Menu SS 2015 collection

While I was at Stockholm Furniture Fair the other week, the new Spring 2015 collection by Danish design brand MENU caught my eye (you might have seen me instagramming these beautiful wire chairs by Studio WM…). In a fair packed to the rafters with every imaginable furniture design in all shapes and sizes, MENU’s pared-back style, clean lines and soft muted colours provided a calming respite. The furniture isn’t just pretty to look at either, all the pieces are carefully considered and designed for function and built to last. As they say: ‘You won’t find anything crazy-coloured or hyper trendy that will ware out tomorrow. Out products and designs are meant to last and to stay classy for generations to come’.

The Stick System for example is a versatile shelving system designed by Czech designers Jan Plecháč & Henry Wielgus made of wooden sticks and joints of steel. It can be easily transformed into a clothing rack and work table too. ‘We wanted to create a clever and aesthetically beautiful design solution for a modern generation: Stick System can be extended and adapted to fit different spaces. It enables multiple options, which makes it a pragmatic interior solution to today’s increasing needs,’ says Jan Plecháč. The Afteroom chair, (below) meanwhile, is beautifully simple, reduced to the bare minimum: just three legs, a seat and a neat rest for the small of the back. It’s designed by Stockholm based, Taiwanese duo Hung-Ming Chen and Chen-Yen Wei, otherwise known as Afteroom. They have a clear and non-compromising approach to aesthetics and design, striving to create designs that grow even more beautiful with time. Chen-Yen Wei says: ‘Afteroom chair is based on the concept of reducing the amount of materials to the minimum and by doing so pushing the aesthetic appearance to the maximum’. My favourites are the wavy Dancing Pendant by Iskos-Berlin (above), the Optical Candle Holder by StokkeAustad and Phold by Shane Schneck (cover image), a clever family of containers designed to store all the small things in life, from office detritus to salt and pepper.

Afteroom chair by Stockholm based, Taiwanese duo Hung-Ming Chen and Chen-Yen Wei

Stick System by Czech designers Jan Plecháč & Henry Wielgus

The Afteroom Lounge Chair is the result of combining the inspiration from two iconic chairs of early modernism: The Thonet Bentwood Armchair and by Michael Thonet and the Spanish Chair by Borge Mogensen.

Phold by Shane Schneck

GoodNorm bedding by Norm Architects

Optical Candle Holder by StokkeAustad

Knot Trestle table by Cecilie Manz

  
Bollard light by Schane Schneck. All images: MENU