For me, a great, not even good, but a GREAT sofa design is extremely imperative for a home space, and especially my home space. I mean, imagine you’ve had a rough day, and you come home to sink into a sofa…that isn’t super cozy and comfy? That simply does not sit right with me. But besides being super cozy and comfy, a great sofa must also be ergonomically designed, provide good lumbar support and aesthetically match your interiors! Not to mention it should also be easy to maintain, to an extent. The criteria for a great sofa design are plenty, but finding one is another ball game altogether. Hence, we’ve curated a collection of sofa designs that meet all our requirements for a top-notch sofa!
The Lawless Sofa by Evan Fay is a complete mind twister. A concoction of swirling masses hoisted on a metallic base. Something about it just makes me want to dive right into it! It’s hands down one of the most creative sofas I’ve come across, and although I’m unsure of how comfy it maybe if I have to sit on it for long, it definitely is an eye-catching piece that will be the topic of many conversations. It can really be deemed as a piece of art!
The Lift-Bit sofa is nothing short of magical. Designed by Carlo Ratti Associati and Opendot, and premiered at the Milan Design Week this year, it looks like an unsuspecting sofa but has a vastly better user experience than any sofa you’ll see. Just hover your hand above the cushion and the sofa height adjusts, moving up and down, based on where you move your hand. The sofa comes as a single yet modular unit. Pair multiple pieces together and you have yourself a completely customizable 3D playground that also serves as comfortable seating!
For the benefit of every working from home couch potato, recognized Portuguese designer João Teixeira has designed Brick Sofa that offers additional convenience while working. For over a year now, we have been working from home. In the interim, if you have found the best corner to work out of, you may want to add a table or two from Teixeira’s collection. Otherwise, for some reason, the best I can guess being comfort; if you’re working from your sofa still – Teixeira’s Brick love seat with armrest attached in the center supporting a swivel shelf to place your equipment is by far the most practical option out there.
The inspiration behind the Dog House Sofa is pretty noble. In an attempt to raise awareness about the ever-increasing number of abandoned dogs, Seungji created the Dog House Sofa “to enhance the harmony between humans and their pets”. The sofa is the first design for the pet furniture brand “mpup”. Created out of solid wood ash and fabric upholstery, the sofa can seat two people. The entire piece is draped in neutral shades of beige and mocha, so no jarring colors to alarm your pet! The wooden armrest also doubles as a cozy hideaway for your pets. It’s a private section where they can laze around, with an opening in the armrest, allowing them to sneakily cuddle up to you!
Titled the ‘Pallet Thief’, this wooden throne was created by Anton Brunberg in response to a question he once had – “How to still celebrate the pure joy of making and craftsmanship without having to use up the planet’s precious raw materials?” Just by Anton’s calculations, there are roughly six billion pallets in circulation worldwide, most of which are made of wood. Each year, one percent of those pallets (approx 60,000) reach the end of their lifespan or are lost. By tapping into this industrial global supply, Anton discovered a way of turning unusable waste from one industry into raw material for another industry. The ‘Pallet Thief’ is certainly no ordinary piece of furniture, but then again, it’s a vision and a proof of concept for Anton, who aimed at showing the potential this recycled pallet wood has in the furniture-design world. It comes with hundreds of pallet planks joined together before the seat is carved out of the central mass.
With a voluminous yet hollow frame, the Shell sofa is instantly visible. It is, in a strictly physical sense, minimalist (because it’s mainly hollow), but visually, the Shell sofa is almost pillowy, spacious, and a treat to look at. The sofa is a frame that curves from the left to the back and to the right, with space in between for cushions, or even two side tables if you remove the cushions at the extreme ends. It’s visually imposing, but still manages to look light and airy, thanks to its wickerwork of metal rods. The interwoven rods also create this moire effect that creates a dynamic optical illusion, making the Shell sofa’s body incredibly interesting to look at… and while we’re on the subject of interesting, the sofa comes with two small openings at the beginning and end of its structure, making it perhaps the most entertaining play area for a domestic cat.
Since we spend most of our time in our homes (especially in 2020), we might as well make those spaces as comfortable and relaxing as possible. One problem that the massage chair business has not solved yet is creating space-efficient furniture. Massage chairs are often bulky, and they might not match the aesthetic of your existing furniture. The solution proposed by the Dong Dong sofa is to create a piece of furniture that just happens to include a massager. Based on the couch’s design alone, I would buy this product. Its plush, buoyant cushions and its bright yellow color would make for a great statement piece. The design pulls inspiration from a classic inflatable pool tube, which you can see in the couch’s large, bouncy cushions.
IKEA and Tom Dixon collaborated together to create ‘Delaktig’. Delaktig is a two in one modular sofa and bed! The design can be modified into different styles of furniture according to personal needs and requirements. The unique design can function as a sofa system for homes and even airports, a double-decker bed, and a raft. The modular piece of furniture “explores notions of adaptability and future-proofing”. Minimal, clean, and multifunctional, this is a sofa design that can cater to diverse furniture requirements.
Blå Station, Thomas Bernstrand, and Stefan Borselius collaborated to create a flexible and modular sofa named ‘Bob’. Quite like its name, Bob is a simple and sturdy sofa with narrow cushioned slices. It’s amped with six diverse modules, allowing you to customize and arrange it into various settings – from a single-person armchair to a long creative sofa formation. Bob provides unlimited options with a limited number of modules! Who knew home furniture could be this fun?
Imagine sinking into a couch that envelopes you from the sides and gives you a true “quiet space.” This multifunctional couch called the Transformer SHELL Sofa is inspired by Art Deco and tries to mimic the modularity of the form. The sofa is encompassed with a ‘sink’, whose colors can be changed from a retro white and grey combo to modern dark grey and black. Teamed with accessories that are in brass and bright red, the sofa is a delight!
