In design, the idea of “new” can be a double-edged thing.
We’re told to chase it—new launches, new collections, newness for its own sake—yet the pieces we return to, the ones that truly settle into our lives, tend to have something deeper at play. A quiet sense of rightness. A form that fits both body and context. A material honesty.
While trends ebb and flow, a few pieces I encountered during 3daysofdesign felt different. Yes, they were new releases, but not in the fleeting, fashion-week sense. Instead, they carried the weight of intention, designs that felt like future icons of timeless furniture, built to live with, not just look at.
What follows isn’t a trend report. It’s a personal gathering of designs that felt like they belonged, not just in the moment, but in the long, lived-in rhythm of home. In short: timeless furniture that speaks to form, feeling and function.
Bench for Two – Nanna Ditzel for Fredericia and A. Petersen
First unveiled in 1989, Nanna Ditzel’s Bench for Two’s sculptural form and unconventional character invited curiosity and connection. Over thirty years later, Fredericia has relaunched the piece in collaboration with Danish furniture brand A. Petersen. Crafted in Denmark, the reissue includes the original black version alongside three vivid new colourways—red, yellow and pink—reflecting Ditzel’s lifelong fascination with bold palettes and expressive form.
I’ve long been drawn to Ditzel’s work. Her Trinidad chair, which I have at my own dining table, remains a quiet favourite. Designed in 1993, it was inspired by the elaborate fretwork of colonial Gingerbread facades she encountered while travelling through Trinidad. The chair’s distinctive cut-outs echo this architecture, casting ever-changing shadows across the floor, creating not just pattern but presence. Much like the Bench for Two, it plays with light, structure and space, inviting interaction on more than just a functional level.
Bench for Two remains one of the clearest expressions of Ditzel’s artistic legacy. Here, she distilled her ethos into something unmistakably her own: sculptural yet functional, playful yet grounded. The two seats gently incline toward one another, encouraging quiet dialogue and shared presence. The graphic backrest—concentric circles punctuated by a single red dot—originated from a spontaneous sketch. Ditzel picked up a marker and drew directly onto the prototype. In the original release, this immediacy was preserved through a silkscreen print on 1.5 mm aircraft-grade maple veneer.
Inspired in part by the delicate symmetry of butterflies, the bench evokes natural grace and ergonomic clarity. Crafted from solid maple and veneer, it remains both a technical and artistic achievement more than three decades on, reflecting Ditzel’s ability to unlock the expressive and functional potential of her materials.
The relaunch isn’t just a nostalgic revival; it’s a reminder that timeless furniture celebrates more than form or function. It honours a vision where design meets emotion and furniture becomes a space for presence. To this day, Bench for Two still challenges conventions. It remains a radical statement of gentleness: human in scale, sculptural in form, and alive with intention. The bench is accompanied by an adjacent table, designed to complement its angles and complete the composition, balancing functionality with artistic expression.
Hi Lo – Anderssen & Voll for &Tradition
A sofa that doesn’t just support the body, but speaks to it. Hi Lo, the new modular seating series by Anderssen & Voll for &Tradition, invites you to sit back, literally and figuratively.
The modular collection rethinks the proportions of conventional lounge seating. Low to the ground, with an upwardly curving seat and a generous backrest, Hi Lo forms a gentle arc that mirrors the body at rest. Seen from the side, it recalls a soft incline—part sculpture, part recliner—encouraging a posture that’s open and unhurried.
I couldn’t help but think of the Togo by Ligne Roset, a piece I’ve long admired and that’s enjoyed something of a renaissance in recent years thanks to its Instagram-friendly silhouette. Designed by Michel Ducaroy in 1973, the Togo is all soft curves and crumpled charisma, its sunken profile and tube-of-toothpaste shape capturing a kind of joyful dishevelment. It’s a design that feels like a rebellion against formality, and an ode to sinking in.
The Hi Lo carries a similar spirit but with a contemporary clarity. It’s less enveloping, more supportive. Its sculpted seat is angled just enough to relax the frame without swallowing it. This creates a pleasing duality: high comfort, low form; softness with intention.
That balance between impact and subtlety defines the design, placing Hi Lo firmly in the realm of timeless furniture; pieces that evolve with how we live, rather than how we scroll. Despite its sculptural form, Hi Lo doesn’t overwhelm. The upward curve of the seat lightens the visual weight, easing its presence in a room. It’s a piece that feels as suitable for a small reading corner as it does for a hotel lobby or listening lounge. Even the cleaning is considered: the curved form prevents corners where dust might gather.
Modularity brings further flexibility. The collection includes a one-seater and a corner module, both built to be combined or used alone. Anderssen & Voll describe the design as one born from intuition. “With Hi Lo, we wanted to make a sofa with fluidity,” explains Espen Voll. “A place to listen to music, to make memories, to just sit and be.”
