ABOUT NICOLETTE. Nicolette comes from the Netherlands, drawing inspiration from the countries where she has lived and visited, including Singapore and the UK, where she is based and her products are hand-made by craftsmen. Her previous furniture and furnishings include her well-received Dangerous Animals wool cushions, Gingko and Leaf rugs, as well as bookshelves, desk and daybed. ABOUT HER WORK. She is constantly invigorated by the colours, materials, sights and sounds of places she visits around the world – particularly Asia – and loves to try out different materials and techniques in her work. Her pieces are functional and tactile, and respond flexibly to the needs of modern dwelling spaces. “My aim is to create designs and products that are as hardwearing as they are beautiful to look at,” she says. “Above all, I want them to stand the test of time.” AIMS AND INSPIRATIONS. Nicolette tries to balance the form of her furniture with its function, “playing” with the shapes she works with, but keeping the overall design as pure and simple as possible. For her modular work she fashions very simple, interlocking forms, sometime inspired by the shapes found in nature, aiming to create flexible designs where the elements can be combined in an infinite number of ways. The asymmetric forms created by her Jutting Bookcase Cubes, for example, can be wall-mounted, placed against the wall, or stacked as a room divider. Similarly, her Leaf Seats change in function when arranged in different ways. New pieces of furniture emerge when single pieces – which work as standalone footstools – are positioned together. Seven leaf seats together function as a daybed. A larger group will become an eye-catching collection in open spaces, reception areas and galleries, providing a touch of warmth and evoking the natural world. WORKING METHOD. Once the idea for a design takes shape, Nicolette moves from sketches and studio samples to discussing the work with the craftsmen who will fashion it. She looks forward to this dialogue, where designer and craftsmen cooperate, sharing their knowledge and techniques, challenging each other to perfect the finished product. The Leaf Seat saw her intensively studying petals and leaves before working out the perfect tessellation through sketches, drawings and models. Similarly, her Modular Cast Candlesticks involved many sketches to create a satisfying shape that functions as a puzzle, enabling you to create an endless, complex assembly. SUSTAINABILITY AND SOURCING. Design by nico products are handmade by craftsmen in the UK, and combine traditional techniques and materials with new technologies and forms, responding to our modern age and housing needs. Nicolette’s materials range from high-quality Kvadrat wool (for her Leaf Seats and Dangerous Animals cushions, for example) to solid and durable elements such as metal, oak and Corian (which feature together in her Corian/Oak Writing Desk). Where possible, materials are sourced from the UK. She is committed to using sustainable materials in her work and is involved in every stage of the production process, ensuring that the end result always meets her exacting standards. She sources production and craftsmen in the UK for processes which include traditional metal casting, joinery and sheet metal work. THE OWNERS. Nicolette’s designs gives users of her furniture the chance to be creative in their own right. “I am more than happy to provide the tools,” she says. “I am actually quite pleased to see how people can be inspired by my things and make something of their own with these objects. “I always felt each piece should be ready to use, so people can see the value of it and be immediately attracted to it, so they won’t say: ‘I can only imagine that in galleries’.”
Nicolette de Waart
Designer United Kingdom
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ABOUT NICOLETTE.
Nicolette comes from the Netherlands, drawing inspiration from the countries where she has lived and visited, including Singapore and the UK, where she is based and her products are hand-made by craftsmen. Her previous furniture and furnishings include her well-received Dangerous Animals wool cushions, Gingko and Leaf rugs, as well as bookshelves, desk and daybed.
ABOUT HER WORK.
She is constantly invigorated by the colours, materials, sights and sounds of places she visits around the world – particularly Asia – and loves to try out different materials and techniques in her work. Her pieces are functional and tactile, and respond flexibly to the needs of modern dwelling spaces.
“My aim is to create designs and products that are as hardwearing as they are beautiful to look at,” she says. “Above all, I want them to stand the test of time.”
AIMS AND INSPIRATIONS.
Nicolette tries to balance the form of her furniture with its function, “playing” with the shapes she works with, but keeping the overall design as pure and simple as possible.
For her modular work she fashions very simple, interlocking forms, sometime inspired by the shapes found in nature, aiming to create flexible designs where the elements can be combined in an infinite number of ways.
The asymmetric forms created by her Jutting Bookcase Cubes, for example, can be wall-mounted, placed against the wall, or stacked as a room divider.
Similarly, her Leaf Seats change in function when arranged in different ways. New pieces of furniture emerge when single pieces – which work as standalone footstools – are positioned together. Seven leaf seats together function as a daybed. A larger group will become an eye-catching collection in open spaces, reception areas and galleries, providing a touch of warmth and evoking the natural world.
