IKEA Kitchen Fronts Made of Recycled Plastic & Reclaimed Wood

Swedish design studio, Form Us With Love, have collaborated with IKEA to create the KUNGSBACKA line of kitchen fronts that are made entirely from recycled plastic bottles and reclaimed industrial wood. They choose to look at used plastic bottles as a resource, instead of waste, with 25 plastic bottles being used for every 40x80cm unit.

The fronts are finished in a matte, anthracite grey, each with chamfered edges that add a bit of detail to the sleek fronts.

From Form Us With Love’s Creative Director, John Löfgren:

We wanted it to feel like a black t-shirt, tuned to fit right, practical and still precious.

Both brands worked together to reduce the high costs that typically come with using recycled and reclaimed materials due to the long research and development period. Luckily, the prices reflect those of IKEA as it was important to all involved to show that sustainability should be available to everyone.

The fronts, paired with the HACKÅS kitchen handles, offer a clean, minimalist look that outlast any trend.

Photos by Jonas Lindström.

from Design MilkDesign Milk http://design-milk.com/ikea-kitchen-fronts-made-from-recycled-plastic-reclaimed-wood/

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156635463294

A Beirut Penthouse with a Floating Staircase & Wooden Skin

Located in Wadi Abu Jamil in Beirut’s Central District, the Wadi Penthouse is a renovation project where Platau updated a segmented, two-story penthouse for a family of four. Originally, the layout wasn’t working, especially between the two floors. To solve that, a double-height space was designed at the center of the home with living spaces, offices, storage, and bedrooms just off of it.

A custom steel and copper light fixture hangs above in the double-height space becoming a minimal, yet necessary feature.

The mostly white space is warmed up with a wooden skin that clads the now widened entryway. It also sets the stage for the floating staircase that’s suspended from the ceiling with the help of vertical steel bars.

The wooden skin is far from boring with its curvilinear vertical boards wrapping around the space as it welcomes visitors. The skin hides various rooms and closets, some of which have incorporated lighting and steel handles that curve out.

Photos by Wissam Chaaya.

from Design MilkDesign Milk http://design-milk.com/a-beirut-penthouse-with-a-floating-staircase-wooden-skin/

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156633468569

11 Designers Share: Tips For Adding Warmth To A Room

These chilly, grey months of winter make me think ahead to spring and its flowers, sunshine and color. I love winter for about a month, but by mid-February, I’m counting down the days on my calendar until it’s over. Some of the ways that I personally add warmth to a room is by starting with a neutral sofa and adding in lots of colorful pillows that work well in the room and with the bright art on the walls. I also find that mixing patterns adds a certain level of warmth — something you can keep around all year long.

Since we still have some time ahead of us before the seasons change, we’ve asked 11 designers to tell us how they decorate a room to add warmth and make winter a little more inviting. From lighting to surrounding yourself with meaningful, found objects, this is a great roundup of resources that I know I’ll personally be turning to when I need a change. —Erin

from Design*Sponge http://www.designsponge.com/2017/01/11-designers-share-tips-for-adding-warmth-to-a-room.html

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156633371719

Maison & Objet 2017: Putting the Fun Back into Paris

Marcantonic’s Seletti mouse lamps must have been the most Instagrammed exhibit at January’s Maison et Objet. After a sombre show last year with visitor numbers down by 40% (the January 2016 show came shortly after the Paris terror attacks), exhibitors and visitors were both back in droves for 2017 and so was a much-missed sense of fun, color and pattern.

UK-based British design studio, Wallace Sewell, was established by Royal College of Art graduates Harriet Wallace-Jones and Emma Sewell – the collaboration an accident after they shared a stand at an exhibition in 1992. 25 years on, they are still going strong and still making all their textiles in Britain.

Kann Design’s products are all made in a Lebanon-based workshop employing 15 craftsmen that was created in 1958 by Kanaan, a renowned carpenter and the father of founder Houssam Kanaan. Two boutiques in Paris now showcase the bespoke collection.

Copenhagen-based design brand Nomess was right on the money for color at this year’s show, with this Yves Klein blue alongside yellow and the dusty pink that seems to be everywhere right now. These cushion covers are made from memory foam, making them super comfortable.

Rivi (Finnish for ‘line’) is Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec’s hand-drawn 2017 collection for Artek – the Helsinki based design company founded 1935 by Alvar and Aino Aalto, Maire Gullichsen, and Nils-Gustav Hahl.

The Eric bottles by Eric Hibelot for TH Manufacture are inspired by imagining the milk bottles on Eric’s childhood breakfast table have come to life and are telling a folk story. “The setting does not illustrate this story univocally,” he says, “because every childhood is unique.” Their wobbly form and bright pops of color appealed to us whatever their back story.

