D3 2012: New Talent p2

Kelkheim by Philipp Kliem and Patrick König takes your traditional industrial metal shelves and softens them up by using a construction made entirely from wood veneer.


Aylin Kayser's Schrank11 plays with different senses of scale with 11 cupboards nestled inside each other. The cupboards are able to be taken out and arranged however it fits your space.


Julien Renault created this outdoor furniture collection by using manufactured planks and logs made of recycled plastic. The design takes cues from basic wood construction while the low profiles bring the user closer to the ground and nature.


Apollo by International won third place in this year's competition. This modular system of lights allows the user to create different experiences by layering the perforated shades into different combinations.


Pause by the German designer Andreas Mikutta celebrates a slower pace in life by creating a space for people to rest in tranquility.


Martin Solem wanted to create a barstool that was of high design and affordable for everyone. With his collection named Daddy Longlegs, the simple shapes and clean lines can be replicated in many materials ranging from inexpensive plastics to perhaps marble.


Listen to Your Hands by Lee Sanghyeok won second place this year and is really something you need to see in person. The idea of this table is about communicating with an inanimate object through the sense of touch. Using air pressure, one can open and close the drawers while inevitably affecting the other drawers to move. You can watch the video here

D3 2012: New Talent p1

Some of you may or may not know, but the past week I was showing my sofa Jam at the Imm Cologne Furniture Fair in the D3 Contest. It was such a great opportunity to meet like minded people who are full of passion and drive for their work. I'll be putting together the next three posts covering the other young designers and what they showed. enjoy!



Miya Kondo is a Canadian designer who studied and currently lives in the Netherlands. Her Composition Light is a family of objects that are able to create different atmospheres of light depending on how they are composed.


Tim Mackerodt is a German designer from Kassel who showed his pendant lamp FALT.leuchte and the fair. This lamp uses a unique fiber-reinforced concrete that is actually folded to make the form.


This is Tick by Jakob Schenk of Schenkworks. Jakob, a German-based designer, uses a bent metal structure to create legs for any table-like surface. (I can't wait to buy a set of these)


This is the winning design of the competition, the Gravity Stool by Jolan van der Wiel of Amsterdam. By using a magnetic material and manipulating magnetic fields, Jolan created a machine that grows it's own products. You should check out the video here


I've been following Formafantasma for little over a year now and it was exciting to walk into the booth and see this bulbous, low chair called Domestica. Based on rural crafts and its archetypes, the chair is more of a recollection of the container farmers used to wear on their backs to carry the harvest.


Magnus Pettersen is a Norwegian designer who currently works and lives in London. With his lamp Tint, Magus decides to contradict the cold, hard materials of glass and concrete by creating a warm soft light.


The Frame Chair by the Berlin-based designer Stephanie Jasny is made to pay homage to the classical Thonet chair. In order to bring this curvy coffee-shop chair into the modern day, Stephanie uses a square cross section and tinted wood to create a crisp and refreshing update to the classic chair.

Nathan Yong: Masters Line in Space

Nathan Yong is becoming known for his airy, crisp designs that look like he actually got a marker and drew in space.

Rochus Jacob: Rethinking the Radiator

It was around last year this time that I was working on a radiator project myself, but unfortunately I never had the time to finish it.. All that might change after getting inspired by this approach to Rethinking the Radiator by Rochus Jacob. In this project, along with his other work, his quiet approach to form leaves room for conceptual thought.

Holly Berry: Morse-Code blankets

There's so many wonderful design objects out there, but the ones that catch my eye are the objects that have something unexpected. For example, look at these cozy blankets by Holly Berry. Yes, the quality is great and the vibrant colorways make you smile. But if you study it closely, the pattern spells "love" in Morse code :)

Interior: Rustic Wood in Florence

Check out this great home in Florence! I like the mod orange pop colors mixed with the rustic wood construction. It's always interesting to see how someone separates the work and play in their house, I mean look at that dining table, it looks like a conference table!

Dana Barnes: In Knots

I love this material and texture study done by Dana Barnes using the different techniques of felting, twisting, knotting, tying, netting, and looping.

Kaufmann Merchantile: "Products that will outlast you"

Is it too late to do the 12 days of christmas? Well here's a wishlist of objects I want from the German-founded company Kaufmann Merchantile whose product exemplify quality and craft.

Postalco Pressed Cotton Calendar:



Market & Fruit Picking Bag:




Tube Wringer:




Wooden Snowshoes (Beavertail):




By they way, their blog is amazing.

Pottinger+Cole: Purpose and Materials

Quiet, purposeful lines mixed with playing with materials makes the work of Pottinger+Cole so great.