Designer Insights: The Future of Offices
Vol.5 The cutting edge of sustainable furniture and interior products
Non-uniform finish as a strong point: bringing out the individuality in plastic
Plastic products are strongly associated with uniformity. Like-it’s storage box, the Tidy-Up Box, resulted from challenging this common knowledge. Even when lined up with natural materials such as wood and stone, its texture gives off a new feeling.
To make plastics lighter, there is a process called foam moulding. By incorporating air bubbles in the material during production, the amount of resin needed can be reduced, making the product lighter. The air increases heat insulation and helps the material absorb shocks, so this process is even used in applications such as car bumpers. Visible cross-sections of bubbles appear on the surface, creating a characteristic pattern.
This pattern has conventionally been seen as a negative. However, with increased awareness for sustainability and the associated change of user sensibilities, it can also be viewed positively as a new look of plastic, as in Like-it’s storage box.
According to Kazuki Yoshikawa of Like-it, “A box with a high storage volume is big and thus a notable presence in a room. Giving it this kind of a feel makes it suitable for interiors where you have a strong sense of texture. Additionally, we have been told it is nice how you can tell at first glance that thought was given to environmental aspects.”