WORKING METHOD.
Once the idea for a design takes shape, Nicolette moves from sketches and studio samples to discussing the work with the craftsmen who will fashion it. She looks forward to this dialogue, where designer and craftsmen cooperate, sharing their knowledge and techniques, challenging each other to perfect the finished product.
The Leaf Seat saw her intensively studying petals and leaves before working out the perfect tessellation through sketches, drawings and models. Similarly, her Modular Cast Candlesticks involved many sketches to create a satisfying shape that functions as a puzzle, enabling you to create an endless, complex assembly.
SUSTAINABILITY AND SOURCING.
Design by nico products are handmade by craftsmen in the UK, and combine traditional techniques and materials with new technologies and forms, responding to our modern age and housing needs.
Nicolette’s materials range from high-quality Kvadrat wool (for her Leaf Seats and Dangerous Animals cushions, for example) to solid and durable elements such as metal, oak and Corian (which feature together in her Corian/Oak Writing Desk). Where possible, materials are sourced from the UK.
She is committed to using sustainable materials in her work and is involved in every stage of the production process, ensuring that the end result always meets her exacting standards. She sources production and craftsmen in the UK for processes which include traditional metal casting, joinery and sheet metal work.
THE OWNERS.
Nicolette’s designs gives users of her furniture the chance to be creative in their own right. “I am more than happy to provide the tools,” she says. “I am actually quite pleased to see how people can be inspired by my things and make something of their own with these objects.
“I always felt each piece should be ready to use, so people can see the value of it and be immediately attracted to it, so they won’t say: ‘I can only imagine that in galleries’.”
Nicolette comes from the Netherlands, drawing inspiration from the countries where she has lived and visited, including Singapore and the UK, where she is based and her products are hand-made by craftsmen. Her previous furniture and furnishings include her well-received Dangerous Animals wool cushions, Gingko and Leaf rugs, as well as bookshelves, desk and daybed.
ABOUT HER WORK.
She is constantly invigorated by the colours, materials, sights and sounds of places she visits around the world – particularly Asia – and loves to try out different materials and techniques in her work. Her pieces are functional and tactile, and respond flexibly to the needs of modern dwelling spaces.
“My aim is to create designs and products that are as hardwearing as they are beautiful to look at,” she says. “Above all, I want them to stand the test of time.”
AIMS AND INSPIRATIONS.
Nicolette tries to balance the form of her furniture with its function, “playing” with the shapes she works with, but keeping the overall design as pure and simple as possible.
For her modular work she fashions very simple, interlocking forms, sometime inspired by the shapes found in nature, aiming to create flexible designs where the elements can be combined in an infinite number of ways.
The asymmetric forms created by her Jutting Bookcase Cubes, for example, can be wall-mounted, placed against the wall, or stacked as a room divider.
Similarly, her Leaf Seats change in function when arranged in different ways. New pieces of furniture emerge when single pieces – which work as standalone footstools – are positioned together. Seven leaf seats together function as a daybed. A larger group will become an eye-catching collection in open spaces, reception areas and galleries, providing a touch of warmth and evoking the natural world.
WORKING METHOD.
Once the idea for a design takes shape, Nicolette moves from sketches and studio samples to discussing the work with the craftsmen who will fashion it. She looks forward to this dialogue, where designer and craftsmen cooperate, sharing their knowledge and techniques, challenging each other to perfect the finished product.
The Leaf Seat saw her intensively studying petals and leaves before working out the perfect tessellation through sketches, drawings and models. Similarly, her Modular Cast Candlesticks involved many sketches to create a satisfying shape that functions as a puzzle, enabling you to create an endless, complex assembly.
SUSTAINABILITY AND SOURCING.
Design by nico products are handmade by craftsmen in the UK, and combine traditional techniques and materials with new technologies and forms, responding to our modern age and housing needs.
Nicolette’s materials range from high-quality Kvadrat wool (for her Leaf Seats and Dangerous Animals cushions, for example) to solid and durable elements such as metal, oak and Corian (which feature together in her Corian/Oak Writing Desk). Where possible, materials are sourced from the UK.
She is committed to using sustainable materials in her work and is involved in every stage of the production process, ensuring that the end result always meets her exacting standards. She sources production and craftsmen in the UK for processes which include traditional metal casting, joinery and sheet metal work.
THE OWNERS.
Nicolette’s designs gives users of her furniture the chance to be creative in their own right. “I am more than happy to provide the tools,” she says. “I am actually quite pleased to see how people can be inspired by my things and make something of their own with these objects.
“I always felt each piece should be ready to use, so people can see the value of it and be immediately attracted to it, so they won’t say: ‘I can only imagine that in galleries’.”
