fast food in a design democracy

Over the past five years there has been a boom in design awareness in Scandinavia, and now even the fast food restaurants have caught on. I like to see good design in places that are accessible for everyone. Burger bars used to be establishments with chipped plastic seating and grubby lino flooring, which reeked of frying oil and overcooked meat. Not any more, at least not in Sweden. Several of the big fast food names now realise that in order to attract families, they need to appeal to parents as well as kids. Visiting these restaurants nowadays is a bit like stepping into a sleek airport lounge, all Italian lighting and Corian table tops.

My favourite McDonalds in Ängelholm even provides a fleet of Offecct Pick-Up mini cars, way cooler (and more hygienic) than the plastic ball tubs of old. Below is another of their restaurants with some Venus chairs from Johanson Design, a Swedish company with one of the most impressive ranges of bar and restaurant furniture in Scandinavia.

Another chain that’s trying to whoop McDonalds in the cool design takes is Max Burgers, who recently decked out their flagship restaurant in Uppsala with the Magis Butterfly chair by Karim Rashid, and Marcel Wanders Zeppelin lamps from Flos.

The refurb may have cost quite a few burgers as these are original pieces that to many are designs of desire. But when they appear in accessible, everyday places like burger bars, we can all enjoy them occasionally. I like this trend. More good design for everyone! (Vicki)

Light Years ahead… again

Not content with launching 4 new designs this year, Light Years will also introduce extra versions and finishes to its current catalogue. The young Danish company which has rapidly established itself at the forefront of Scandinavian design with products like Cecilie Manz’s Caravaggio and Hans Sandgren Jakobsen’s Radon says all the newcomers will be available by September.

The Caravaggio will now be manufactured as a floor lamp and table lamp. A new opal finish is also added to the original black and white pendant range.

The Radon also gets a new finish with the introduction of an ice cool white version.

Cecilie Manz is also responsible for one of the new designs, the Brancusi. Ideal for rooms with a high ceiling, the Brancusi has a superior light illumination and a large surface that complements broader interior dimensions. To ensure an effective distribution of light, the pendant uses an integrated aluminium reflector. The shade is made of tinted polycarbonate and finished with a sheet of tempered glass at the bottom. The silk-printed white circles on the glass soften the light emitted.

The attention grabber in Stockholm earlier this year was the very cool and clever desk lamp, Nosy by Salto & Sigsgaard. Its flexible body can be turned through 300 degrees on its axis, providing users with an extraordinary degree of functionality.

Roll on September…

back on track with trioBike

Spring has finally arrived in Sweden and here’s something we’ve been waiting a while to shout about. Although we officially launched trioBike 2.0 at the Cycle Show in London at the end of last year, the Swedish winter quickly followed and trioBike doesn’t particularly like the snow. But with the sunshine here it’s time to put trioBike back into daily action and bring a few smiles to the commuter's faces in Malmö.



Speaking as an owner, I don’t think there are that many designs that could have had such a positive impact on my life as trioBike has.



Being a working mum with two kids - aged two and five - I always struggled to find the time to get any regular exercise in the pre-trioBike days. Admittedly my gym has a crèche, but I don’t want to leave the kids there after they’ve spent a day at nursery. So most weeks I was lucky to find time for a single yoga class. But when our trioBike arrived 18 months ago I finally had the possibility to squeeze in some exercise everyday without spending less time with the kids.



My daily workout:
Strap the kids in the buggy and cycle to nursery - 15 minutes
Detach the buggy at nursery, attach the front wheel onto the bike and cycle from nursery to the office – 15 minutes
Repeat the journey in reverse to pick the kids up in the afternoon – 30 minutes
That’s an hour of cycling every day without taking any time out from my normal routine



For me trioBike has been a great lifestyle investment. Within just a couple of days I already felt healthier and slept better at night. After a few weeks I could wear my skinny jeans again. And the kids love the nursery run too spending most of the journey waving at grinning pedestrians and cyclists or trying to give each other dead arms.




For all of you parents who like to cycle (and who like the idea of not contributing to those ever increasing CO2 emissions) I recommend any carrierbike. trioBike is the one for me because I love good design. With trioBike I get to leave the buggy at nursery and then cycle to work on just the bike (freedom at last!). I know the price tag is significant for a young family, but I’ve come to think of our trioBike not as another expense but as a cool investment. (Vicki)

Danish treasure

He may have arrived late for our appointment in Copenhagen last week but Kaare Falbe can be forgiven, mostly because he turned up on a carrier bike. It's hard to stay angry with a man on a carrier bike (even if it is one of the opposition’s).

And besides that the founder of new Danish design brand Mooment is pedaling an interesting concept. To only cooperate with designers whose visions are reflected in the tiniest details and to focus solely on high-quality products rather than producing a vast assortment of objects. Quality over quantity gets our vote every time.

For Mooment’s first collection, Kaare has been fortunate to be able to turn to his childhood friend and one of the brightest new stars of Scandinavian design, Cecilie Manz. The result is a fascinating series of hand crafted treasure boxes and acrylic jewellery that conform to Kaare’s wish for functional and unpretentious products.

An attention to detail is obvious; Handmade in Denmark, the TreasureBox collection is available in a choice of solid maple, European cherry and wenge with contrasting tap joints in ebony. To add intrigue, the lids are manufactured in different coloured hand-sanded acrylic. The effect is enchanting. With the lid on you can't quite make out what's in the box but you're very keen to find out. (JH)