Modern Furniture Designs. Innovative and unique furniture has twists and turns, literal and conceptual ways of breaking from contemporary conventions and modern regularity. These creative furniture designs go beyond merely innovative, crossing boundaries of industrial, furniture and architectural design, using new methods and materials along the way.
posted by netbros on Aug 9, 2009 - 15 comments

Paint or Die But Love Me. Buoy Chair. Tilted Soup Plate. The art, furniture, and accoutrements of John Nouanesing.
posted by mattdidthat on Jul 10, 2009 - 7 comments

The Red House sells black and white people furniture (youtube). (via bookofjoe)
posted by alms on May 22, 2009 - 29 comments

Captain's Log, supplemental.
posted by digaman on Mar 19, 2009 - 112 comments

Cardboard furniture: cheap and convenient. Or astounding. [more inside]
posted by clavicle on Feb 26, 2009 - 24 comments

Eames Shell Chair - Something of how they get the way they are. Video.
posted by Manhasset on Dec 6, 2008 - 24 comments

Inspired by such diverse influences as Pee-Wee's Playhouse to Frank Gehry and Warner Brothers Cartoons to Philippe Starck, Vancouver, BC based woodworker Judson Beaumont's furniture is whimsical yet fully functional and is suited for children and adults alike. [more inside]
posted by Ufez Jones on Jul 9, 2008 - 15 comments

Viktor Schreckengost who died last year at the grand age of 101, was regarded by some as the father of industrial design. Every adult in America has ridden in, ridden on, drunk out of, stored their things in, eaten off of, been costumed in, etc… and there is no going past his gorgeous pedal cars. Some of his work can also be seen online at The Cleveland Museum of Art.
posted by tellurian on Apr 28, 2008 - 9 comments

Melrose Place, Governor Napolitano, and Freshly Baked Chocolate Chips: social entrepreneurship to combat meth and sell art. Is Belleza Gallery, wholly owned nonprofit gallery of Renaissance House, the coolest little pocket of altrusim-meets-art that almost no one has ever heard of? [more inside]
posted by yellowcandy on Apr 10, 2008 - 3 comments

Bookshelf. "The home of interesting bookshelves, bookcases and things that look like them"
posted by fearfulsymmetry on Mar 29, 2008 - 25 comments

The Diner: A true American hallmark, that first appeared on the horizon in the early 70's (the 1870's that is), and has remained a fixture on the American psyche since. If you've never been to one, why not go ahead and have your next meal there? There maybe one right around the corner from where you live. If not, well, like me, you can sit back and look at the glorious images that are available and hope that one day your dream comes true. But until then: remember to adhere to the Ten Commandments, and yeah--if you can--get a copy of Diner (youtube) and watch it. It might not be "strictly" about Diners, but it's fun all the same. [previously]
posted by hadjiboy on Mar 28, 2008 - 69 comments

Moving houses but don't want to buy bulky furniture? Get a Casulo.
posted by divabat on Feb 13, 2008 - 13 comments

The Last.fm guys really wanted a ballpit, inspired by the xkcd blog. Pictures.
posted by nthdegx on Jan 16, 2008 - 33 comments

Ever had a yen for a table made from jet engine turbine blades or a desk fashioned from a wing or a cowling? Giancarlo de Astis and Moto Art are two high-end design firms that are creating eye catching furniture and functional art from scavenged airplane parts. You can see their work and the work of others in the aviation art community at InterFlight Studio. Or do-it-yourself-ers in the crowd might just prefer a Field Guide to Aircraft Boneyards.
posted by madamjujujive on Aug 10, 2007 - 21 comments

I'm officially jealous of the people who get to work in this office workspace custom designed to look like Captain Nemo's Nautilus, from 20,000 Leagues. Via.
posted by jonson on Jun 14, 2007 - 30 comments

Foldschool offers free downloadable PDF patterns you can use to make children's furniture and "fun objects" out of 4mm corrugated cardboard. via
posted by paulsc on Apr 29, 2007 - 5 comments

OOOMS is a Dutch design company with interesting products. Anti-Gravity Machine, Lo-Res Chair, Rebellious Desk and Golden Staples are among my favorites. Slightly NSFW for the very small thumbnailed image of some stylish sex toys. Via
posted by lazaruslong on Apr 25, 2007 - 26 comments

The Obselisk. The bastard child of a Mensa quiz and rattan furniture. Getting apart is probably ok, but I don't want to put it back together - particularly after drinky-poo's. But certainly a talking point - particularly at $9,890 . Via
posted by ninazer0 on Apr 19, 2007 - 19 comments

