disclaimer – paid in partnership with Formland. All words and thoughts are my own.

After a wonderful press trip to Formland in Herning, I wanted to share some highlights. This year the key theme of discussion was sustainability. Admittedly not all of the brands exhibiting in Formand we sustainable however by making sustainability the main subject it in turn prompts brands to consider a different approach to manufacturing, shipping, design etc.

The night before the press gang and I had a lovely meal with the Rosendahl design group. We previewed some of their products by Kähler, Juna, Kay Bojesen, Lyngby Porcelain, Holme Gaard, Bjorn Wiinblad, Rosendahl, Global knives and Arne Jacobsen clocks. Wow, that’s a big group. Not surprisingly the subject of sustainability came up straight away, with these brands making sure their products are produced to the highest quality and importantly, made to last.

The morning of the press tour we began to explore the fair with a select number of brands presenting their thoughts on this buzzing subject.

The easy option for sustainability is not to buy anything, right?! but we live in a consumer society and not all design is made to be thrown away. That said, I prefer to push a considered approach to consumerism including putting the responsibility on manufacturers. In my previous Formland post I touched on a few companies that have proudly adopted a sustainable approach so I won’t be repeating that here. I will however pick out some key products.

Danish company Umage, formally known as Vita Copenhagen) have launched a new furniture range and added to their lighting. Danish retro vibes galore! The One More Look mirror and shelf is a perfect minimal piece for hallways and bedrooms. we were all in love. “exquisite designs with a sustainable edge…….we minimise the carbon footprint on our planet and maximise our ethical commitment to environmental responsibility.‘ – Umage

Ro Collection are committed to making products with craftsmanship and long lasting design. The flower vases are mouth blown glass with in built colour in the glass. Beautiful colours.

The Paper Collective work with artists and designers creating stunning prints on FSC certified paper. I was pretty excited to find designs by creative genius Nina Bruun, Solid shapes no.3 is quite beautiful.

Normann Copenhagen are a global brand with a big impact. They are well aware of their responsibility with shipping and manufacturing. Using fsc certified wood. In some cases they’ve gotten rid of un-necessary packaging and told us about additional factories in China for example, this is to serve the Chinese market without shipping from Europe, saving on emissions. So there are certain things they are working on and I’m looking forward to hearing more.

Iittala are one of my favourite glassware companies. They work with super talented designers and craftsmen. The new Virva lamp designed by Matti Klenell is a casts soft ripples of light. It’s a fun new piece and slim so it can fit perfectly on a shelf.

The Arc table designed by Julie Begtrup and Ditte Vad for Woud is beautifully made and a simple piece of crafted furniture to have for many years.

Slow brew coffee, cleaning with products causing minimal harm to the environment and that slow living thing. There’s an increasing amount of household cleaning products and products used in daily routines that are now being made with care. Finally.

Boden have created a slow brew coffee machine that need no paper filters, while brewing slowly, we should slow down too.

Chopping boards. Who doesn’t love a good solid wood chopping board. Along with solid chopping boards Træfolk craft tables, chairs and benches, all with sustainable wood, minimal waste (which is also reused in anyway they can)

Moments. With busy lives and hectic schedules it can often be hard to stop and take a movement. Jasper Morrison designed the Raami Collection for Iittala designed to encourage an atmosphere around the table.
“As our lives get busier, we seek balance and versatility; objects to be loved and used day in and day out, essentials that last from decade to decade and simplicity that has the power to improve our daily lives. Rather than concentrating on the material things, we celebrate the gatherings, the conversations and the relationships. We stand for progressive Nordic living. Always striving for balance and better ways of living; refining the ways we coexist with each other and our surroundings. We encourage you to inspire better living.” – Jasper Morrison.

I’m late to the game. How have I only just discovered Juna? A textile company started in 1972, their products have the sustainable eco labels OEKO – TEX ® which is incredibly hard to achieve. The Juna collection is vast, from beddings, bath towels, kitchen and dining textiles etc. I particularly love the slightly colourful tea towel

Conscious cleaning, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it’s incredibly important to look at the chemicals an cleaning products used at home in your daily lives. I’m a big fan of Humdakin who have a lot of great household cleaning products. “HUMDAKIN’s liquid products are free of parabens, dyes, essential oils, chemical perfumes, endocrine disrupting substances and carcinogens.‘ – Humdakin

Soap nuts and wool dryer balls. Not something you would often hear in a conversation. The sad thing is these things aren’t new, so why haven’t we been using them?. Soap nuts are dried out shells from a soap berry tree named SAPINDUS MUKOROSSI. When they are in warm water they release natural saponin, natural soap. Put about 5/6 in a bag and they can be used until they lose their colour. A great organic alternative to detergent. Wool dryer balls soak up moisture in the dryer making the drying time much shorter = saving energy. What cool sustainable life hacks, I’m excited to try.

Is this the start of a sustainable revolution I wonder? I hope so. It’s hopeful when such a large fair get companies thinking, either being proud of their environmental actions or in some cases, making them think about how to get better. There’s no point shaming businesses that aren’t 100% sustainable what we can do it encourage brands and say in specific terms how we’d like change. The brands at Formland were all so welcoming and we had honest discussions about the topic. A thought provoking topic all while we swooned over the new collections. Hey, we are consumers after all.
I couldn’t forget this cute and ever classic Monkey by Kay Bojesen. They are handcrafted and made in Denmark. There’s a Panda version inspired by two new panda’s at Copenahgen zoo with proceeds going to WWF world nature fund.. “Kay Bojesen has chosen to donate a portion of her proceeds to the WWF World Nature Fund. The money goes to endangered animal species. Therefore, when you buy this sweet panda bear, you are supporting the pandas in nature. ”

This Formland trip has got me thinking that’s for sure!

H x