I just bought a couple of musty 1962 issues of Popular Mechanics from 1962. They have huge spreads of photos and plans for building nine great-looking pieces of play furniture by Swedish designers: toy bins and play tables, little see saws and slides, that kind of stuff.
It's basically the DIY, minimalist design DNA of Ikea, plus dovetail joints, minus Allen wrenches, plus birch and pine, minus "wood" made of sawdust and glue--and minus injection-molded plastic. Great stuff, and I'll be happy to scan and email some plans if you're feeling slightly adventurous.
Except a mystery on a designer's site in Japan. With the cover long gone and the pages disintegrating, this dude in Tokyo scanned to a blog most of the contents of a vintage, mid-century Swedish furniture catalogue he found years ago in a used book store in Kichijo-ji.
Very plain, but some very nice-looking stuff. I love the barebones crib and the three-layer trundle beds. And this simple pine stool, which looks so easy even I could knock it together. If I had a workshop. Or even just a freakin' saw. I'll put it in the queue.
Children's Furniture Design from Sweden, mid-20th century [hus.cocolog-nifty.com]
2 Comments
If you're serious about scanning some of those plans, I've been searching for a project and would love to see them. The table with the pull-out boxes and the three-legged stool are probably the most intriguing. If I do a project I'll post pics of the process and finished pieces. Thanks. Robert
If you really are serious about scanning + emailing those plans, I'd like to sign up too...
Am an avid follower of your blog, btw, and would like to find some application for all the interesting ideas I come across here(actually, husband is a carpenter-type)
Thanks
Cynthia
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