What are we showing in Milan?
99% cabinets
The 99% cabinets are the latest and best example from a series of designs based on the philosophy of the most efficient possible use of materials and labour. The larger cabinet, for example, entails less than 1% material wastage, including punch waste!
The concept was so obvious and appealing that we figured someone must have already come up with it. But after learning that this was not the case, we quickly developed the cabinet concept further.
Materials: Corten steel, coated white aluminium, copper and brass (to produce mould).
Hanging and standing necktie lamps – both large and small
Two rings placed in the hem of a piece of fabric – it’s virtually impossible to imagine a simpler lamp design. This together with the enormous supply of old tie fabrics found in the attic of our dealer Rossana Orlandi in Milan has resulted in these unique lamps. Only a few lamp styles are available, but the variety of necktie fabrics is virtually endless.
Lamps made of custom fabrics will probably be available in the future.
Materials: Old necktie materials and metal
Dark bench
In the ruins of an old water mill where we are currently building a number of holiday homes, we found several layers of rotten doors and panel boards. I originally planned to use these old, weather-beaten and worm-eaten pieces of wood to make benches for inside the mill. But before making these benches, we decided out of sheer enthusiasm to make a version in dark scrap wood for our collection.
Materials: high gloss finished dark scrap wood, velour and brass.
Dark coffee cube
In addition to the benches, a coffee table cube is also available. The difference between this table cube and the other waste coffee table cubes in our collection is obvious: this cube is panelled, not stacked, and the wood used is thinner, creating a more sophisticated and stylish look.
Materials: high gloss finished dark scrap wood, brass baseboard.
Plank chair
After becoming more and more irritated with the increase in mediocre designs sold for as much money as possible under the guise of uniqueness, I decided during the 2008 Salone that I would present inexpensive, high-quality and unusual products the following year.
The previous year I had been asked to design the interior for the cultural centre in Edam, my hometown. Since the budget was insufficient, I proposed to provide a design that they could then use to produce the pieces themselves, together with students and volunteers. The design was therefore limited to the drawings and instructions on how to make the pieces. I really liked the concept of making your ideas available to others in this way and so I translated it into a do-it-yourself construction drawing for products.
Unfortunately, it proved difficult to carry out my idea to have the chair made on various continents and then offered at as low a price as possible. Our supplier in Indonesia was the only one able to produce and deliver the chair. The intended diversity was therefore not possible, but we’ve managed to expand the range of options to include a handmade scrap wood chair from the Netherlands and one from Indonesia made of Indonesian scrap wood, mostly hardwood.
Naturally you can always opt for the do-it-yourself kit and build your own chair!
Fluorescent mirror lights
Laminated mirror glass reflects both light and the surroundings, making it perfect for a lighting fixture! When we originally tried to order laminated mirror glass, there was no such glass available, but there is today!
Games
Back to basics, with traditional games, skills and rules, but featuring a new yet familiar look.
Table soccer
It began with the figure, folded like a clothespin, after which the feet, legs, torso, shoulder blades and head automatically followed. The rest of the game was then produced to match in the same rugged steel and functional style.
Ping Pong table
Translation of a pure sports table into a true ‘classic’, yet still sporty table.
Materials: Mahogany and ash.
Shuffleboard table
Shuffleboard has got to be the silliest game around. It’s something you were forced to play at school as entertainment. But every so often you would find yourself actually trying to get the pucks into the scoring boxes. With this shuffleboard table, literally everything is illuminated and the pucks are of official competition weight!
Black vases
Virtually every vase we made over the past year was unsuccessful because we were simply unable to control the process. But, oddly enough, we managed to succeed with the black version! This in turn gave us the confidence – after dozens of failed attempts – to resolve the problem with the white vases.
This post is also available in: NL
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