Yeah, but it's ugly...

One of the reasons it's fun to have a blog like this is that it gives me an excuse to look for and find new, interesting designs in wood. I don't always like what I find, but I don't typically hoke when see it. Well, I choked this time.

According to the PSFK blog, "Korean designer Su-jin Park has embedded classically styled furniture inside more modern variations. The work intends to represent the passage of time and the evolution of furniture." Okay...

[Thanks to PSFK.com.]

Plywood Furniture

The title Plywood Furniture may conjure up images of some really bad-looking, poorly-build objects that barely qualify as furniture. Well, prepare to be pleasantly surprised.
This article at the Design Crave website has ten examples of beautiful (mostly) pieces of furniture built from plywood. The Poltrona Suave Lounge Chair in the photo is a good example. From the website, "Brazil’s Julia Krantz creates her pieces by stacking and laminating sheets of plywood and shapes seating like a relief. With its grain, sheen and organic undulations, the Poltrona Suave Chair looks whittled from a solid piece of wood, but vertical lines hint at its plied origins." (Click for larger view.)
The article also has links to online plywood furniture projects you can built. They won't look quite like the Poltrone Suave Chair, but hey, what does?

Computerized Routing

The editors at Fast Company have an interesting article about modern wood furniture. I always find these kind of articles inspiring, sometimes surprising. For example, a curved wood project like the chaise in the photo would typically be made by steaming the wood to shape, but this chaise by SchindlerSalemeron (from the article):

...is actually made by routing two sheets of wood at ultra-precise angles, and then fitting them together like the two sides of a zipper. Tiny variations in the cuts produce the chair's curves. Forget about handworking; the magic is all in the computerized routing.

More cool furniture and photos at FastCompany.com.

[Thanks CoolHunting.com]

Alder Cubes

Most woodworkers like the look and feel of wood. Most of us work with boards and sheet goods. Designer Brent Comber pushes the envelope a bit with several of his designs, but if you love wood, you'll love his work.

The photo shows Alder Cubes, pieces of Alder wood with dark resin in between. I think they're primarily design as seating for art galleries or lobbies of large buildings. The designer says:

I have always loved the spaces created between the trees in a forest. I was inspired by the positive and negative shapes and the play of light against dark.

His website has several interesting and beautiful designs. Don't miss the "Shattered" collection of Douglas Fir.

[As seen at ThisNext]

Pinechair

Inspiration from designer Thomas Bentzen in Denmark.

From the catalog, "PINECHAIR 1.0 is a solid chair made from pine planks, created in a tradition which positions itself as a natural extension of traditional Scandinavian furniture. The idea behind the chair was to work the flat planks of pine into a three-dimensional shape."

More photos and info here on Bentzen's website. And while you're there, be sure to check out his cafe concept for the Danish Design Center. Also in pine. I'd eat there everyday.

Waste Wood and Cutoffs

Save 'em! At last, here's proof that there's a value beyond firewood for the contents of your cutoff bin. A designer has turned her talents to furniture made totally of cutoffs and waste wood.

From AmyHunting.com's website, "Wood waste and off-cuts were collected from factories in Denmark. This collection is made entirely out of the factory waste collected. The pieces were put together to form a wood patchwork before they were made into a chair, a book box and a series of 12 lamps."

Cutoffs rule! More photos and info here. [Thanks to BoingBoing.]