Thursday, October 27, 2011

Design wooden furniture: make your living room a warmer place


Exactly one year ago I wrote about wooden beds and how they help creating a warm atmosphere even during the coldest winters.

I don't know what's the weather like wherever you are but here in Italy it definitely looks like winter is coming; these rainy cold days made me think about how a concept like that could perfectly be applied on living room furniture. Wood is a fantastic material, it instantly makes you feel comfortably at home, it warms the environment as well as your heart; moreover they come with the special feature of looking elegant without feeling too rigid, a kind of elegance with a soul.

Design wooden furniture, also thanks to the difference types available, will look great both with a minimal contemporary design and with a more classic one, it's not important which style do you like or which kind of house do you own, the warmth of wood is for everyone.

I played a little bit imagining in which kind of living room I would love to pass my spare time during a snowy winter and which kind of design furniture I'd love to have around me.

I'm proposing you some of them, let me know if you agree with me.

Let's start with Logic adjustable TV stand panel available in different wood types. Logic can be fixed to a wall, in this way you can take advantage of the space at disposal in the best way. Moreover, thanks to its mechanical arm it can extend and rotate, allowing to view the TV from different points of view.

Logic adjustable TV stand panel
Millerighe ash solid wood coffee table is perfect to warm the environment, even all by itself, thanks to the particular composition of irregular laths and the different wooden finishes.High quality finishes, modern design and the stability given by the solid wood structure make Millerighe a great choice especially matched with Millerighe console table.

Millerighe coffee table and console table

Tables are important elements in living room furniture and I think Cover elliptical solid wood table fully embraces my concept. Characterized by a simple polished style, the particular structure is particularly convenient since even the people sitting at the head of the table will have enough space at disposal to dine, is there anything better than spending winter days with your friends around a fully set table?

Cover elliptical table

Lastly, we have Tween 04 wall system with shelves, a great way of furnishing a whole wall with all the necessary space to organize books, decorative objects as well as glasses or bottles. This particular combination gives you the possibility to match two different finishes, for two-coloured solutions. 

Tween 04 wall system with shelves

Friday, October 21, 2011

Table lamps with multiple purposes

Table lamps, just like any other domestic objects, are designed to have multiple purposes: multifunctionality is a great feature which we usually find in modern styled furniture, infact they don't just aim to be useful and convenient (apart from being aesthetically pleasant of course), but they also look for a combination of different uses in the same element.


Italian design table lamps are object we use in different places, but in particular as the name says they are used on "tables", and with tables I mean desks, nightstands, consolle tables...
Lamps are placed on surfaces with different uses; on a desk, for example, we can have different electronic devices, as well as traditional working instruments such as pens, pencils, rubbers, markers.

On a nightstand we often find different objects which do not belong to the bedroom, maybe creating some mess around; other that the usual inevitable mobile-phones (what if something happens while we're sleeping?), a whole bunch of remote controls (the Tv, the stereo, the air conditioning...), we can still find place for mp3 players, glasses, magazines, a book (or an ebook reader perhaps?). Do you have something else on your nightstand?

If the answer is yes, you'll be glad to know that table lamps can now offer you other functions, additional to the obvious one (lighting): they can gather, in a single "storage unit", all the different objects that otherwise will have to roam around your tables, avoiding confusion and mess while offering at the same time a charging base for your technological devices.

Evo modern metal table lamp by Calligaris does that and in a highly stylish way; its particular shapes, obtained from a single element of metal sheet, don't prevent its multi-purposes feature, thanks to the classy and convenient change tray on the base.

Evo table lamp by Calligaris with change tray

Joyo multifunctional lamp, other than being able to contain objects, comes with an USB switch. In this way you can charge your technological devices such as mobile-phones, mp3 players or ebook readers; all things that should never miss on a desk or on a nightstand. The wide selection of colours available makes it particularly funny and adaptable to every kind of environments.

Joyo multifunctional lamp - version with classic finish

Joyo multifunctional lamp - version with Lightcolours finish

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Folding and extending tables: adapt furniture to narrow spaces


Small rooms and environments are a characteristic of nowadays flats, the space at disposal seems to drastically reduce and while a few lucky ones live in wide enough houses, the rest of us are struggling with space, or with the lack of it to be more precise.

