I’ve been seeing a lot of cardboard in the kids design world lately and I thought I’d round up some examples of this emerging trend. Of course children playing with cardboard is nothing new (everyone knows that kids have more fun playing with the box than what’s inside!) but I have not before seen so many designer cardboard products. Not only is cardboard a fantastic eco-friendly material, but products made of it are also blank canvases for children both in terms of imaginative play and creative artwork and decoration.
The new products by Italian children’s design company nume includes this white cardboard washing machine and stove, playhouse and a set of 50 square and round cardboard building cards that children can make into whatever they imagine. It’s hard to tell the scale in the image, but the building cards measure 25 cm square which is about 10 inches square.
Cardboard Design creates tables, shelving, room dividers and accessories from recycled cardboard. All products are made in the USA. They also carry the collection of cardboard playhouses, rocketships, dollhouses, teepees, forts and more by designer Paul Martin of Paperpod in the UK.
Here’s a ‘mobile home’ from Dutch designers kidsonroof that’s perfect for princesses, knights and pirates.
Mirakadi exhibited this colorful shelving unit at Playtime in Paris in January. Offwhite is also available.
A few more cardboard products that caught my eye include this modular system that would make a great room divider, these storage boxes that I saw recently on babygadget, this toddler bed by Album di Famiglia, and these cardboard animals.
If you are feeling do-it-yourself, here’s a kit to make a cardboard play kitchen. Or check out foldschool where you’ll find free patterns and instructions so you can make your own children’s furniture from cardboard.
Technorati Tags: cardboard houses, children, recycled cardboard furniture
February 13th, 2008 Lisa posted in KIDS, RETAILERS, furniture, playtime, trends No Comments »
