Would you trust a cardboard table to keep upright for your dinner party? You’ll have to with the Frank Gehry Dining Table.
Designed in 1972 as part of the Easy Edges collection, it’s not your everyday bit of cardboard – this is robust corrugated cardboard with hardboard edges and a glass top with a choice of natural or white painted finish. It’s also been constructed to exacting standards, so you can be sure it’s good for many years to come.
Just as well really – with a price of £1,627.
Designed in 1967, Eero Aarnio designed this chair so that it looked like a sweet and could be viewed from many angles, but he also had a more practical objective. His earlier design, the Ball Chair, had a lot of empty space so he designed the Pastil Chair to fit into that space, which made for more economical shipping.
Available in various colours, the Pastil Chair is made from fibreglass, so it is suitable for outdoor use and as various websites are keen to stress, it floats! So that’s good news if you are lucky enough to have your own swimming pool and probably an irrelevancy to the majority of us.
They are available to buy from various online sources, but Retro Republic has a copy (rather than an original) for £130 plus delivery charge.
A stylish piece of mid-century design and a fun thing to have in your home – the Isamu Noguchi Rocking Stool.
Designed in 1954, but back in production again via Vitra, the Rocking Stool has a cambered base, which allows the stool to rock gently in all directions. There’s also a contoured edge so you don’t slip, chromed wire support off and a choice of size and wood – maple or walnut.
Prices start at £466.
If you like the design of the classic postbox, you might want the Royalbox for your home.
Designed to look like the box on your street, this one is actually designed for the inside of your front door, featuring a crown-shaped locking key and a notepad for any important messages.
It’s made of laser-cut, powder-coated steel and available to order, priced at £95.
Find out more at the Original Metal Box website
A modern design with its roots in the past – the Enzo retro swivel chair by Darlings of Chelsea.
Take your pick from an endless choice of upholstery (including a Panton-style fabric), with the chair itself having a wing-style back, plenty of cushioned support and a chrome swivel base.
It’s available to order online, priced at £670.
China might be modernising at a rate of knots, but the rest of the world is looking to its past – and Toulemonde Bochart is after some of that market with its Mao Rug.
An image of China’s former leader in his prime boldly appears on the design, with the slogan ‘My World Is Yours’ underneath. Made in France, the rug is hand-tufted and sized at 140 x 200cm.
Available online, you can pick one up for £236.
Find out more at the Panik Design website
