The Wallpaper* dining room: fabulous furnishings for illuminating suppers
Delve into our ever-transforming dining room in the W* House that offers treats from concrete tableware to ebony and mother-of-pearl shakers, and plenty more delectable forms...
Name: Dishes to Dishes
Designer/brand: Glenn Sestig, for Valerie Objects
Price: on request
Architect Glenn Sestig has taken his creative vision to the table, with this collection of stackable plates and bowls, designed for Valerie Objects. Using a combination of tinted wood and coloured ceramic, Sestig crafted forms that feature a thin lip around the perimeter. When placed on top of one another, bases form lids – allowing any formation to be built up in a totemic-like way. As for the name? Sestig was inspired by a certain British musical icon… ‘When I heard the song “Ashes to Ashes” in the car, the name “Dishes to Dishes” came to mind,’ he explained. ‘All the more so because I think the form of the dishes is reminiscent of a galactic shape’.
Name: CE bar cart
Designer/brand: Gisela Simas, for Espasso
Price: from £5,510
Traditional English tea trolleys of times gone by informed Gisela Simas’ modernist take on a drinks cart, designed for Espasso. The brand deals exclusively with midcentury and contemporary Brazilian design so it felt like a natural fit to work with Simas who, although based in London, is a Brazilian native. She opted to use freijo, a wood originating from the American Tropics, for the cart and each section has been crafted by hand – from its tambour door that conceals shelves on its inside to a set of simple circular wheels that give the piece a modern feel. Most importantly, its top has been coated and stain-proofed to protect it from those inevitable cocktail spillages
Name: ‘Hacker’ marble vase
Designer/brand: DWA Design Studio, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: $10,150
The product of a collaboration between Manuel Coltri, Frederik De Wacher and Alberto Artesani of the Milan-based DWA Design Studio, and curator Paolo De Vivo, the ‘Hacker’ collection brings together a series of marble pieces that debuted at Salone del Mobile earlier this year. Combining Manuel Coltri’s extensive experience in working with natural stone with new artisan techniques, unused marble slabs have been repurposed to create a series of decorative objects like this large blue vase, which is defined by a checkerboard scheme. This ultimate ’hack’, in which traditional processing methods are broken down to create new ones, has resulted in a series of sparkling designs that clearly demonstrate the manual work required to achieve the end product
Name: Kouki
Designer/brand: Nendo, for Editions Milano
Price: €3,416
Kouki (Japanese for ‘light-shine’) is the first collaboration between Tokyo-based studio Nendo and Italian brand Editions Milano. The contemporary candle set channels Oki Sato’s minimalist interpretation of the candle lighting ritual, focusing on stripped-back utility and purpose. The range comprises a cylindrical candleholder, container, tray and match holder, all existing in marble finishes of either black Marquinia or white Arabescato. Elegantly accompanying this is a wick trimmer and snuffer made in hand brushed brass
Name: Note table
Designer/brand: Edward Collinson Studio
Price: £6,000
London-based Edward Collinson returns to his Yorkshire roots for his latest furniture range. The designer felled a trio of oak trees for the Three Oaks collection, which includes the Note table (pictured). For its form, Collinson took inspiration from the work of coopers, craftsmen trained in the production of wooden containers. The table’s base is created with individual ‘coopered’ staves, whilst its deep brown tone is the product of fuming, a finishing process that deepens the natural colour of wood. Collinson planted 21 oak saplings on the site of the used trees, promising new life in the space. Photography: Simon Bevan
Name: ’Mila’ bowl
Designer/brand: Sebastian Herkner for Pulpo, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: from £119
A bowl, but not in the traditional sense. Designed for German brand Pulpo, Sebastian Herkner’s ’Mila’ bowl functions just as it should, despite a couple of unusual adjustments. Atop a rectangular cuboid base sits a solid, filled hemisphere with slightly concave surface. The subtle dip works in practical terms, allowing the bowl to hold a variety of foodstuffs, while also offering a sculptural element to the glazed ceramic pieces
Name: Six Tableaux
Designer/brand: Studio Binocle
Price: from £4,240