Jenny Wingfield established Flock in 2013 to discover and nurture the best of new British design. She now works with an eclectic mix of artists, designers and recent graduates to create a bold and beautiful collection of textiles for interiors. We particularly love Northmore Minor (4th fabric from left and 2nd cushion from top) by Rachel Parker.

Another brand established to promote new talent, ‘design editor’ Petite Friture was showing mirrors by Constance Guisset, wallpaper by Tiphaine de Bodman and Shelley Steer, armchairs by Morten & Jonas, and bubble table lamps by Studio Vit.

mud australia was founded in 1994 and today the colorful collection, designed by Shelley Simpson, is made by hand from Limoges porcelain in their Sydney-based factory by a staff of professional and in-house ceramicists. Clear glaze is applied by hand to the inside of each piece, leaving the matt exterior with a stone-like surface that becomes smooth with handling.

And finally, Sebastian Herkner’s glazed ceramic Mila tables for Pulpo perfectly demonstrate the vibrant color palette of this year’s show.

from Design MilkDesign Milk http://design-milk.com/mo17-putting-fun-back-paris/

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156631543219

The Ins and Outs of Collaboration with Rebecca Atwood & Sarah Laskow

We’ve always been huge fans of surface and pattern designer, Rebecca Atwood, and her ever-growing line of textiles, home goods and wallpaper. Her recent book, Living With Pattern, is a much-loved edition filled with approachable homes layered in various scales, colors and materials of pattern. Recently, Rebecca collaborated with longtime friend Sarah Laskow on a range of bespoke pillows made from Rebecca’s textiles and Sarah’s hand embroidery work. We had chance to catch up with both women and ask them about the collaboration. You can see the full collection up close and personal after the jump!

Image above: Rebecca Atwood & Sarah Laskow in the studio

Can you tell us how your latest collaboration came about?

Rebecca Atwood: Moving beyond print to explore new techniques has been a goal of mine. I’m fascinated with how we can create pattern through structure, stitching, fibers, and texture. One of the things I love most about textiles is that they are meant to be used, touched, and shared and I wanted to expand our language of techniques beyond surface transformation. Working with Sarah, one of my best friends since college, was such a natural fit to start exploring these ideas. Prior to starting my own line, I’d worked with Sarah for developing embellishment and fabric manipulation samples for home products and so I knew we worked well together. It was a very natural decision for us to collaborate.

Sarah Laskow: Rebecca and I have been friends since college and I have had the joy of watching her line come about over the past few years. As her product began to expand beyond prints, we started talking about how she could add embroidery and embellishment into the collection. I was honored that she wanted to start with a collaboration of one-of-a-kind pillows!

Click through to see more behind-the-scenes details from the collaboration process and the full line in the slideshow, with close-ups of Sarah’s beautiful embroidery! –Caitlin

What was the most rewarding part of the collaboration?

RA: Working with a friend who knows you so well was the best part for me. The process was very intuitive. To start, Sarah created embroidery swatches she thought would resonate with my aesthetic. For example, she already knew I was a fan of sashiko and brought some swatches showing how that could connect with my prints. From there I gave feedback on what I liked the most — [on] one swatch, it was actually the reverse side. I gave her prints to play with, we talked color, and it all evolved from there. Once we had nailed the techniques, I created a quick sketch for each pillow and Sarah embroidered them before they were sewn into pillows here in Brooklyn.

SL: How naturally it came together! I [made] a whole bunch of small development swatches of embroideries for Rebecca. From those initial swatches, she [chose] which to pair with which of her prints. Also which would work best for which pillow size. We regrouped again and decided on embroidery placement and colors, and that was it!

Was there an element of the collaboration that required compromise? Tell us how it came together in the end.

RA: With the collaboration I didn’t feel that there were any compromises. It was a very collaborative process. I respect Sarah’s eye and wanted that to come through with these pillows as well as my own point of view.

SL: I really didn’t feel like I had to compromise on anything. We both brought such different strengths to the project that I knew exactly when to defer to Rebecca. She is the more experienced businesswoman. But I never felt like the design was compromised.

How does this collaborative project differ from your previous collaborations?

RA: This was a very personal collaboration since we are such good friends. It’s been almost fifteen years since we met, and Sarah just knows my aesthetic so well and vice versa. My last collaboration, with method home, was really wonderful but totally different. While this was very personal — meeting after work to review designs while also catching up on our lives — working with method was much more structured. They’re a big company, so they had systems in place and I worked with a team there for different aspects of the project including design, fragrance, marketing, and PR. Method inspired me because they’re constantly improving what they’re doing and are a big company that can have real impact. Both collaborations have inspired me in different ways.