"Please understand that this is an extremely special piece of furniture, of exceptional quality and design – it is not for everyone by a very very long way and can only be afforded by the lucky few of us with exceptional wealth." (Videos [1, 2, 3.])
posted by mr_crash_davis on Jan 6, 2007 - 58 comments

Architecture and the Velvet Fist of Happiness - click 'view the book" in the top left. {Flash, slight sound, NSFW}
posted by dobbs on Dec 11, 2006 - 9 comments

Grow your own. Furniture that is. Christopher Cattle has pictures and basic instructions on growing a three legged stool. Similiar previously here, here, and here.
posted by Mitheral on Dec 10, 2006 - 12 comments

The Canadian Design Resource - from Beavertail rockers to Broomball shoes.
posted by dobbs on Sep 28, 2006 - 9 comments

Is this Zebra Chair Too Realistic? "We prefer to get our chicken cutlets cut up and packaged neatly so as not to have to look at the poultry as something that once walked the earth. Ditto with beef. We love a good leather chair, but again anything too realistic (think “cow print”) can give us the heebie-geebies..." Folks at Apartment Therapy ponder this piece of purrniture.
posted by azul on Mar 4, 2006 - 17 comments

Bike furniture - now that's recycling!
posted by madamjujujive on Mar 3, 2006 - 26 comments

Carlo Mollino [Polaroids section NSFW] A student of the occult, he was an Architect, Designer, race car enthusiast and photographer [NSFW]
posted by tellurian on Feb 1, 2006 - 11 comments

Sexy Furniture. "The shape of a woman, her organic architecture, combined with my passion for wood inspired me to sculpt these sexy designs." Passion for wood, indeed. NSFW.
posted by OpinioNate on Dec 5, 2005 - 41 comments

"Tell me more of Elemenstoring, Dogus." From the tiny seed of a news post, a new world has taken form. Too bad it never existed.
posted by Loser on Nov 23, 2005 - 12 comments

Welcome to EUROBAD '74, an exhibition of Europe's worst interiors of 1974.
posted by atomicmedia on Oct 3, 2005 - 48 comments

The Tantra Chair (NSFW) seems like a great addition to any modern living room.
posted by SeizeTheDay on Aug 23, 2005 - 49 comments

FedEx Furniture.
posted by XQUZYPHYR on Aug 15, 2005 - 20 comments

White plastic chairs - Jens Thiel blogs his research of the ubiquitous chair we all love to hate for an upcoming monobloc monograph and museum exhibition. The first chair emerged midcentury, devil spawn of a noble heritage. Today, some fear the monobloc population rivals or exceeds that of humans. Some view the chair as art, others see their place in history, but I agree with the wag who dubs them tupperware containers for lard butts.
posted by madamjujujive on Aug 2, 2005 - 20 comments

Sensacell Modular Sensor Surface. Make sure to check out the Quicktime movie. You can turn your entire home into the Michael Jackson "Billie Jean" video!
posted by ColdChef on May 30, 2005 - 7 comments

iPod Coffee Table created by a Toronto design student
posted by haasim on May 24, 2005 - 30 comments

Inhabitat - "source on the future of design". Great finds like Tetris shelves, the Slumber Light, a transformer apartment, and Favela Chairs. (via the saucydwellings LJ community)
posted by Melinika on May 14, 2005 - 43 comments

Better known for their modernist take on contemporary furniture design, Minneapolis furniture studio Blu Dot has just introduced a series of film shorts entitled Blu Dot Shorts. Their first short film, Seven Twenty (embedded Quicktime warning), was directed by Christopher Arcella (Flash warning). While is is not earth shattering conceptually, it is a jaunty and fun little piece of cinema.
posted by ScottUltra on Apr 6, 2005 - 15 comments

Charles Eames (1907-78) and Ray Eames (1912-88) gave shape to America's twentieth century. Their lives and work represented the nation's defining social movements: the West Coast's coming-of-age, the economy's shift from making goods to the producing information, and the global expansion of American culture. This Library of Congress exhibit outlines major themes of the Eames' life and voluminous works, including architecture, furniture, and the film Powers of Ten. It is wonderfully illustrated with artifacts, photos of their life and work, and examples from the Eames' collection of 350,000 slides.
posted by carter on Jan 12, 2005 - 14 comments

Too many books? Not enough furniture? Problem solved.
posted by kenko on Nov 27, 2004 - 48 comments

