement of an extraordinary and innovative product design.

Symbol of this philosophy, “Birds” is a collection of six handmade knives inspired by birds. The family is composed by six different members: an hummingbird, a goose, a pelican, a toucan, an heron and a goldfinch. Each knife in the set has a bamboo handle, a stainless-steel blade screw with a graphite finish.

Their funny and playful shapes together with their ergonomy and functionality can be the perfect examples of the concept behind the Spanish studio Mermeladae, an outstanding series of products able to exploit design to give a new, lovely and unexpected form to a tool which is part of our daily life.

The Little Triple Chair is a study desk, but is shaped not unlike a jungle gym. The chair’s seemingly missing fourth leg is a playful, almost whimsical, touch to a highly utilitarian apparatus. And I mean highly utilitarian, as it is not only a desk and chair but also a lamp.

Dutch designer Frederik Roijé wants to encourage reading, drawing and writing as opposed to playing Doodle Jump on mom’s (or even the child’s own) iPad. The L-shaped desk gives a 2-6 year old child ample room to rest his or her elbows while reading a book, or draw a picture without feeling boxed in. Wooden desks are not known for their softness (or “huggable”-ness, as Roije has described), but the Little Triple Chair is coated in Polyamide fiber, the felt-like material on the back of beginner jigsaw puzzles. With the geometry of a jungle gym and tactility of a puzzle, it’s as though Roijé is implementing subliminal messages of recreation in this rectangular orb of early learning.

Roijé’s studio in Amsterdam has produced a host of zany yet pragmatic product designs, such as aluminum bowls shaped like city maps and a chicken coop that looks like a luxury cabin. The Little Triple Chair has an adult version with larger dimensions. Although catered toward libraries and daycares, it also makes for a perfect nook at home.

For an elegant and minimalist kitchen, the new set from the Czech product designer, Marten Jakobsen, tries to expand and enhance the aesthetic vision of one of the most sacred environments of the house. The simplicity of linear glass jars is combined with the original touch of cork sphere stoppers, resulting in a beautiful and perfectly functional collection of containers.

The author Marten Jakobsen is a well-known contributor of the Minimalism circle, especially focused on finding and implementing innovative solutions as in his latest project. The aim with Luno was to develop a very efficient product with simple and clean lines. This desire naturally translated into the use of basic materials like glass and surprisingly, cork, which well complements the hardness and clearness of the base with its soft, bulky texture.

The name is referred to the table game Ludo, given the close resemblance to its colors and shapes in the famous wooden version of the game. Of course an even more objective resemblance, and possible association to its name, is that of a full moon sustaining itself in the threshold of a crystal cylinder.

Nowadays, being environmentally friendly and careful about sustainability has become a necessary mantra for companies: a key element for survival. And this fact is not only applicable to corporations: ecological design is getting a larger and larger footprint on the globe, because nature is both a source of inspiration and of which materials can be used to build unforgettable design items.

Conciliation among passion, ecologic touch, visual pleasure: several artists are following this trend, among which it is worth mentioning J.P. Meulendijks, that since 2010 has put a lot of effort in this innovative approach to design. “Fresh, minimal, soulful, humorous, essential”, this is how the designer loves to describe his own work, and his recent release, the iconic Lock table, is in line with this view.

The concept behind this creation lies on the empowerment of the qualities and main characteristics of a natural and highly sustainable material, bamboo. Strong, flexible and renewable, bamboo grows with no help of fertilizers, processed into the most environmentally sustainable wood on Earth: is there a material that could be more appropriate for an “ecologic” creation such that this?

The frame of this table is built up from layers of flexible bamboo, pressed together so that the natural bending curve of this material is maximized. The layers of bamboo interweave among each other, forming a perfect tridimensional star that is pure celebration of geometry. The final result is stunning, an incredible mix of mathematic genius and simple nature.

Lock comes in two alternative versions: on one hand, the Bamboo top is totally made of bamboo, with a 40 mm top that is cut into a layer-pattern that forms the round edges. On the other hand, the glass top version renders the beautiful bamboo frame hyper visible, and the game of shapes and lines is the absolute protagonist of this sculptural table, which can fit up to six people.

A perfect complement both of a basic, rustic interior of a house submerged in a green environment, and of a metropolitan apartment, this beauty is marked by a calm balance of the shapes, but even if calm is the first feeling coming to mind by staring at it, for sure this piece of art will be the first thing that everyone invited to your home will notice.

