Modern Modular LEGO Furniture: Fun for Kids of All Ages
What is it about LEGO bricks that keeps us feeling like kids long after we’ve entered the realm of adulthood? Though the brand has been around since the 1930s, LEGO continues to be the one toy that consistently captures our imagination and stimulates our creativity. The toys inspire users to build everything from complex sculptures to full-scale houses. Consumers devour the brand’s kits to recreate architectural masterpieces and Star Wars ships, and some people even integrate them into the decor of their homes. Of course, beloved children’s building blocks don’t exactly mesh well with modern interior design — or do they?
Italian design collective Studio NINE presents “Stüda,” a collection of modular furniture pieces with LEGO bases built right onto their surfaces. More specifically, the collection consists of a credenza and an open storage cube. The two pieces are streamlined and simple, with clean angles that would fit right into most contemporary home decors. From afar, you might not even notice anything unusual about them, but upon further inspection, you’ll recognize that distinct pattern of round pegs printed on their exteriors.
The furniture is versatile enough to blend with several different styles and can match the interior design of almost any house. If you prefer graphic minimalism, all you need to do is add a few LEGO bricks in a controlled palette to make a unique statement that works for your space. More of a maximalist? You can also pile on dozens of LEGO elements to build the furniture’s surfaces out in a fresh and creative way. Just like any LEGO project, it’s as understated or complex as you want it to be. Create a custom pattern, spell out your company name, illustrate a fantasy landscape, or design your own cityscape. Just try not to drop too many pieces on the ground, lest you experience the dreaded collision between LEGO bricks and the sensitive soles of your feet.
If you’re concerned about how the exteriors might look over time, we have some good news for you. Corian is a highly durable composite surface material and it’s easy to clean. While you might cringe any time a grubby-handed child approaches any other piece of modern furniture, Stüda is ready to take whatever the kids can dish out. On top of being kid-friendly, these pieces will also bring a whole lot of joy to the adults that order them. In fact, that’s really what the designers had in mind when they dreamed up these fun and functional objects.
“Our office is full of AFOL (Adult Fans of LEGO), so we simply listened to our needs,” says Paolo Bellisario, co-founder of Studio NINE. “We simply wanted something creative, but useful; something we were using in our houses already.”
The second bit of good news is that the Stüda furniture collection isn’t just a concept — it’s a real product. Available in white or yellow with steel supports, the pieces will soon be ready to purchase for individual order or as a set. The collection will be accessible through MOOW, an Italian manufacturer of innovative furniture made by a team of carpenters, craftspeople, and product developers. The LEGO bricks aren’t included, but they’re a lot easier to procure.
If you had the blank canvases of these modular furniture designs in front of you right now along with a big bucket of LEGO bricks, what would you create?