The Ultimate Gaming Table. While looking around the webernets to find a replacement for my living room table, I stumbled across this. Breathtaking in scope and purpose; I salute this person's nerdly vision and dedication.
posted by majcher on Aug 15, 2004 - 13 comments

Un-Fold. (quicktime clip) City Magazine asked 9 designers, from 9 cities across the world to design a chair in 90 days. Oh, and it had to fit in a FedEx box. Pics and more about the designers and the project.
posted by madamjujujive on Jun 18, 2004 - 26 comments

The Drift Table lets you float gently over the British landscape from the comfort of your living room. Other projects from the Equator research group include a tablecloth that glows and a key table that responds to your mood. Hi-tech knick-knacks, or a glimpse of the subtle way we'll interact with the domestic environment of the future?
posted by jack_mo on Jan 28, 2004 - 8 comments

What makes for a great champagne chair? Design Within Reach sponsored a holiday contest to design a chair constructed from the cork and wire cages of champagne bottle. Judges had a difficult time deciding from the 400 entries that poured in. (via Buzz.)
posted by madamjujujive on Jan 19, 2004 - 7 comments

Is This All There Is To Modern Design? Although Design Within Reach is a commercial website, it's well put together, with interesting features that provide biographies and a a potted history of modern furniture design. However, like the plethora of coffee-table books on the subject, the uncomfortable (!) feeling remains that it crystalizes the accepted and the historical - the so-called modern classics - rather than engage with what is truly contemporary. This is, after all, highly traditional modernism and post-modernism. And it's rife. Where is the avant-garde? Is there one on view to ordinary mortals? You end up feeling that the truly new designs - this century's, after all - are being swept under the carpet, awaiting some boring committee process of consensus and approval.
posted by MiguelCardoso on Sep 29, 2003 - 35 comments

For $40,000 your little princess can sleep in Cinderella's Carriage. At that price it better come with a team of white horses. Next to that, the Fairytale Cottage for $5,000 seems like a steal! Or with all the pirate mania... maybe they'd like this pirate's ship for a mere $25,000? Low on funds? This paupers pirate-themed ones is just $4,000. Not into all the European legend junk? Or maybe a tee pee for $3,066? Or a vintage race car for $25,000. And there's even more if you want to torture yourself for being a moneyless loser.
posted by Dome-O-Rama on Jul 28, 2003 - 21 comments

Personal Computing Environments - Herman Miller, eat your heart out. Personal Computing Environments has what has to be the strangest piece of office furniture ever made. There's no denying the interesting and unique design, but with prices ranging from $4,000 to $9,000 and up and the economy in somewhat dire straits, is there a market for this? I mean, I could almost buy a couple of these for that kind of dough.
posted by phong3d on Feb 21, 2003 - 30 comments

Cushy Sex! Give the kitchen table, the work-out bench and your exhausted sofa pillows a rest: invest in some plush, velveteen adult Lego(ver). Forget rock/scissors/paper; go wedge/ramp/cube/stage! Yeah! Forego childish things; dust off the old Kama Sutra! For how often can you improve your sex life without risking your neck? Or at least throwing your back? [Not safe for work but seems very safe indeed for aprés-work. Colours admittedly awful. Movies instructive yet hilarious (the guy specially). Via Bifurcated Rivets.]
posted by MiguelCardoso on Feb 4, 2003 - 16 comments

Verner Panton, a fantastic Danish architect and designer known for his wild interiors and furniture. “Most people spend their lives housing in dreary, grey-beige conformity, mortally afraid of using colours.” He definitely was not afraid. Tak skal du have, Verner!
posted by snez on Jan 13, 2003 - 10 comments

The internet may have given us a whole new access route to big-scale sex gadgets, like adult baby cribs and The Houdini Box, but sex furniture has been around since Botticelli. By Sally Trash.
posted by giantkicks on Dec 4, 2002 - 4 comments

Pull up a folding chair and take a look at the folding chair's four thousand year history, thanks to the kind folks at designboom.
posted by ewagoner on Jul 16, 2002 - 7 comments

The Periodic Table Table now has its own, newly updated website. This had made the rounds on various websites when it was a mere set of construction photos on a bandwidth -constrained site. This is now much better.
posted by vacapinta on Jun 6, 2002 - 11 comments

Super Exciting Moving Sale "Do you own clothes? Do you love the Justice League of America? If you answered yes to either of the preceeding questions, then you are a prime candidate to be the proud new owner of the Batman Dresser. A picture of Al Pacino as Tony Montana will appear next to all sold merchandise."
posted by kirkaracha on Mar 8, 2002 - 4 comments