Contemporary design is often viewed through a serious lens: one which lacks humor and an appreciation of life’s simple pleasures. However, Pana Objects has created a functional piece of art that laughs in the face of this stigma of serious design and gives the modern consumer something to smile about. The Frank lamp, by Pana objects takes the mundane, simple concept of a desk lamp and glorifies it through the universal emblem of happiness, a young puppy.

This playful desk-lamp is sure to bark its way into the homes of many a creative individual looking to lighten up their home or office décor. What is unique about the Frank Lamp is that through clean lines, simplified shapes, and natural materials, this functional object distinguishes itself apart from just another cliché, kitschy, item anyone would expect to discover at a local vintage store. Instead, it is sleek, modern, and easy on the eyes. The body of the puppy holds the light source and has been simplified to a fairly basic rectangular cube attached to which are four very puppy-like legs. Made of natural, untainted wood, each lamp is unlike any other, giving all of them personalities of their own. The concept of this design is also one of an interactive nature as Frank’s legs rotate on joints enabling the happy owner to conveniently direct light and simultaneously enjoy a plethora of playful puppy poses.

Started by a group of creative friends, Pana Objects values old-world craftsmanship enlightened by contemporary, functional design. Based in Thailand this small company is sure to grow beyond borders as its designers continue to play with their craft and broaden their range. The Frank Lamp exemplifies a return to the tactile, interactive, wooden object. Like a colonial toy, it’s construction is simple yet constantly entertaining and like a puppy, it will forever be there eagerly begging for attention.

Oato is a new design studio that was started in 2012 by of Stefan Tervoort and Pim Snijdoot. They are based in Hoorn, just north of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Both Stefan and Pim are graduates in product design of the Utrecht School of Arts. At present, they have two designs in their official web-portfolio, the Reeds tables and the Stuck Chair.

The Stuck Chair can be thought of as being a deconstruction, or perhaps reconstruction, of the chair concept. Their goal with this particular chair design was to deconstruct the elements of a chair and put it back together in simple and natural way. They have succeeded by interlocking the elements in a self-supporting structure. The Stuck Chair is slightly wider than an average chair, which is due to both the interlocking of elements as well as a design choice. Most of the chair is made of oak, but the back-rest is a steel tube that is swept across the back of the chair, relatively high. This implies that the Stuck Chair may be suitable for transient seating such as meeting rooms and dining rooms, but as it is lacking lower back support it is not suitable as a general office chair.

The Stuck Chair looks good but is not particularly ergonomic as it also lacks arm rests. As a designer chair, it is available in a standard range of colours such as white, black, grey, red or turquoise, but you can get  any colour of your choice at extra cost. It’s only the back-rest that is coloured, the rest of the chair is natural oak wood grain.
The Stuck chair got an Honourable Mention for its innovative use of materials and attention to details at the ARC12 Chair design contest in Utrecht.
Humans and chairs have a long history, perhaps three millennia. The earliest known chairs were found in Egyptian tombs. It is believed that the Egyptians made their chairs to represent natural forms to prevent chaos in the universe. Still, the only way to make up your mind about a chair is to sit on it. The proof is in the sitting.

My well-mannered grandmother once told me that the only appropriate place for a washing machine is the laundry room. The washing machine, in my grandmother’s eyes, is part of a home’s underpinnings, never to be seen—much less admired—by the public. The Bauknecht washing machine, made in Berlin and Stuttgart, puts that old notion to shame.

Berlin-based designer Arman Emami has collaborated with Whirlpool to create a futuristic Bauknect washing machine. Creative and managing director of the industrial design firm Emami Design, Arman Emami develops pieces for the home that are both utilitarian and attractive. On the firm’s site, Emami states, “Whoever stops being innovative stops being successful.” Given the range of awards won by Emami Design— Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen’s red dot design award, International Design Forum’s iF design award, and both the GOOD Design Award Japan and Good Design Award USA—it is clear that Emami repeatedly meets his aim of innovation and success.

Emami’s visionary appliance is both a highly functioning washing machine and a piece of modern design worthy of any room in a house, private or public. It’s stylish. By stripping the classic washing machine of its knobs, dials, and bulky cube shape, Emami has created a sleek future-pod of an appliance with a curved shape that mirrors a cyclical wash. The machine’s minimalistic design includes a push-to-open tinted glass door and streamlined controls. With its refined shape and modern sensibilities, the Arman Emami round washing machine moves laundry out of the laundry room and into the future.