SL: This was my first formal collaboration since leaving the fashion industry and pursing contemporary embroidery full-time. I hope they are all this easy.

What growth in your own process came as a result of working with a partner?

RA: Working with Sarah on these embroideries inspired me to start working on embroideries that we could produce on a larger scale. Mixing print with embroidery is something you’ll see in a collection that comes out in May.

SL: My process was not really focused on an end product. I develop my embroideries without a defined final use. Rebecca is much more product focused and she has taught me a lot about how to take scattered ideas and shape them into a collection.

What advice do you have for others considering a collaboration?

RA: Outline the details upfront. Even if you’re working with friends, or it’s a dream project, it’s so important to set expectations so everyone is on the same page. The creative side of me always wants to dive in and get started, but having a written agreement of some kind is essential. Each party should know what is expected of them in terms of deliverables, usage of design, design process, financial obligations, and marketing. I’ve been very lucky to work on some great collaborations, from this one to the two collections for method home last year. What made both of them successful was that we had clear expectations, good communication, and a respect for one another’s work.

SL: Define what each party is bringing to the collaboration. Especially when it [comes] to time and financials. The design inspiration is the spark that brings you together, but the details might get complicated and won’t necessarily be equal. Better to define those upfront.

And finally, what’s your next collection or project looking like?

RA: There’s so much in the pipeline. These pillows are really the beginning of our expansion into new fabric techniques. This spring we’ll be introducing a wide range of woven fabrics as well as embroidered fabrics.

SL: I have just launched my first shop. Like I said, Rebecca really [pushes] me to think about my work as a product and a collection. Excited to share this small selection of one-of-a-kind, framed embroideries.

from Design*Sponge http://www.designsponge.com/2017/01/the-ins-and-outs-of-collaboration-with-rebecca-atwood-sarah-laskow.html

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156631474734

Exclusive: Loup by Saif Faisal for OTHR

This week, the traditional fruit bowl is turned on its head. We’re excited to give you an exclusive sneak peek into OTHR’s latest launch: Loup, by Bangalore, India-based designer Saif Faisal.

3D printed in black or white porcelain, Loup takes a fresh look at an everyday object.
Its abstract shape only expresses its function when occupied; when left empty, its purpose is up to the user’s imagination. Whether on the mantle or in use, this pared-down kitchen tool adds a subtle elegance to any room.

A container to all, Loup uses simplicity and versatility to put any object on display, from cuisine to memorabilia.

Faisal is part of a generation of Indian designers designing opposite the pervading sensibility of ‘Jugaad,’ a culture of work-around solutions. Instead, he focuses on quality and longevity in his work; one of a growing movement of “avant-garde designers with fresh perspective taking a sensible and progressive attitude towards design.”

Get your early edition of Loup here before it goes on sale to everyone else this Thursday.

OTHR is an on-demand 3D printed design brand producing objects by today’s most talented designers—and each week, we bring you exclusive, pre-launch access to their latest designs.

Add your email to our exclusive OTHR list to be get notified when a new design is available:

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from Design MilkDesign Milk http://design-milk.com/exclusive-loup-saif-faisal-othr/

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156629705574

On the UK’s Southern Coast, a Potter’s Colorful Modern Flat

On a cold day earlier this year, I decided to pass the time by wandering around some of my favorite stores. With coffee in one hand and my boyfriend’s hand in the other, I ended up in West Elm where I was struck by the work of  potter Stella Baggott. I’m telling you, to know her latest collection is to love it. Full of brilliantly-colored decanters in mod shapes, the pieces are cheerful and memorable. Come to think of it, her home in Brighton, UK isn’t much different.

Located only an hour’s train ride from London, Brighton is a relaxed and creative coastal town. It’s the perfect spot for an artist looking for inspiration and a place to work and play. At the time of her move, Stella had been priced-out of London, and she was a bit worried about where she would end up. Luckily, she was able to snag a flat in the East Sussex spot with an almost identical floor plan to the one she had in the big city. Built in 1812, its 800 square feet were, unfortunately, not decorated how Stella would have liked, but you’d never know now that it’s been given a mid-century makeover.

The first thing Stella did when she moved in was paint everything. Decked out in taupe, the dingy walls were neither her style nor did they do anything to brighten the parts of the home that received minimal light. A simple coat of white and a few dollops of color have since done the trick though, and Stella couldn’t be happier with the results. Each little decor move she’s made has helped her achieve the “homey and inviting” vibe she was looking for.

