Uncommon Materials Used For Furniture

Once upon a time, making furniture was for a few talented, gifted, craftsmen. It was their hobby and their pieces of art, and they’d make it piece by crafted piece. Then came the industrial revolution, and then the mass production techniques of the 20th century, satisfying the mass consumer market. That was amazing; you could order the exact same piece of furniture with the same design, of the same quality, and you can recommend it to everyone you know.

Slowly, consumers started to get bored. Everything just looked the same. But owe it to the humankind ingenuity to always find ways to innovate and exceed expectations. Their ingenuity found ways to use ancient materials in creating awe-striking pieces of art, or traditional pieces of furniture using completely out-of-the-box materials.

Looking for some inspiration for your creative soul? You’re in for a treat.

Bamboo

Using wood in furniture is no new trend, but have you ever heard about furniture made of bamboo? Surprisingly enough, we’ve heard from https://www.moderndigsfurniture.com/bamboo-furniture.html that they are even more durable! Add in its characteristics of being green wood, one of the most sustainable forms of hardwood, and its carbon-sequestering nature, bamboo just rocks.

Hypalon

Known for its resistance and endurance, Hypalon is usually used in the industrial field. But due to its unique properties as a polymer and a fabric in resisting the effects of chemicals, extreme temperature, and UV light, it was an excellent candidate for out-of-the-box furniture manufacture. Still skeptical? Imagine an inflatable table that can be minimized and inflated to fit storage or transport. Hypalon is the answer!

Ceramic

Yes ceramics are used for floors, but that’s not the only way to integrate it into your house. You can use a mix of ceramics and wood to create cabinets. Time to get creative with its colors and patterns, eh?

Cardboard

Long gone is the age of using cardboards for only boxes and packaging materials. There are a wide variety of creative furniture designs that use cardboard. You can think of anything: chairs, tables, dish-holders, laptop stands, shelves, even a whole library!

Kimono

Who said Kimonos are only for wear? Turns out, you can use them as room-dividing curtains. Coupled with their amazing colors and designs, this is really an eye-warming addition to your household. How else do you think you can utilize a Kimono?

Waste Silk

Silk is known to be elegant, fancy, durable and neat. The downside? The waste silk produced as a by-product. Fortunately, there’s a great solution to that: weave it into silk and create stools from it.

Terracotta

Terracotta is one of the materials commonly used in Japan for housing. Literally translated to mean "baked earth" in Italian, it’s a kind of ceramic that’s used more often in watering pots, sewage pipes and sculptures. That didn’t stop the Japanese from integrating Terracotta into making a seating stool that could be warmed by filling it with hot water. Talk about some comfy seating indeed.  

Acrylic, Resins, Plastics & Polymers

Owing to their translucency, alongside their durability, these substances that you can find at polymer company, can be used in making furniture while making the room look very spacious and well-lighted. They are also available in a variety of colors, so whatever you can think of, you’ll find the shade you need. One of the synthetic plastic examples is PVC, which can inspire a whole lot of other furniture ideas for you.

Bioresin

When you hear bioresin, it sounds like something that is environmentally-friendly. That is correct actually, as it is made from biological sources. But what does bioresin have to with furniture? A lot, it turns out. You can even weave a chair from yarn that is strengthened with bioresin. Crazy, right?

Film Archives

Rewind back to the 80s to witness the antique historical documentaries of our heritage, or find them in the film archives used to preserve them. Fast forward into the 21st century, and you can sew your own blankets using film archives.

Corian

Corian is a composite made from mixing stones and resins, and it’s been gaining quite the attention lately. It’s pretty cool because there are a ton of colors and textiles you can find of it. Once mainly used for countertops and in kitchens, more and more furniture manufacturers are now using it to make outstanding pieces.

Upcycled Old Objects

There’s nothing to test your creativity skills more than looking at old battered objects and trying to make good use of them. But once that door is open, you can never stop the ideas! Everywhere you look, there’s potential for a dozen different ways you can upcycle your old objects. Old damaged skis? Traffic lights? Battered jeans? Car tires? Think of anything, and you can create innovative pieces of furniture by putting them together.

Steel Wires and Metal Pipework

Who says building materials can’t be borrowed, to be used as furniture? Try using steel wires and metal pipework in your tables, coffee tables or chairs next time.

Set Your Creativity Free

While wood and fabric are so widely used in furniture manufacturing for a reason (being cheaper, durable, good-looking and doing their job), they’re the easiest pick for mass manufacture. But that also makes every piece of furniture look just like the next one. If you look into different materials around you, you’ll realize there are just so much more you can creatively use to do just the same function, but in style. How would you like to decorate your own house?