Every distillate taster knows that the tasting glass plays a central role in the experience. In particular, the physical and mechanical characteristics of the glass are fundamental to best appreciate all qualities of distillates. Bearing all of this in their mind, Blueside Emotional Design presented its Genio glass, an innovative tasting glass whose shape reminds of Aladdin’s lamp, of course.

Leonardo Borra, who designed the glass, chose to provide the glass with two chambers, so as to allow the liquid to fully release its fragrances while slowly streaming from one chamber to the other one. The first chamber is used to pour the distillate, while the second one serves as a real tasting container.

Another Genio’s innovative feature that makes this glass even more unique is the unusual shape: reminding of the lamp of Aladdin, it welcomes the hand of the taster in an “intimate” way, allowing the body temperature to transfer to the liquid, thus adding to the enhancement of the aromatic components of the distillate.

Thanks to its original conception, Genio is a truly irresistible and sophisticated tool for classy men who want to own a design object without renouncing to functionality.

I’m pretty sure that this particular scenario has happened to you as well: go to a restaurant and love the dinnerware so much to want to take it home with you.  The discovery by some customers that the object of their desires was not available to purchase in the market, led them to leave bars with some Portholes less at the closing time. We’re talking about a mind-blowing piece of design and here’s why Martin Kastner, founder and principal of Crucial Detail design studio, had to turn is custom design for Aviary (Grant Achatz’s restaurant and cocktail bar in Chicago) into mass production.

The Porthole is a decanter for infusions that maximizes the glass surface to appreciate the colors, herbs and everything that is infusible in a liquid. The idea of creating a standing canteen-shaped vessel was born during a conversation between the designer and the Aviary bar chefs preparing for the grand opening of the venue. They were talking about fast infusions, cocktails that are in constant evolution while served, and Kastner thought that what we really want when having such drinks is a window into another world, another space and time. Then, the inspiration for the design directions came from the movie “The Fabulous World of Jules Verne” by K. Zeman with its submarine porthole.

The materials were chosen according to the need to make an easy-to-use and extremely appealing piece of pure design. The Porthole is an infuser made of stainless steel and tempered glass with low iron content and food grade Delrin, that holds up to 390 ml of liquid. Each Porthole is equipped also with a set of three stainless filters of different sizes and a flexible silicone cap that can be used to seal the vessel containing “long-term infusions”.  Martin Kastner previous experience in material design and metal sculpture helped him to understand better what he wanted from this product. The Porthole shape is curvy and asymmetrical, but deep down is just a flattened bottle that breaks the rigidity and the narrowness of an usual infuser. It is a window on tastes and flavors, that leaves you decorate your infuse while it’s laid flat to fascinate your eye before your taste buds.

The Porthole history is signed by an incredible success that brought Kastner to launch a KickStarter campaign to found the production and commercialization of the product. Porthole convinced more than 4000 supporters and was fully founded in two hours from its launch and went on raising more than four times of the budget initially needed.

Kastner’s Porthole is now produced by a highly experienced and capable manufacturer and is dishwasher safe, durable and super easy to use. Porthole is an ensemble of ideas brought to life, an object where aesthetics meets functionality.

Eventually is always that Crucial Detail that makes us dream, and Martin Kastner and its team know it better.

Born in Cape Town South Africa, still his own main daily inspiration, the British Christopher Jenner has imposed his presence in interior designers’ world, especially thanks to his unmistakable artisanal approach and the massive recourse to the microscopic detail applied to his work. As a matter of fact, the latest two years have been marked by a series of luxurious masterpieces that always stand out of mass products’ crowd: a basic but incredibly definite and precise approach to art, constant celebration of perfection through both the progressive use of technology and the replication of nature’s beauty, which is thought to be, according to Jenner’s words “the ultimate designer”.

A recent and interesting work released by Jenner is a truly amazing imaginary re-elaboration of interior design of the Eurostar, the high-speed train connecting London to Paris, project with which Jenner has satisfied his old-time whish to design a train’s interior environment. Looking at the pictures, it’s quite hard to believe that such project will be transformed into reality one day: no matter what your personal preferences of interior design are, this work is truly amazing and purely perfect, an elevation of the ordinary to fantastic which leads to the creation of a unique first class experience. The basic concept behind this work is linked to the improvement of a strong relationship between the human beings and the planet, which leads to superior beauty of the interior environment itself: as a matter of fact, windows are conceived to be wide and with beveled edges, which create calm lightness and allow the passenger to observe and contemplate the beautiful landscapes flying by while the train is on the march.