Works by great contemporary artists including Gary Hume and Ellsworth Kelly were reinterpreted to form a collection of six tables by Italian studio Binocle. Each table features a uniquely shaped top based on a section or detail of the work. These were then crafted from a single marble slab, taken from an Italian quarry, before being set upon five marble legs. Two sizes are available; a larger table that can seat a dining party of eight, or a smaller coffee table. Photography: Andre Lucat
Name: ’Form’
Designer/brand: Tom Dixon, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: $259
Paying homage to tea serving traditions with an added touch of art deco charm, the ’Form’ tea pot by British designer Tom Dixon is both sophisticated and practical. Cut from stainless steel, the bulbous pot features a wrapped leather handle — a detail that is decorative and practical in equal parts. The piece is taken from Dixon’s ’Form’ collection, a tableware and tea family whose inspirations draw on everything from Gatsby glamour to the wooden kamandalu containers carried by Jain monks
Name: Single line carafe
Designer/brand: David Derksen, for Tre Product, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: $59
In addition to its most obvious use, laboratory apparatus has a second, equally appealing function: design inspiration. Here, glass beakers are reinterpreted by Dutch designer David Derksen, who has taken cues from their every detail in this Tre Products one litre carafe. Horizontal measuring lines are reimagined as a mesmeric, patterned arrangement around the entire circumference of the object, while the employment of high quality borosilicate glass further highlights the lab as a source of inspiration while giving the carafe an increased dimension of strength
Name: Marbled jug
Designer/brand: Hay, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: $75
A charming addition to any tabletop, Hay’s marbled jug enchants with a mesmerising swirled surface design, which combines tones of blue/brown/grey with white. Made from porcelain, the jug can be used to serve beverages or as a creative vessel in which to display flowers
Name: Barbican Trolley
Designer/brand: Visibility, for Dims
Price: $350
Visibility projected a sense of architectural grandeur into the design of its Barbican Trolley, a new release by modernist design retailer Dims. Structured vertically, this serving trolley is made from steel and ash wood. A natural-height handle and set of wheels animate the utilitarian trolley, making it suitable and adaptable to an array of domestic environs. Its matt finish – available in a colourway of Wimbledon Green, Graphite Black and A4 White – conceals its form in the backdrop whilst quietly perpetuating its held objects
Name: ’Macchia Su Macchia’ vase
Designer/brand: Stories of Italy, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: $276
Produced by Stories of Italy, the ’Macchia Su Macchia’ set is taken from a new collection inspired by macchia — the mesmeric swirling patterns of pigment that appear on the surface of many Murano glass pieces. The macchia application has been broken down, reconstructed, and applied multiple times — the result is an opaque smattering of colours and layers of hue that give the vessel a surprising texture
Name: Seasaw dining table
Designer/brand: Nendo for Marsotto Edizoni
Price: on request
Taking centre stage is the monolithic marble dining table by Japanese designer Nendo. Available in two distinctly different looks, White Carrara and Black Marquina, the similarities lie in the architecture of the streamlined piece. Appearing as if balanced on the geometric legs, the piece comes together with all joints stealthily hidden for an impressive dining experience
Name: ’Bølling’ tray table
Designer/brand: Brdr. Krüger available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: £608
Tasked with the challenge to create a simple and highly functional table that could be assembled with ease, Danish architect Hans Bølling designed the ’Bølling’ tray table in 1963. Crafted from natural beech wood, this tall version of the table comprises a foldable H-frame upon which rests two red and black circular reversible trays, which can be flipped for colour variation. The result is a versatile piece that can be utilised as a side table or a serving trolley and fully meets Bølling’s mission to create a practical table that simultaneously offers emotional and playful qualities
Name: ’Efesto’ candleholder
Designer/brand: Valerio Ciampicacigli for Forma&Cemento available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: £130
Designed by Valerio Ciampicacigli for Italian concrete experts Forma&Cemento, ’Efesto’ is an elegant candleholder that balances the delicateness of a soft, bulbous glass holder with a hard concrete base. The result is a piece that makes an equal impact whether empty or occupied by a lit candle
Name: Siman
