Knoll Textiles- I can’t miss the new Knoll Luxe Rodarte collection.

Lowell

Keats

Maharam always delights the eye.

 Designtex too!

 B & B Italia to see the Patricia Uriquola Outdoor Collection- Crinoline.

Mecho Shade will show their sloped shades.

Bergamo Fabrics introduces Aligator Viscose.

Perennial fav- Maya Romanoff shows the  Meditations collection of hand made paper by Nepalese artisans.  The luxurious texture and shimmer of Meditations wallpaper may look glamorous, but it’s also a feel-good product: Production of the handmade lokta paper employs Nepalese artisans, requires minimal energy use, and offers a portion of profits to Aid to Artisans.

Tricycle unveils the Ample Sample winner and I need to get the inside scoop if they are branching out into more industries.

This year’s winner is Steven Rothe’s Cynch Stool. Rothe, a designer from Minnesota with 11 years of experience who works for Meyer, Scherer, & Rockcastle, Ltd., explains, “The Cynch Stool’s aesthetic was driven by the goal of creating a piece of furniture that was crisper, softer, and streamlined, while not being overly heavy to allow for easy mobility of the object.”The design for Cynch is a classic combination of form and function.  With a clean and minimal aesthetic, this stool is able to meet realistic stresses while weighing less than 30% of a comparable design of solid carpet tile.  By using less total resources on top of a design that already takes advantage of almost 100% of every tile, Cynch allows the design waste stream to go further.  And by being held together with mechanical fasteners and straps, the stool is completely recyclable at the end of its life span.  The Cynch design offers minimal cutting, a simple assembly process and a lighter yet attractive stool, making it a cinch.

Herman Miller- the list goes on…. Plus, I know I’ll find a gem or two hidden in the temporary suites or find a great new source from the new exhibitors.

Monday, June 14th, Susan and I will be presenting a seminar in the Fine Design Residential Seminar Track titled: High Impact Materials for High Income Projects at 2:30-3:30 on the 15^th floor.

While I am there, I’ll be checking out the Guerilla Truck Show at Fulton Market- it’s the sixth year where young designers back up 18 wheelers to a loading dock and for 4 hours showcase their newest work. Participating groups include Strand Design, Object Society, Studio Murmur, Object Design League, and Uncommon. Object Society in it’s second annual show, offering more exciting new furniture and designed objects from even more of Chicago’s best independent designers. In the auxiliary gallery, Object Design League will be showing work from their 2010 workshop: Bags, based on the popular Midwestern game Cornhole. The public is invited inside to play our special “Bags Course,” featuring 15 designers’ interpretations of games with projectiles and targets.

 If yousee me in the booths. Stop and say hi!

I first saw Irish designer Rachel O’Neill’s (she studied at the University of Iowa) work 2 years ago at imm Cologne as part of the British Design Students booth. Rachel creates large scale wall hangings and lighting from custom dyed velcro. Who knew?! Some combinations include feathers and metallic finishes.  I loved the idea of taking a common material, in this case- velcro- and turning it into something else. The results are as you will see are completely unique and original. This year she surfaced again at ICFF with some stunning lighting concepts. Love the play on light and shadow.  What designer/workroom/installer hasn’t become frustrated by a jumbled mess of velcro? Now we know what to do with it.

Bright Blind by Mongoose

Made of electroluminescent (EL) sheets, Makoto Hirahara’s Bright Blind simulates a window where none exists. In all other respects, the artificial blind functions in exactly the same way as a regular blind – i.e. turning the plastic stick controls the brightness, etc. Great for dark rooms and basements.

As of this writing, this piece is made by hand, so it’s available – but will take some time (and money) to create.

Anyone who follows design knows, there are tons of great products out there. Much as we’d like to, we can’t possibly buy or sell them all.  In the spirit of Gen C, where design is democratic and everyone can be a designer, Bright Blinds comes to us via In The Pipeline. In the Pipeline allows you to be a virtual member of their buying team; tell them which designs you love and help them choose which products to sell. You comment on any of the designs and vote for your favorites.  Submit your email and if the prototype gets manufactured they will notify you so you can be one of the first to call it your own.

Upon further investigation; it looks like it’s been around for awhile as it was submitted to the site a year ago. Let me know what you think.  Manufacturers, here’s another shout out about innovative blinds. Anyone listening?

It seems the DIY world exists even in the couture world of Paris.  Sweat Shop is a ‘sewing café’ that provides up to 10 sewing stations with a large communal table anchored at the center for pattern cutting and textile preparations.  Situated by the St Martin canal, Sweat Shop aims to create a fashion version of a wifi café; SINGER sponsored the sewing machines which are available by the hour for anyone interested to make their own pillow case or merely patch up a torn dress. 

In a city like Paris renowned to house ateliers for some of the world’s most prolific fashion designers, more of the right kinds of ‘sweat shops’ such as these need to start mushrooming.  The brainchild of Martena Duss, a make up artists for brands such as Celine, Yves Saint Laurent and Margiela shows, Sweat Shop adopts an antique look for the interior design of the retail space and an apt modern mantra; ‘Less buying – more trying’.