Furthermore, the carriage made in hardwood, brushed Brass and Carbon fiber constitute a genial hybrid of the “oldie goldie” and the contemporary age. The individual accommodations in single seats provide comfortable armrest services (air, power, wi-fi connection) and, above all, intimate privacy. The sharp yellow chosen for the seats is an unforgettable touch of delightful fun which makes this environment not a mere celebration of luxury, but instead a renewed and hyper funny version of what usually is thought to be serious and boring, a train.
Even if this unrealistic vision of the Eurostar is unlikely to become reality, even just a negligible approach to this dream would be a startling, unbelievable change.

On first sight it is probably hard to guess but Kkis is an ice cream canapé, the first one ever to be precise. This elegant innovation truly is what one would call “tasty” design.

The hand blown ice-cream cup with the long steam is definitely a way to impress your dinner guests not only with delicious meals, but also in terms of extravagant design.

Martin Jakobsen, a Czech student at the Technical University of Liberec’s Department of Design, is the creative mind behind this innovative after-dinner-desert tableware. Only in 2010 he founded “Jakobsen Design” and starting form last year he already produced several successful items for the Danish Brand Mojoo.

Influenced by minimalism and a penchant for finding innovative solutions, the young designer perfectly embodies the brand philosophy of creating detailed work in terms of simple yet functional and esthetic design. Kkis not only looks elegant but also brings back the fun of eating ice cream. Its unique form, reminding us a little bit of an oversized lollipop, substitutes the old, often mushy ice-cream cone and is not as boring as nibbling out of a regular cup. If you let your creativity play you can even use the unique stemware for sorbets and various entrées to pimp your dining table.

This admirable bouquet of ice-cream canapé glasses perfectly combines contemporary design with indulgence, so lets hope to see more them soon!

Bounce is essentially a nouveau hammock. But unlike the typical island hammock, it comes in vivid combinations of colors and is made of smooth silicone, not prickly rope. You cannot move a hammock to a different spot with ease, but the light polycarbonate body of Bounce makes it portable and weatherproof. You never have to worry about breaking the net: the seat has been tested 10,000 times with a load of 150 kg and over 72 hours of continuous weight loads.

Bounce is designed to take the shape of the body that sinks into it. The six different color combinations allow for sleek (black base, black or blue knit), summery (white base, red or white knit) and idiosyncratic (transparent base, pink or green knit) demeanors, but no matter the colors, this chair is undeniably stylish and comfortable.  The diameter and angle of the ring are reminiscent of planets orbiting the sun: large, slanted, and catered to a central body—yours. The dimensions work to accommodate a variety of ways you can sit. It is the finest form of self-indulgence.

The designer, Fenny Ganatra, is a graduate of Singapore-based Raffle Design International. She is young and passionate about design. “Once an idea hits me,” Ganatra says, “I’m restless ‘till I am able to execute the concept in a simple, minimalist manner that needs to exude a hyper experiential feel.” Bounce was a 2012 Red Dot Design Award Honorable Mention—and Ganatra’s first commercial product. We can expect to see a lot more of her in the future.

“Buy a chair – get a tree” is the name of a project by the current Czech design student Anna Štěpánková, based in Tomas Bata University in Zlin, meant to promote her creation the Tamashii Dining Chair. “My intention was to give own story and energy to this piece of furniture, which I believe is highly important for a product to have,” Štěpánková explains when describing her chair and design concept. The energy and natural flow of the chair was found in a technique called Bunaco, while the classical Japanese folklorist references are obvious in what she tries to tell with the product.

There are many versions and interpretations of the Japanese myth of Sir Old-Man-Who-Makes-Trees-Blossom, although the conclusion is always similar. As an old, kind man’s dog is killed by the evil neighbor, the dog’s ashes and body give richness to the kind man and his wife and make his cherry trees blossom in the middle of winter. The story is, in its simplest form, a beautiful representation of how good care of animals, plants and all the nature around us will bring life and eternal blossom to the environment and future generations to come.

The connection to Štěpánková’s project is obvious as she includes this philosophy not only in her design and choice of materials but also in the delivery of the furniture itself. “Buy a chair – get a tree” is the literal idea behind the project as the buyer not only buys this beautiful piece of furniture but also a young beech tree. As one tree gives new life to the chair through the designer, a new beech tree is given life by the buyer.

