Tiptoe Stool is Off Balance on Purpose | Designs & Ideas on Dornob - Feed https://dornob.com Architecture, Interior and Furniture Design Thu, 07 Aug 2025 23:57:26 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.1 Tiptoe Stool is Off Balance on Purpose https://dornob.com/tiptoe-stool-five-legged-furniture-balances-on-three-legs/ Mon, 08 Jul 2013 23:00:57 +0000 http://dornob.com/?p=38687 Somewhere between a concept design and practical proposal sits this stool by designer Martin Vallin, perched perpetually (yet variably) on just three of five possible points of contact. It is in some sense a play on the principle that a three-legged stool is balanced by default, but it has pragmatic potential as well. With an […]

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Somewhere between a concept design and practical proposal sits this stool by designer Martin Vallin, perched perpetually (yet variably) on just three of five possible points of contact.

off balance stool

It is in some sense a play on the principle that a three-legged stool is balanced by default, but it has pragmatic potential as well. With an actual seat on top, you could, for instance, rock it around and lean in different directions as desired.

cross shaped stool set

And yet, while potentially always more stable than a four-legged chair, there is a visual imbalance that keeps the user on edge, because some portion of the piece is always off the ground, appearing precarious. Is it a bit impractical? Depends on your perspective. Some people might like it just for its “active sitting” properties, which require you to use various muscle groups to remain steady.

“Landet exhibit in the Green House, the area for up and coming designers. As part of Landets exibition I made a stool. Ideas came from the rocking chair and the milk stool. It is really nice to turn around and lean in any way just like a pilates ball! A fun stool for fun times. It stacks and looks great in clusters.”

Stool in hand
Cappellini chair

Another fun piece is the Capellini Chair, which looks a bit like a nest that’s big enough for a human to sit within.

“2010 in Milan it was a prototype, from early 2011 the Secret Clubhouse is part of the collezione!” says Vallin. “It is so nice, it is really comfy and the touch and fragrant of the pine wood is wonderful!”

Martin Vallin is a Danish furniture and architectural designer who enjoys these kinds of experiments and often hides complex ideas in simple wood forms. He has exhibited this and other pieces in Stockholm and Milan.

“Master in furniture and spacial design from Denmark Design School. I like to make furniture, products, indoor and outdoor spaces and micro architecture and planing.”

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