I remember in movies about life during medieval times, they would show scenes where commoners were having celebrations or parties of a sort in their villages. It seemed they always used these huge, thick slabs of wood as dining tables. They didn’t seem to be anything fancy at all, just heavy, solid pieces that were able to support all the food that they always had at those events.

They came to mind when I saw the wooden tables being showcased by a New York company called Hudson Furniture Inc. As you can see from the images below (just click on them to enlarge) their tables look like the wood from which they are made was taken from huge, old trees that had been felled just recently. They look so natural, so organic.

Read the rest of this entry »

Well shake it up, baby now! Those were the first words that came to mind when I saw the Twist Table over at Bonluxat. They are, if you didn’t know, the opening lyrics of the song Twist and Shout by the Beatles. The Fab Four changed the world of rock and roll during their time, with their crazy antics and their creative music.

The Twist Table, created by a group called For Use, certainly looks like it is a product that resulted from great imagination and creativity. It would be a funky piece of furniture to have at home, but I think it could be used as bistro area furniture too. The design is eye-catching, and if there’s one thing that doesn’t a hurt a restaurant or bistro, it’s the attention it gets from the public – whether for its food or its appearance.

Read the rest of this entry »

A coffee table I saw at Design Within Reach recently immediately reminded me of Chinese figurines that my mother had around the house when I was growing up. It isn’t that the table, designed by Eva Zeisel, looks remotely anything Chinese-inspired. Still, the table’s base brings back to mind miniature versions of a similar kind. Only instead of holding up a table top, they cradled Oriental carvings.

Zeisel’s coffee table has an ornate aura, yet looks modern enough to be suitable for today’s restaurants and cafes. It doesn’t come across as minimalist, yet it isn’t ostentatiously, outrageously in your face either. The smooth, flowing lines and the graceful curves of the base and table top come together nicely to make an effective visual impact. The only thing left for a café or restaurant owner is to make sure it is paired with suitable café chairs.

Read the rest of this entry »

Silver can stand for so many things. It can mean coming in at second best for something (as in winning a silver medal); it can be a sign of venerability that often comes with the advancement of age (like how older persons with silver grey hair are often seen as wise); it can denote a special occasion that calls for celebration (like a silver anniversary). For American designer John Caldwell, the last applies to his Silver Collection Bar Table for two reasons.

The collection was named as such because when Caldwell created it in 1999, the company that manufactures his furniture designs was celebrating its 25^th year – its silver anniversary in other words. Another reason why Silver is a good name for the bar table and other pieces in the collection is that the way it is processed and treated encourages the development of a silvery patina on their surfaces after a period of time.

Read the rest of this entry »

Is bigger really better? Maybe, maybe not. But in some cases it can really be impressive. Take this humungous dining table I stumbled upon at a blog called Spluch. An example of your typical bistro area tables it sure isn’t. Exhibited at the 5^th International Hospitality Equipment and Supplies Fair (HOSFAIR) in Guangzhou, China in June 2007, it has a table top that measures 25 meters in diameter, more than enough to accommodate as much as 25 people.

The table is constructed from fine hardwood. Its Chinese origins are evident in the elaborate woodwork, which features carved dragons and phoenixes. At the center of the table is a rotating disk, a characteristic of tables in most Chinese restaurants. Dishes are placed on the disk, which diners rotate to access the food they like – no need to ask someone else to “please pass the chop suey or the mu shu pork.”

Read the rest of this entry »

There aren’t too many successful furniture designers who did not undergo formal training before they started their careers, but Tom Dixon is one of them. After suffering a motorcycle accident in his 20s, he turned his attention to creating various pieces of furniture, including the S-bend chair. An Italian furniture company called Cappellini came across the chair, liked it, and collaborated with Dixon on its manufacture. Who would have ever realized that Dixon’s welding skills - plus a one-day course in plastic bumper repair - would lead him to where he is now?

A number of Dixon’s furniture creations are seen in the hotel furniture uk industry and elsewhere. Beat lights he designed can be found at the Sanderson Hotel’s Suka restaurant, which specializes in Malaysian cuisine. His Cone Lights grace the guest rooms and social areas of the Hotel Uberfluss in Bremen, Germany; Mirror Balls designed by him are also part of one of the hotel’s dining areas.

Read the rest of this entry »

Frank Gehry is well-known for his use of unusual materials. With his 1972 furniture series “Easy Edges” he succeeds in lending an aesthetic dimension to such an everyday material as cardboard. But although they look surprisingly simple, the “Easy Edges” have been constructed with the consummate skill of an architect and are exceedingly robust and stable.

Material:
Corrugated cardboard, contour of layers of cardboard, edges made of natural or lacquered hardboard.