“Why a beech tree?” you may ask yourself. The answer lies in a traditional handicraft technique called Bunaco, invented and refined in the northern Japanese city of Aomori. Bunaco is a technique were pieces of wood are finely sliced in thin strings, making them easily formed and shaped to capture organic movements and silhouettes by pulling the strings upwards from an original round shape – capturing the sense of re-birth and natural growth obvious when looking at the Tamashii Dining Chair. The beech tree does not only exist in considerable amounts in the Aomori region, but is also a part of the angiosperm species, a species of wood that allows for high flexibility, a natural glow and dramatic patterns – giving a wild and organic feel to anything it is used for and one of the many reasons to the natural look of Štěpánková’s creation.

In the story and in the feeling this chair represents, it is obvious that Štěpánková has been very careful in her choices. The connections to old Japanese folklore, the idea of a “circle-of-life” and the meeting between the old and the new, bringing old philosophical ideas into the next century, seem to have guided Štěpánková in every detail of the creation of this piece of furniture.

From the natural flow of the Bunaco inspired seat, to the dramatic impact of the meeting between the simple but delicately crafted legs and the concept of natural responsibility and re-birth of nature, Štěpánková has created a representation of what should guide us into the coming centuries.

Štěpánková’s thinking should inspire us, as the maintenance of our nature and the importance of taking care of our environment for future generations, combined with new ideas and modern expressions, leave us with a lot to think about.

Product design often misses its purpose of blending fashion with utility.  This is not the case of PressureAID –a multi-purpose hearing device, providing audio assistance, water tightness and a fashionable appearance. PressureAID enables hearing aid users and children with grommets to participate in water activities and at the same time gives a psychological advantage to the user with its discrete design. To achieve this, the concept has been intended as a waterproof, custom-fit device, which ensures maximum comfort for the user. In addition, when the wearer submerges his or her head, water pressure causes the outer skin to expand in the ear canal, creating a water-tight seal, and prevents water entry to the eardrum.

A widely unknown fact that inspired the product is that hearing loss, or the loss of loudness and clarity of sounds, is a condition that affects 1 in 5 people, or in other words 20% of the world population. At the same time, hearing devices are a burden to use and thus highly neglected by potential users. They often cause discomfort and lack of confidence instead of facilitating social interaction. PressureAID is a smart solution to switching the perception of hearing aids from a social stigma to a cool gadget. This is especially true for younger users, which participate actively in sports and yearn to be accepted by and belong to a community.

After all this it does not come as a surprise that PressureAID comes as a suggestion for the prestigious Jason Dyson Awards.

The Stellar Console is a polished, structured, utilitarian mimesis of an opened amethyst geode. Nine hundred individually sized and angled mirror pieces sashay across the table diagonally, and each segment is meant to capture a different shade of light and color. The kaleidoscopic potential deserves its own Beatles song—Lucy has abandoned the sky for a stellar piece of furniture.

The inventor, Jake Phipps, has his own studio in London, where he designs pieces for large-scale production. He has diverse clientele, having designed for Google, Harvey Nichols and the Victoria and Albert Museum, among others. He is famous for creating ISIS, the thinnest folding chair in the world (3 cm), which was manufactured in 2008 by Gebrüder Thonet – Vienna.

Phipps contrasts the crystalline mirrors with expansive, smooth surfaces. The non-uniform terrain of the table creates “an optical dispersion that breaks down the light and surrounding environment,” says Phipps, “delivering it to the eye as one sparkling identity.” The Stellar Console’s mission is to re-create the beauty and luminosity of precious gemstones. Phipps’s commitment to this aesthetic is evident in the table’s oblique shape, in which the top-right and bottom-left corners are curved. However, he subverts his imitation of a gemstone by making the other two corners perfectly convex. Overall, the table retains a degree of symmetry that one would not find in a natural stone. Phipps does not compromise sleek, balanced design for total conceptual loyalty in the Stellar Console. The result is a spectacular table with a conceptual edge (or many edges, literally speaking).

STELLAR Console Table by Jake Phipps from Jake Phipps on Vimeo.

At times, the words “modern elegance” seem to satirize the object in question; in this case, it’s an understatement. Titled as “Original Chair”, these exuberant Martz Edition‘s designs come in a high number of customizable features. Each has an immaculate scructure comprising of a comforting, nesting area beneath a curved, intimate back.