How can we have everything we need without sacrificing precious room? Do we really have to give up on design furniture and classy contemporary style?
Italian design furniture comes in help, with solutions specifically thought for us, people who live in narrow places, who don't want to give up comfort and style but at the same time still need everything to be compact and adaptable.

More in specific, the brand Calligaris has presented us throught the years great solutions for that, thanks to a range of Italian design tables and console tables which I find to be extremely convenient and stylish at the same time.

The first model I'd like to show you is Olivia Pocket folding console table. This console table is classy, with a simple but elegant design and when closed it measures only cm 42 x 100 and it can hold inside its structure the chairs. In this way when you've done with lunch or dinner you can easily store them inside and easily move Olivia Pocket console table in a corner of the house, also thanks to its convenient casters.

Olivia Pocket folding console table


The space you have at disposal is ridiculously small? Quadro folding table and Olivia Bar folding console table can be the answer. Both needs to be fixed to a wall and they can be opened and closed by a simple 90° rotation. Depths when closed are 14 cm for the first one and 15 cm for the second one, they practically dissapear in case of need and you will have all the space at disposal.

Quadro folding table 
Olivia Bar folding console table

If you want a more refined and elegant solution, Baron X-tension extending console table may be suitable for you. With structure made of satin finished steel and laminate top this console table comes with two extensions, a drop down and a folding one, making it adaptable to all needs. Legs always follow the table in length avoiding the trouble of having them in front of the chairs while eating.

Baron X-tension extending console table

Last product I'd like to share with you is Flexy extending and convertible coffee table. This table has a great characteristic: it doubles in size and height. You can simply use it as a refined design coffee table and when you need you can convert it into a proper dining table for 6 people, thanks to the casters and the button placed on the side. Flexy structure will easily lift up and down just like an ironing board.
Flexy extending and convertible coffee table

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Plastic Chairs, between past and future

How chairs have developed during the years? And above all, have they?

The answer to the second question is quite simple, yes they have! But always with an eye on tradition, without forgetting our past because, let's face it, the past will probably represent itself again in the future.
It's been a very long way but at present we can safely say chairs are not only useful objects where people can seat and dine or rest, they've become a cult object. The never-ending search for new shapes, materials and manufacturing techniques brought us exquisite examples of contemporary design chairs and armchairs.

These chairs and armchairs are able just by themselves to furnish an entire room thanks to their mere presence. Bright and funny colours, original shapes, innovative concepts and manufacturing techniques; seating on a chair like this is just like seating on a contemporary work of art.

Let's have a look at some examples.

Raviolo armchair is a brand new made in Italy product, designed by famous Israeli designer Ron Arad and produced by Magis; the perfect mixture of Italian furniture reliability and innovative thinking.

This armchair has a structure composed by a single polyethylene "ribbon", manufactured with rotational moulding technique. The result is a modern chair with a distinctive and funny look that resembles a stuffed ravioli. The 8 different colours at disposal will satisfy the needs of everyone.

Raviolo armchair by Magis designed by Ron Arad

Flower low chair by Magis is another example of how good Italy works with the greatest designers of modern times. In this case I'm talking about Pierre Paulin; Flower is infact a reinterpretation of the original design made by Paulin during the 60s. What was I saying about the past being our future?
Flower comes with a modern and organic shape, elegant and perfect just like a sculpture but lightened by the transparency of the material used (polycarbonate, a plastic material that can be easily worked and moulded). The coloured cushions are the perfect touch to brighten the room.

Flower low chair by Magis in polycarbonate with coloured cushion

The whole concept of past and future brought us to a chair symbol of this marriage: Milano 2015 chair. Presented in 2010 at Milan's Furniture Fair, it has been specifically created to commemorate Milan Expo which will take place in 2015.
This Italian design chair revisits the classic lines of the typical Milan tavern chair in a modern way by using moulded plastic materials. Available in a nylon version with thick colours or in an even more modern version made of polycarbonate with transparent glossy colours. Completely made in Italy from design to manufacturing process, Milano 2015 is perfect for the people who wants a contemporary chair without forgetting about tradition.

Milano 2015 chair - created for Milan 2015 Expo