Design news, culture, events and resources. A daily must-read for designers world wide.
Turning Oil Industry Infrastructure Into Friendly Public Seating
8 April 2026 @ 3:00 pm
Norway is a country that has become fabulously wealthy through oil. The 6.3mm-thick steel tubing used by that industry has here been turned to another purpose: Public seating.
Industrial designer Jens‑Egil Nysæther and architectural designer Line Mari Sørra run Lije Studio, a design firm in Oslo. They designed this friendly-looking outdoor seating system called Venture. Sections of curved and straight steel pipes, the same ones used by the oil industry, are joined and topped with curved wooden saddles.
Industrial designer Jens‑Egil Nysæther and architectural designer Line Mari Sørra run Lije Studio, a design firm in Oslo. They designed this friendly-looking outdoor seating system called Venture. Sections of curved and straight steel pipes, the same ones used by the oil industry, are joined and topped with curved wooden saddles.
Industrial Designer Silvio Rebholz's Norm Brackets Make Undesirable Wood Useful
8 April 2026 @ 2:00 pm
These aluminum Norm Brackets are by Switzerland-based industrial designer Silvio Rebholz. The idea is to create furniture, while letting nature do most of the work. Parts of trees considered undesirable by the lumber industry are gainfully employed.
Norm Brackets allow the use of [unprocessed] wood branches. The hole matrix offers a variety of fixation options to accommodate wood irregularities.
Wood is a highly industrialized material today, almost like a non-organic substance. In the manufactur
Norm Brackets allow the use of [unprocessed] wood branches. The hole matrix offers a variety of fixation options to accommodate wood irregularities.
Wood is a highly industrialized material today, almost like a non-organic substance. In the manufacturA Rare Complete Braun Atelier 1980s Hi-Fi System
8 April 2026 @ 1:00 pm
As vintage hunters know, it can be difficult to find components of the Braun Atelier system, designed by Dieter Rams in 1979, in the wild. It's rarer still to locate a complete stack of all the components and the pedestal, but that's what reseller De Mauricio has gotten their hands on.
"Braun audio system designed by Dieter Rams. The complete set includes the following P1, T1, C1, CD2/3, A1 and the pedestal. All items are in good working condition. This system is a vintage item so please expect some normal signs of cosmetic wear. No speakers are included. Made in Germany."
"Braun audio system designed by Dieter Rams. The complete set includes the following P1, T1, C1, CD2/3, A1 and the pedestal. All items are in good working condition. This system is a vintage item so please expect some normal signs of cosmetic wear. No speakers are included. Made in Germany."Stick-On Disc Conveys Some Smartphone Abilities to Analog Watches
7 April 2026 @ 6:19 pm
This Heir gadget, by tech startup Ganance, is a little tracking disc that slips onto the back of an analog watch. View the full content here
An Overlooked Midcentury Modern Chair
7 April 2026 @ 3:00 pm
When we think of Midcentury Modern furniture, the emphasis is typically on Scandinavian designers. But this Weekend Chair, by French industrial designer Pierre Gautier Delaye, deserves a nod.
Designed in 1956, the chair was made of ash with straw upholstery. Delaye collaborated with cabinetmaker Lucien Vergnères to get it into production; it was presented as good-looking, affordably-priced furniture for young families.
Designed in 1956, the chair was made of ash with straw upholstery. Delaye collaborated with cabinetmaker Lucien Vergnères to get it into production; it was presented as good-looking, affordably-priced furniture for young families.
Mini ID Case Study: Improving an Already Perfect Kitchen Tool
7 April 2026 @ 2:00 pm
What would you do, as an industrial designer, if your client asked you to optimize a tool—and you couldn't? That was the challenge faced by ID firm Goodwin Hartshorn, when client Joseph Joseph asked them to redesign the kitchen peeler. "We learnt a valuable lesson when developing our Multi-Peel (and Multi-Slice) for Joseph Joseph," the firm writes.
Industrial Designer Timothée Mion's Chair Buck
7 April 2026 @ 1:00 pm
We've got a thing for chair bucks, because lots of industrial designers use them, but they're rarely seen. Today we've spotted another, this one by Paris-based industrial designer Timothée Mion. Mion uses his to dial in the heights and angles of the contact points, then physically "sketches in" hypothetical supports.
Adjustable chair-fitting rig. Designing the tools to design the chair.
A process that moves beyond the screen, testing ideas physically. Angles, proportions, and dime
Adjustable chair-fitting rig. Designing the tools to design the chair.
A process that moves beyond the screen, testing ideas physically. Angles, proportions, and dimeObject Fetishization: The Unito X Toyo Coffee Box
6 April 2026 @ 3:00 pm
On the one hand I think glamping is absurd. On the other hand, I can see the appeal--for people who love spending money on specialty objects.Unito, an outdoor goods design brand from Thailand, has partnered with Japan's Toyo Steel to create this Unito X Toyo Coffee Box. The mash-up takes Toyo's venerated steel Y-350 Camber-Top Toolbox…
…and adds typography, a leather handle wrap, a felt interior tray and two pieces of wood to turn it into a coffee-gear-hauling "experience." (You have to supply said coffee gear.)
…and adds typography, a leather handle wrap, a felt interior tray and two pieces of wood to turn it into a coffee-gear-hauling "experience." (You have to supply said coffee gear.)Elegant Trestles Enabled by Welded Steel Tubes
6 April 2026 @ 2:00 pm
UK-based firm RCKA Architects was tasked with designing the Nourish Hub, a food bank and community education hub in London. 
For the tables, they designed this elegant series of welded tubes:

For the tables, they designed this elegant series of welded tubes:
Hay's Minimalist Host Portable Lamp
6 April 2026 @ 1:00 pm
At first glance, this minimalist LED lamp looks like it's permanently integrated with the table.
It's not. That's Hay's new Host Portable Lamp, which has a magnet in its butt end.

It's not. That's Hay's new Host Portable Lamp, which has a magnet in its butt end.