The sinuous flow of the back stand uniting at the circular base below bestows quirky, futuristic touch to the already extremely elegant silhouette. The chair can be customized according to the needs and wants of the customer: the wood, coming in curved plywood, veneered in, varnished or lacquered, or steel or aluminum to be combined with an infinity of colors, coating and fabrics. Jean-Pierre Martz, with over 25 years of experience in industrial design, created the Made in France company in just 2011.

Supple, simple curves and contemporanity dominate their exuberant designs, and they’ve already got us on the edge.

In 2009, Rickard Hederstierna swept the jury away with his visionary concept “Cocoon”, a sustainable response to the world’s growing population and its desire to consume meat and fish. Similar to heating popcorn in a microwave, Cocoon prepares genetically engineered and prepackaged meat and fish dishes. This process uses science to create food, lifting a burden on the planet by reducing the need for further intensive farming and fishing. Three years later Rickard has gone from his initial internship to being a part of the design team at Electrolux head quarters in Stockholm.  We met with Rickard for a talk to see what advice and useful reflections he has to offer this year’s Design Lab participants.

Tell us about the process before the deadline and how it affected your life?

It was at the end of my five years of studies of industrial design. I knew that choices I made, would influence my future, and this was something that I really wanted to do. I had seen the film with Henrik Otto where he introduced the brief and talked about the theme for the competition. It inspired me and I was attracted by a company culture that would create this kind of initiative. So I took a rather boring day job to support myself and then spent evenings and nights working on my concept for Design Lab. I put all my eggs in one basket, so to speak. These were hard times for young designers looking to get hired. It was a challenging period of time, but I focused on the positive long-term goal. The experience was a reminder of what life decisions I was making.

What were your thoughts around the actual material that you presented to explain your concept? Did you have a clear idea of what was expected?

Not really, for example I first prepared 100 pages… and then I reduced them to 10. I chose to make a very visual presentation with a lot of images but not too much text. Also I put a lot of energy into making the presentation material visually appealing and interesting.

Can you describe the thought process behind your concept? How did you come up your the idea?

It is important to me that when you work with technology and the future, you still need to keep your focus on relevance and needs – rather than just falling in love with the technological possibilities. So that’s how I started. I analyzed the scenario and circumstances of the future consumers, defining given aspects and new needs. From there I could map out a problem and then create a solution for that.  I believe this is key to the innovation process, we always need to keep asking ourselves: is this relevant, does it cater to an actual need?

At the finals, you had to present your concept in front of the jury and answer their questions. Were you nervous?

A little bit nervous, yes, of course, because it was an important moment. But I had practiced a lot before, at home in front of the mirror and recording myself and we also got to rehearse with a coach before the final presentation. The experience of having to do the live presentation was very useful and relevant because you have to do this often as a designer. You need to be good at presenting your ideas in a persuasive way. This first experience prepared me for all the lectures, interviews etc that have followed.

How did it feel to see your idea made into a real prototype?

Actually, I had not realized that this was going to happen initially so this was an amazing surprise. And then I got rather obsessed with the details, what exact color it would be etc. I wanted it to be perfect. It was extremely cool to have real pros build my product.

And what about the time after you won and came to the design centre at Electrolux?

It was great because I was quickly integrated in the teams that worked on very cool big projects. However, everyone was very understanding towards me and the role of an intern provided me with some time to grow into the responsibilities.

One last more general question. Where do you look for inspiration?

I follow several of design blogs. Architecture really inspires me.  Generally, I look for inspiration for design away from product design – Architecture, nature, paintings, scupltures etc.

RICKARD HEDERSTIERNA

Age: 29
Title: Industrial designer at Dishcare, Major Appliances, Electrolux Design Group

Design Lab Experience: Global winner of the competition with ‘Cocoon’ in 2009

Rickard’s advice to Design Lab participants

1)      Join the competition! It is a great experience that will teach you so much and give you the opportunity to meet very talented and experienced people. If you win it is a great way to start your career.

2)      Don’t fall in love with technology for technology’s sake. Look for the relevance and purpose of your idea.

3)      Keep a global focus, both when it comes to inspiration and for your own benchmark.

4)      Keep your presentation tight and interesting. Do show the thought process but don’t overwhelm with details.

“I look for inspiration for design away from design.”

MORE ABOUT “COCOON”

Click here

Another great design produced by La Cividina!