While Stella’s vibrant yellow door, bold black walls and vintage finds are absolutely inviting and eye-catching, my favorite part of the home has to be how it’s styled with Stella’s own work. She proudly displays pots, decorative planters and one-off designs in almost every room of the home. How lucky she is to have a set of one-of-a-kind decorations at the ready! Their turquoise green and blue hues add even more color to the flat, and I’m all for that. Click through to see them sprinkled throughout this marvelous space, and atop one of the prettiest fireplaces I’ve ever seen. It’s a stunner. Enjoy! —Garrett

Photography by Stella Baggott

from Design*Sponge http://www.designsponge.com/2017/01/on-the-uks-southern-coast-a-potters-colorful-modern-flat.html

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156629599899

Umbra + TO DO Compact Living Product Exhibition

Curated by the Toronto Design Offsite Festival, which runs concurrently with IDS Toronto, Umbra’s Compact Living exhibition offers fresh prototypes by 11 Canadian designers. The exhibitors take a look at urban dwellers and what housewares might make their smaller spaces more livable and their lives more efficient. Take a look at this year’s designs.

Simone Ferkul designed a series of suspended planters, called Sling, that bring the outdoors in. A ceramic vessel is held by an elongated loop to created a plantscape in your small dwelling.

Frontières, by Studio Aubry / Levesque, acts as an open room divider for smaller apartments, while providing much-needed extra storage. The movable shelf was inspired by vintage outdoor wire frame furniture pieces from the 1950s but with a modern twist.

Rainville-Sangaré’s Bug step stool provides height to reach those extra tall cabinets making it a practical design for compact living. It’s made of steel with a thick matter rubber finish that makes it waterproof and durable.

Also from Rainville-Sangaré, the K.I.S.S. (Kitchen Island Surface System) is a way to add extra work surfaces to your small kitchen. The flat-packed design comes in four parts that are easily assembled and it even has the option of wheels for extra functionality.

Harbour’s Topside is both a hanging mirror and and a mirrored tray – it’s your choice. Its oblong shape references that of a ship’s top deck, which is how the object got its name. Its tubular bent metal “railing” floats above the mirror creating a frame/edge that makes it easy to handle.

The Moon Quilt & Cover is by Libs Elliott and its compact size, just 5′ x 5′, folds up to be stored inside the Moon cover to become a cushion. It has a geometric pattern created randomly using Processing, a programming language.

Alissa Coe designed the Basalt Bathroom Set, which comprises five lidded vessels for discreet bathroom storage helping to combat clutter. The hexagonal vessels were inspired by the compact natural formations that are made by basalt, or dark volcanic rock.

From Char Kennedy comes the Facet Mirror, a compact mirror that offers four viewing angles depending on how you turn it. Its design encourages you to engage with the handle of the mirror by physically moving it around to get various views. By using the handle, you avoid smudging the mirror with fingerprints.

Using a span of industrial grey felt, Felt Studio created the File & Magazine Holder to help you organize your daily papers. Designed to be placed on the floor or on a desk, the object holds your stuff in between its folds with two wooden dowels keeping it securely in place.

Linus Kung’s Unicorn is a multipurpose lamp that was inspired by the fluorescent umbrellas in the movie Blade Runner. It has an umbrella handle-like body with a magnet at the bottom allowing it to adapt to most any use.

You might recognize the Two Halves Shelf, by Chifen Cheng, as it was just featured yesterday.

We’re big fans of Hinterland and their Section Stool is made of stacked components that swivel around to reveal a storage tray, side tables, a wooden bowl, and a desk organizer. They close up when they’re not needed but swivel out when you need to use them.

from Design MilkDesign Milk http://design-milk.com/umbra-to-do-compact-living-product-exhibition/

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156627931374

Article Launches New Bedroom Series and New Cozy Accessories

Article, best known for affordable, mid-century modern designs that work with any home, recently launched their latest lookbook, complete with a new bedroom series and more accessories.

Their latest bedroom series consists of two different lines, the more industrial-style Taiga and classic mid-century modern Culla. The frames are made from wood — where Taiga has metal accents, and Culla has a fine finish. Both feature full, queen, and king frames, as well as matching nightstands and dressers.

To complement their newest offerings, Article also launched a series of cozy accessories, lush with different textures and patterns. From sustainable seagrass baskets to planters, each piece is meant to enhance and build upon what one already has in the home.

from Design MilkDesign Milk http://design-milk.com/article-launches-new-bedroom-series-and-new-cozy-accessories/

from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/156626136104