Looking for a little ICFF 2011 photo coverage? Here are a few pictures I took yesterday while wandering around.  Look for a follow-up post with more information/details coming soon.

Dog owners rejoice! Mans best friend can now rock with the best of them.

The idea behind this Hybrid Furniture design by Paul Kewton is to combine the "old school rocking chair and doghouse to generate a hybrid "furniture" that combines the idea of shelter and body relaxation and pushes its functionality to a different, more personal level."

I think it's a great looking chair, but I can't imagine my 70lb golden doodle fitting in there, or putting up with any rocking going on up top.

Paul Kewton Hybrid Furniture

We love Etsy here at GRM, but the one thing that seems few and far between on Etsy is good modern furniture. That's one reason I was so excited to stumble onto the Kart Chair.  That and the fact that it is gorgeous. Designed and made by Harbenger Duo in Houston Texas, the Kart chair is made of walnut veneered birch plywood. It ships flat, and will only put you out $350, which for a hand made custom chair is incredible.

Kart Chair $350

I once had a Rubik's cube and I spent a long time learning how to finish it. This Rubik's cube definitely takes it to the next level, that is assuming you don't know Braille. Let's be honest though. If you had this, it would do the exact same thing that most Rubik's cubes do. Just sit around.  At least it would look good doing it.  Speaking of sitting around, this prototype will be sitting around MoMA NY, starting in July and will be on display until November 2011.

White Braille Rubik's Cube prototype

Studio Gorm has done a fantastic job taking the common peg to a whole new level in a simple but interesting way.

Peg is a family of furniture with diverse parentage. the shaker peg rail, the korean wall hung table and the lowly shop broom. a flexible furniture system made up of simple components, which can be assembled in a variety of ways to accommodate a multitude of scenarios. it can be just as easily disassembled, using no tools or fasteners. all components can be hung from a peg rail on the wall creating pleasing abstract compositions.

Studio Gorm

I have an ever growing appreciation for simple materials in interior design, so when you combine porcelain, steel, and a cloth cord together with a little Swing Jib Lamp inspired styling, you have a winner in my book.

Cord Lamp

Periphere is a Montreal based brother and sister design team that is focused on designing and making custom hand made furniture. They have a straight forward clean design aesthetic, and an attitude I really appreciate. This is my favorite snippet from their bio page that explains why they do what they do;

The freedom to do our own thing on our own terms precedes all. We don not care much about the financial returns. The excitement for design solely justifies our work. In the end furniture is still furniture. We do not pretend to create art, nor change the world. We put forth suggestions that hopefully contribute to inspire, elevate and bring all of us to a better and more interesting place.

Periphere

Lately I'm really drawn to furniture that is made out of powder coated steel and wood. I think it give a really nice contrast and lends itself very nicely to the "modern" look. Sami Kallio's work is a great example of that. Both his Layer Chair and Stool use painted metal and a bare solid wood as a contrast. They are part of his latest series "THE FINNISH BLOOD IN ME". The end result is clean, and absolutely stunning.

Sami Kallio Studio

At first glance I thought that Toronto based STYLEGARAGE was just another Gus Studio retailer. Then I started noticing more and more things that weren't Gus Design. It turns out that STYLEGARAGE also makes it's own custom furniture, and they are doing a good job of it too. They have everything from chairs and tables to lighting.

STYLEGARAGE

Husband and wife team Matt and Karen are both architects and it shows in their furniture.

All the elements of the Parthenon can be seen in its early prototype The Temple of Hera II at Paestum, Italy. It is thick and squat. All the ideas and ideals of a culture are there crammed into its chubby carcass. As the Greeks stood back and looked at the form they felt it was time for a makeover. Only the physical existence of a prototype at actual size and girth set against a beautiful blue sky could have inspired them to make the counterintuitive refinements that were ultimately incorporated into Parthenon. Soorikian Furniture aspires to follow this example as a means of developing its products. The things that make a drawing beautiful do not always make a beautiful object. It is through the making and remaking of the prototype that each piece comes about.

Soorikian Furniture

The Avô stool from Rul Alves' My Own Super Studio is a stunning example of simple contrasting materials done right. Rul has a great eye for detail, and the stool manages to come across looking super clean without being sterile. The stools shown above are a 2008 prototype. Unfortunately no word on getting them into production. If you hear anything, let me know.

My Own Super Studio

Interesting things happen when you bring different modalities into furniture design. Belgium based Diane Steverlynck studied textile design but obviously has a knack for furniture as well. The Tight Stool shows her textile background as it uses different colors of thread to bind the pieces of the stool together. No nails, glue or screws are used, just thread. The end result is a simple, beautiful ash stool with a pop of color. Make sure you look at the photo's of the detailed joinery after the jump.

Available from bytrico.com for $225
(Site in Japanese but worldwide shipping available)