I am talking about Aria, the new longue chair designed by Matteo Thun and Antonio Rodriguez for La Cividina. It was presented during the famous Salone del Mobile in Milan two weeks ago.

The chair was produced by precisely laser cutting a sheet of steel to create rhombuses that form its main body. The side pieces were then combined with the latter to produce an elegant curve. The exterior is covered with leather, while the interior is finished with matte black paint. There is a very good combination between volume and space, advanced technology and craftsmanship that makes this chair looks magically futuristic. Each design that La Cividina produces is intended to be perfect. Aria is in fact the perfect long chair for either outside or inside your home.

La Cividina was founded in 1976 in Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy). It produces armchairs and sofas with a strong connection to Italian design. Experience, knowledge and passion are at the base of each product and Aria has once again proven it.

Samuele Mazza for Dolcefarniente hit a hot spot with his latest showcase held at the Maison Moschino during Salone del Mobile 2012. The talented designer reached the epitome of refinement and elegance with his newest outdoor collection.

The artist is a long-established guru in the field of design, having successfully made an impact in fashion, accessories’ design and now furniture and interior design. As he fervently explained, for him personally, design is to be made for the sake of art, and not consumerism. The creative process is an intimate one, requiring the same devotion as creating an intricate work of art, with utmost passion and dedication. Each piece is deemed to become something unique, capturing a part of the artist’s mind and soul.

The end result is to become a timeless item, a testimonial. As fashion started moving in a plastic, cult, direction, with items becoming short-lived, disposable, Samuele felt he could not resonate with it anymore, and shifted his focus to unexplored territory. There was a whole new world awaiting to be designed from scratch, and it included colorful,funky shoes, bags, glasses, ties, bras; his imagination met no boundaries in shaping these items just the way he envisioned them. It was fun for a while, it was bohemian and chic, but soon, others got to try it as well, and change caught up with this industry too. The designer felt again suffocated, and at that point, interior design seemed like a natural decision.

Ever since, Mazza has been delivering exceptionally imaginative, intriguing pieces. Always careful with the showcase as well, for this artist, Maison Moschino was definitely the best choice for the exhibition as it allowed for the items to get the deserved attention. The setting provided for a proper illustration of the concept and embellished the features of the furniture.

What happens when shabby chic- inspired shapes meet the deluxe demands of royal- like figures? When Alice in Wonderland furniture clashes with the wants and needs of preppy Moet- drinkers?

The result was an impressive ensemble of the kind of items we would expect new age castle owners to have in their back garden. An eclectic mix of luxurious divans and settees, luscious baldachin beds and petit tea tables is what made the viewers gasp in awe. The minimalist approach in the built only enhanced the straight, gracious lines and the delicate curls of the base. Details were minimal, but their added value was great. For instance, the quirkiest of such details was on one of the divans which had a special support meant to hold a Champagne bottle.

The act of waiting is rarely pleasant and it’s even less satisfying when it comes to waiting for a diagnosis or a visit. Nevertheless, thanks to an incredible partnership between the Kanazawa College of Art and the Kanazawa Municipal Hospital things will change for the city’s patients to make their wait more comfortable.

The chairs, presented to be used by every in- or outgoing patient, were designed by 18 students enrolled in the Industrial Design Major at the Kanazawa College of Art. The project behind this collaboration, Hospitality Art, has the goal of investigating the therapeutic power of art and design in a usually standardized environment devoid of colours, such as hospitals.

The design process was not only influenced by the designers’ personality and creativity, but also by the real needs of every patient who may be in the waiting room. For that reason the designers had a consultation with doctors, nurses and physiotherapists to get to right design chairs that could improve the quality of the wait.

All these chairs will put the patient at ease making him/her feel more relaxed, healed and harmonized reducing stress and exasperation by being pleased with the functionality and the beauty of their form, color and size.

Yasuaki Matsuura is one of the students participating in this project, his design is called LUX.

The chair with its curvy shape and the stretching material creates a charming and comfy seat. The structure is limited to a simple frame covered with a half pipe of shaped cloth, that will perfectly fit your body to give you a fluctuating comfort.

The simplicity, the anti-gravity feeling and the kind embrace of this chair will make you forget how traditional chairs were made before.

British design studio Splinter Designs was founded in 2005 by designer Jacob Pugh. In his creative workshop, luxury bespoke furniture and pieces for batch production are designed. The studio was initially placed in London, but it was relocated to York in 2011. Hence, there may be a source of inspiration and, subsequently, a name for their recently designed piece of furniture – the ‘York’ lounge chair.

