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Companies like Estonia-based Raiku have a solution for the luxury packaging industry that sits at the intersection of these issues. Their compostable packaging is designed with luxury products and consumers in mind and doesn’t end up in landfills. I spoke with one of Raiku’s co-founders, Karl J Pärtel, about the barriers manufacturers face in adapting compostable packaging, creating a luxury product and addressing the urgency of environmental issues.
Tulipa is inspired by Tulips for their translucent and colorful petals. The Tulipa Collection makes a statement with curved pink and green glass shapes that alternate colors and adorn the center column. The column features a downlight with integrated LED lamping and a frosted glass diffuser.
This week we talked to Stephanie Stroud, the area manager of Ferguson’s Los Angeles and Santa Barbara showrooms about the latest trends in lighting for kitchens and baths. From channeling old world, royal estates, to combining minimal styles from around the world, and embracing nature with eco-friendly and biophilic designs, these lighting trends encompass a diverse range of styles and themes.
Sunbrella is known for its durability and resistance to fading and stains. How do you balance these functional requirements with creating aesthetically pleasing designs?
GV: At Sunbrella, we never have to worry about compromising the look and feel of new designs to maintain performance. Sunbrella fabrics are filled with texture and softness due to our unique bank of specialty yarns, weaving and finishing techniques. Each fiber of every yarn is saturated to the core with UV-stable pigments, resulting in vibrant color that allows our fabrics to retain the same look over time, even after continual cleaning and usage.
After branching out on her own, Trousdale noticed a change taking place in the industry: Clients were becoming more familiar with product. There was growing pressure to present clients high level design with an element of surprise. Who and where could she turn to find the industry support and resources she needed to keep up with this shifting tide? Turns out she wasn’t the only designer noticing the trend. As a result, Trousdale launched Circaphiles in 2020, which connects and empowers professionals in the design industry by providing educational resources, networking opportunities, and access to unique sources, vetted by peers designing at a high level.
Wanting to create a store that draws local shoppers back again and again as they refresh their decor or pop in to find a special gift, interior designer Shaolin Low has opened Woven by Shaolin in Kailua, Hawaii.
In 2023, he launched an online store, Ryan Saghian Mode-De-Vie, which features a curated collection of furnishings, art, and accessories from his favorite trade vendors and artisans. He is one of the first interior designers to embrace the metaverse with his own virtual showroom, optimized for a fully interactive VR experience. Saghian received his Bachelor’s of Science in Interior Architecture and Design from the Art Institute of California.
AI tools like Firefly are going to make in the design industry is to the designer’s workflow. Adobe Firefly is render-independent and makes notes and adjustments within seconds of receiving them from the user. The rate at which it learns and implements changes accurately and quickly depends on both machine training and artful human-user prompting.
John Conrad’s career in home furnishings has spanned nearly five decades. From furniture rep to executive director of the International Society of Furniture Designers to design podcast host, he’s worn many hats and still has his finger on the pulse. In conversation with DNN Editor in Chief Courtney Porter, John Conrad discusses what’s changed and stayed the same in the industry, what it’s going to take to make the industry attractive to young talent, and what keeps him excited about the industry.
Gunawan defines herself as a progressive architect. When people hear the term progressive architect they get intimidated. In her experience, people assume it means something technical and lofty, but she stands by the term. It means always improving, turning failures into opportunities. In practice that means building upon what already exists. This is the philosophy behind the name of her architecture design and build firm, The Only Way is Up.