Embrace Outdoor Lounge Series – EOOS for Carl Hansen & Søn
There’s something quietly assured about Carl Hansen & Søn’s collaboration with EOOS. For nearly a decade, the Austrian design studio has brought a sense of poetic clarity to the Danish brand’s collection and the latest addition, the Embrace Outdoor Lounge series, continues in that spirit.
Crafted in untreated teak with handwoven rope detailing, the series finds its strength in contrast: soft upholstery meets precise geometry. The design is modular, made up of seven sofa elements and a low table, each piece calibrated for comfort, customisation and longevity.
The sofa’s lines are relaxed yet articulate, the kind that feel at home by the sea or in a quiet courtyard. Cushions in water-resistant textiles and quick-drying foam offer both practicality and ease. Every element, down to the generously curved armrests and floating tabletop, has been shaped with intention.
EOOS’s approach has always prioritised longevity over trend. Their design philosophy aligns closely with Carl Hansen & Søn’s ethos: to create pieces that can be repaired, adapted and passed down. The outdoor collection reflects this: modular in build, but timeless in expression.
As Knud Erik Hansen, CEO of Carl Hansen & Søn, notes, “EOOS bring something poetic to our collection… an approach that is 100% EOOS and 100% Carl Hansen & Søn.” The result is a series that doesn’t chase novelty, but instead offers a vision of timeless furniture: serene, tactile and quietly confident.
Petit Rond Series – Troels Grum-Schwensen for Frama
At first glance, the Petit Rond series by Frama appears almost austere: slim, minimal, quietly self-contained. But linger, and its subtleties begin to unfold. Designed by Troels Grum-Schwensen and reissued by Frama, the collection balances rigour and warmth, offering an unexpectedly human take on stainless steel.
True to its name—petit rond, or “small circle”—the series is anchored by its curved seat, a simple shape that becomes a point of focus. Every element has been refined to the slimmest possible profile without sacrificing comfort. The positioning of the seat and backrest has been carefully considered to support the body with surprising softness. You feel held, not perched.
Originally created for a gallery and café space on the island of Møn, the design carries something of that atmosphere; quiet, intentional, public yet intimate. There’s a lightness to it, both visually and physically, making it adaptable to indoor or outdoor use. And while its brushed steel surface speaks to Frama’s industrial vocabulary, the addition of leather-upholstered seats introduces a tactile contrast that softens and grounds the form.
Petit Rond doesn’t shout for attention. It earns it, subtly, over time. Timeless furniture, after all, isn’t defined by trend, but by how it continues to serve and surprise. In context, Petit Rond feels less like a standalone object and more like part of a wider language, one of balance, restraint and integrity. It complements Frama’s aluminium and steel collections without repeating them, offering a new inflection: modernism with a gentle touch.
Dream View Bench – Lise Vester for Muuto
Some designs speak directly to the body. The Dream View Bench by Danish designer Lise Vester is one of them. With its gentle, ergonomic curve, it invites the sitter to lean back and look up, redirecting our attention from screens and tasks to the open sky above.
I encountered the bench atop Muuto’s Copenhagen headquarters, as part of Grounded in Nature, an immersive installation by Kinda Studios. The rooftop had been transformed into a sensorial pause; a landscape of calm perched high above the city’s rush. At its centre, Vester’s brushed stainless steel bench offered a moment of stillness and perspective. Its form—cradling yet open—supported the body while subtly guiding the gaze skyward, encouraging quiet reflection.
The experience was rooted in neuroaesthetics, engaging more than just sight. Sound, scent, and movement worked in harmony. Swell Studio’s meditative soundscape played softly overhead, while Floating Leaf, a scent created by Studio Pneuma, evoked earthy freshness and leafy depth. Textures underfoot and shifting visuals added to the sensory layering. It was a space designed not only to be seen, but felt, offering a gentle reminder of how design can reconnect us to ourselves and our surroundings.
The Dream View Bench itself was born by the sea, where Vester began mapping the curve of her own body in the sand before sculpting it into form. But its roots run deeper. The design was partly shaped by her personal experience of grief and care. After losing family members in hospital settings, she became acutely aware of how clinical environments can often feel cold and alienating. “When my aunt spent her final days at a hospice in 2011, the experience was profoundly different,” she explains. “The space was warm, welcoming, and comforting—offering dignity and calm in the midst of grief. That moment shaped the way I approach design.”
As a design student, Vester later returned to that same hospice, conducting interviews with nurses, palliative care teams and families to understand what made the environment feel so healing. The Dream View Bench is one expression of that learning, a quiet gesture that makes space for pause, presence and emotional ease. Its gentle presence and enduring message offer a different kind of timeless furniture: not only well-designed, but well-considered.
All imagery © respective brands
2 responses
Thanks for bringing my design; “Petit rond” in Your issue (July 14th)! I was very happy to read Your text, which in a uncommonly high degree represent my thoughts and approachs for this design. Even thoughts and philosophys You couldnt know! :-) Thanks for seeing them in the design itself! All the best: Troels Gum-Schwensen
So happy you found the post Troels, and delighted to hear that my assessment of your design match your own intentions :) It trult is a beautiful piece.