Design Confidential says: STEAL THIS IDEA

WOW! I love everything about this idea- from the name; to the concept; to the look of the cafe. Workrooms-this is a great way to use fabric odds and ends, keep your machines busy and create a new revenue stream. Think Starbucks for sewers or those DIYers who want to learn. This could be a whole new business for you …. 

I have just added this to my list of must sees for our September Trip to Paris.

[via Man Make Home, PSFK]

Design Confidential: Tell me a little about yourself?

Helena Karelson:I was born in Estonia and now live and work in London. I recently graduated from Kingston University with a Product and Furniture Design degree

DC: What inspires you as a designer?

HK: I am fascinated with light and the relationship between form and shadow.  In fact this series was born from that fascination. When the slats are in the horizontal position light filters through the irregular gaps, projecting a rich tapestry of sunbeams into the interior space. In the vertical position the light from behind the window frames the blinds perfectly in a subtle, warm glow.

DC: Have you played with this category before?

HK: I did another series titled Warm Glow. These are  window blinds that bring warmth into our everyday life. When the light comes through the blinds, the yellow side of the blinds, reflects onto the white side, resulting a warm glow. The First edition of Kontuur blind premiered at this year’s D&AD New Blood exhibition, where it won the prestigious Best New Blood award.  Kontuur window blinds also won the New Design Britain Award.

 DC:  I understand that the Kontuur blinds’ inspiration was your fascination with light and shadow, why did you choose blinds as the medium.

HK: I realized that there have not been many innovations in that medium for a long time and the classical blinds have become a boring window covering solution. I saw the potential to design something interesting and beautiful. I was right, Kontuur window blinds have had and continue to have a lot of interest in them. I have got so much good feedback from everybody, including designers, architects, manufacturers, stylists and buyers from all over the world.

DC: No Kidding!

DC: Have any blind manufacturer shown interest?

HK:It is a prototype. Many blind manufacturers in UK and Europe have shown interest.

DC: Where is the interest from U.S. manufacturers? – hey guys!

Each slat is carefully designed to leave no waste post-manufacture, which, combined with the use of environmentally sound materials ensures that it can be enjoyed without the worry of its environmental impact weighing on your mind.

Wouldn’t you like to see this in our blind offerings?

 Why Lighting?

I see lighting as a fashion accessory for the home; plus I wanted to explore working with new materials and lighting seemed like a good choice.

What role did materials play in the design?

 I like to explore materials especially materials under tension. I also wanted to explore the relationship between the construction of an object and how it “works”.

 What was the one thing you learned from this project?

To think simple.

His inspiration was based on the principle of an organic body composed of skin and skeleton. In pulling the pendant light’s center rod, the intensity of the light is raised or lowered; coinciding  with the pulling of the light’s fabric membrane. In order to produce a flowing and expressive movement, the designer concentrated on a very precise and harmonious gesture focused on one point. In this way, the lamp becomes a temporary shape creating a poetic time from daily use.

Eine Wand - We came across this team while walking the Passagen showrooms and my first thought was IKEA where are you? The ID Modus team takes its inspiration fromwhat they call folding architecture. Imagine this wall system in your first studio walk up or in your tween’s room with some of the pieces opening up to storage. Paint in in Mondarian style, wall paper it, turn it into a dry erase board . It’s genius!

                                                  

Probably the most interesting and invigorating part of a trip to cologne is the Passagen, the offsite event during imm Cologne Furniture Fair that focuses on interior design trends in galleries, showrooms and shops throughout Cologne. Yes, there’s lots of walking and your fair share of wild goose chases when  exhibitions don’t live up to their brochure descriptions.  But Designer’s Fair never disappoints. Rather than showing the most famous names in the business, the DESIGNERS FAIR consciously seeks to bring together the most exciting new discoveries. Young designers take rooms on the three floors of the RheinTriadem and fill them with prototypes and furnishings.

It’s amazing what you might find and boy, did we find some great things. One of my favorites was Klaus LEUTCHE, a design firm that we almost overlooked, walking into the room we saw tassels hanging from the ceiling along we turned around to a small group of  designers sitting in the back. Of course we had to ask about the tassels A product near and dear to our hearts. What we found was fabulous! Tassels that were actually lights. 

 Even better is the story behind it. In the young designers’ broken English, and our broken German- actually Susan’s German-we learned that they were renting space in the  Borrmann atelier. A trim and yarn  factory located in Dusseldorf. They were also looking for an inexpensive, readily available medium and a little inspiration, when they quickly realized that the yarn bins and trimmings and tassels provided it all- the missing links for their lighting project.

I am not sure what I love more- the pendant light which I am coveting for my own house (I could see 3-4 in different colors and heights hanging from the ceiling in my studio) or the backstory.

Check out Plinth and Chintz’s March issue for more of my musings about the young and exciting talents we found in Cologne, Frankfurt and Paris.