In Memory of Brian

This past Saturday the Wellington paper featured a lovely article on the life story of our dear friend Brian Wallis who passed away at the end of August after a long battle with cancer.

Brian has owned Form Furniture on the Old Hutt Road in Thorndon for many years, and it was he who took the esdesign girls under his wing when we first set up ten years ago - leasing us a small studio at the front of the Form Furniture workshop, among the dust and the wood shavings and the treasure trove of antique furniture that streamed in and out of the premises. He taught us a host of invaluable furniture restoration skills, (as well as an endless supply of questionable jokes) - and the knowledge he has given us adds to the wealth of advice we too can now give to our clients. 

Brian's son Reuben has taken over the Form Furniture reigns and continues to do a brilliant job for both their own clients and many of ours. Brian will be sorely missed, however Form Furniture remains as strong as ever, and we look forward to seeing where Reuben takes the company in the future!

Gwyneth Hulse Design

Last week I stumbled across the gorgeous wares of Northland based designer and maker Gwyneth Hulse Design. I love the clean, minimalist, graphic lines of her work - a little bit of natural wood and a little splash of colour - this combo gives a retro vibe that we're really digging!

BROKEN: Exploring the Defects in Wood

Finnish designer Jalmari Laihinen, explores the beauty of wood with all of its cracks, breaks, and defects, in a series of furniture called BROKEN. By allowing the true natural properties of wood to show through, wood becomes more than just the material that the pieces are made from. Wood with defects is often discarded and not used in the furniture making process, but Laihinen embraces them and treats these unique features as accents.

Stools From Waste - Tsuyoshi Hayashi

Designer Tsuyoshi Hayashi has used discarded roof tiles to create these awesome stools! 65,000 roof tiles are discarded from a nearby factory every year and are simply being sent to land fills. Hayashi uses these pieces to make the stools, discarding the chipped or cracked parts, then fixing them to the wooden frame he designed leaving no nails or glue required. We are so inspired by people with clever ideas for upcycling and recycling waste product, just brilliant!

Mano - Furniture Design

Check out these super cool pieces by Wairarapa based furniture designers Mano. They do some seriously cool 'out of the box' things by mixing traditional and contemporary design features, lacquered finishes and beautiful wood grain. On top of furniture design - both stock and custom - they've even dabbled in interior fit out work too!

Christina Liljenberg Halstrøm Furniture

Take a peek at the contemporary style of designer Christina Liljenberg Halstrøm. She studied design and art in Stockholm, then went on to graduate from The School of Design at the Royal Danish Academy in Copenhagen in 2007. Her furniture has influences from her parents Nordic roots, and she follows a very minimalist approach to both the shape and use of materials within her designs, choosing to work with natural elements such as wood, leather and wool. 

Coloured Wooden Rugs by Elisa Strozyk

German designer Elisa Strozyk keeps crafting beautiful textiles made out of a surprising material wood!  Her coloured wood rugs are another piece to add to her large wooden material collection. Each rug has numerous triangles that are dyed and arranged to form various geometrical patterns. Each rug can either lay flat or be sculpted around the triangles sides to make pieces of art right in your living room.