The frame of this chair is made of oak veneered birch plywood. It was CNC machined, and the parts were put together by hand and coated with hard wax oil. The cushions are upholstered with grey woolen material and completed with optional colored buttons. In view of the fact that this chair does not have many details, makes her even more elegant and made with style. Seat and backrest are slightly tilted and with this, the designer has provided comfortable seating. That being said, if you like to lean back in chair – ‘York’ is the right choice. Its simplicity and elegance make it easier for you to combine it in a variety of interiors.

Dimensions: 600w x 795d x 735h

Starting from today, Russian ballet can enter your place in a new and unexpected way thanks to the Giselle Lounge Table, created by Russian interior and product designer Anna Neklesa. The table recalls, in fact, a ballerina during a performance. With the top of the table, made of steel or powder-coated aluminum, which resembles a ballerina’s tutu, while the legs, made of elegant oak wood, portrait the ballerina’s legs while dancing.

The choice of the reference has not been made by chance, as ballet is one of the most rooted traditions of Russia, and Anna wanted to use it to reveal a new side of her country : ”Nothing expresses the Russian spirit like this form of art.  For several centuries, fragile and pretty ballerinas with a strong and passionate character excited the minds of the intelligent all over the world.

I wanted to express the beauty of the Russian soul in this table, to combine the fragility and the strength.” The result is amazing as the table, with its particular shape, is able to adapt itself to many different types of interiors and, apart from its unconventional beauty, it is also able to offer functionality with storage space for newspapers, magazines and other small items in the storage tubes beneath the top.

The Spanish company Expormim has carved, quite literally, its own niche in the designer furniture market. Although they make indoor and outdoor furniture, there is no difference between the two sets in terms of quality or design–in fact, their patio sofas and tables would fit right in with the decor inside any chic, glass-walled modernist home.

In addition to their offerings in and outside the home, they have a line called “Rattan,” which has playful pieces that combine traditional rattan material with contemporary but timeless style, and all with an eco-friendly and sustainable edge that keeps Expormim more interesting than its competitors.

The Nautica is a hanging chair from the Rattan collection that evokes the playful designs from the 60′s, and few will be able to resist the temptation to climb into its suspended, half-egg cradle seat. The sleek rattan frame is a far cry from the stereotypical scratchy rattan that has given this style of furniture a bad name. Rather, the light rattan undulates in waves to provide the sitter with an airy but strong support. Whether suspended from the living room ceiling, or from the branch of a tree in one’s backyard, Expormim’s Nautica promises to provide the seat of many great memories to come.

You consider knitting an old fashioned handcraft? Quite the contrary is true nowadays; knitting has reached a new level, finding its way into interior design.  Claire-Anne O’Brian, a young textile designer specialized in precisely that area, enlightens us with innovative stools interpreting this very old handcraft newly and creating a collection of Knit Stools. Originally form Ireland, she recently graduated from the Royal College of Art with a Masters in Textiles and is now based in London.

She draws her inspiration from elements of the classic knitting stitch itself, like rings and loops, however displayed at a much larger scale in bold forms with a great variety of techniques. Keeping the knit-work truly authentic, sheep and lamb-wool are used for every piece (some of which even resemble lambs themselves). The cute stools are available in various different shapes as well as an array of lively colors.

The unusual combination of knitting and furniture makes this collection a unique one in the area of interior design. It has definitely been proven, that wool cannot only be enjoyed as a cozy pullover or warm socks but can also look fantastic on a piece of furniture.

The Infinity Table by Bozhinovski Design is not only spectacular, but also useful and convenient. At first sight, it is very difficult to understand the nature of this object: could it be a sculpture? Perhaps a space engine?Then you separate six chairs from the table and you understand the real objective of it. It is very simply a conference table.

The table itself is composed of three modules that are linked to each other thanks to a detail of stainless steel. The top of the table is connected to the ceiling and the floor with some wire rope, which makes it levitate in the air when taking off the chairs.

Bozhinovski Design had the objective to create a product with a changing vision. The materials used for it are fiberglass, stainless steel and leather.

Now talking about Bozhinovski Design, the company, based in Varna (Bulgaria), is specializing in interior and product design. Its major goal is to provide comprehensive and complete design services beginning with an initial design concept through installation and detailing of final design elements.

This is truly a perfect conference table where to impress your clients with your taste and work.