Designer/brand: Gian Paolo Venier for Urbi Et Orbi
Price: $6,500.00 Siman
Inspired by the ancient Toghrul tower near Tehran, Iran, Gian Paolo Venier’s new collection of concrete tableware is textured and timeless. The collection of seven pieces, including cakestand and candleholder, is titled Siman (‘concrete’ in Farsi) and was designed for the Greek studio Urbi Et Orbi, which specialises in concrete object design. The poetic depth and graphic nature of Venier’s pleated concrete renders are a raw addition to the dining area. Hand produced in Greece and available in two colours, grey and anthracite, Siman appears as both architectural memory and future innovation
Name: ’Tulou’ tables
Designer/brand: GamFratesi for Hay, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: £165,00
Designed by GamFratesi for Danish brand Hay, the ’Tulou’ table combines two simple elements — a circular steel plate and a four legged frame — for a sleek contemporary design that offers function and style. Available in a selection of finishes and colours, this version of the table is powder-coated and finished in a shades of rust and green
Name: ‘Rust’ box
Designer/brand: Prin London, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: £305
Taken from Prin London’s debut homeware collection ‘Rust’, this circular trinket was created by mixing metal particles taken from key cutting and other metalworking workshops across London, with gypsum and acrylic. The result is a handmade piece that features its own unique series of characteristics due to the metal dust oxidation, which imparts a unique texture varying in colour and intensity and is enhanced as the materials patinate over time, reflecting the relationship with their owners
Name: Bent box
Designer/brand: Visibility for Normann Copenhagen
Price: £55
These versatile storage boxes by New York-based designers Visibility for the Danish design stalwarts Normann Copenhagen nod to traditional Japanese magewappa bento boxes made from bentwood. The minimalist beech veneer pieces are stackable allowing the playful yet muted tones of rose, rust and elm green to be paired for a visually pleasing storage system that can be used in the dining room and beyond
Name: ‘Lens Flair’
Designer/brand: Lee Broom
Price: £850
British designer Lee Broom’s new lighting product Lens Flair is made of two halves – one solid and one transparent. Lens Flair is available as both a Pendant Light and Table Lamp, measuring 16 inches in diameter. The lighting product features a cross-cut lens, which emits soft light, while maintaining a boldness from the semi-circular solid casing, available in brushed brass or matte black. The collection uses new technology, with LED lighting systems, and custom-designed and in-house developed bulbs. Inspired by telescopic lenses, Lens Flair is both classic and futuristic, similar to the rest of Broom’s Observatory collection of new lighting for 2018
Name: ‘Stripe’ bowls
Designer/brand: Grete Prytze Kittelsen, for Cathrineholm
Price: €35
Often referred to as the queen of Scandinavian design in the mid-20th century, Norwegian designer Grete Prytz Kittelsen, who hobnobbed with the likes of the Eames and Alvar Aalto, was known initially for her work in gold and silver. When deliberately embarking on more democratic design in the 1950s, she discovered ironworks Cathrineholm, an expert in enamelling, and a highly lauded collaboration began. When she died in 2010, Kittelsen’s children held the rights to her designs until Danish retailer Imerco bought them exclusively three years ago. It is slowly reissuing her work, under the Cathrineholm label, starting with the ‘Stripes’ bowls, with the ‘Cathedral’ and ‘Sensation’ series to follow
Name: ‘Arch’ trays
Designer/brand: De Intuïtiefabriek, for Caussa
Price: €158.82
The architectural form of an arch is the starting point for these concrete trays by Dutch design studio De Intuïtiefabriek. Described as ‘table architecture’ the ornamental pieces play with balance between the thick, solid concrete and the opposing hollow space it creates sitting on the surface. Available in an array of different shades, from a subtle beige to vibrant scarlet tones, the trays complement each other to create a subtle puzzle of pattern when placed together
Name: ‘Margot’ water goblet
Designer/brand: Fferrone Design, available from WallpaperSTORE*
Price: £116 for two
Combining intricate detailing with innovative production techniques and materials, Fferrone’s ‘Margot’ collection presents a new take on cut glass. Each 450ml water goblet offers two vessels – one in place of a traditional stem – formed from fluted borosilicate glass created without the use of moulds. The result is a glassware duo that is equally suited to both everyday and formal settings