Cardboard Furniture Shows Flat-Out Style
Easy to assemble, fully recyclable and conveniently portable, cardboard furniture and accessories are now a chic design statement as well
Houzz
April 24, 2012
Portable, durable and 100 percent recyclable, cardboard decor is an inexpensive way to up your home's ecofriendly factor — and update your look, too. With design styles going beyond the typical box form, there are many design options to pick from these days. And when you're ready for a seasonal decor swap-out, the furniture below can be folded flat stored away. While you have the option of decking out your entire home in cardboard, you certainly don't have to. Ease into cardboard with a few key pieces that update a room without overwhelming it.
Start with a few pieces. The strong and sturdy bedframe and drawers in this bedroom can be bought as a set or separately, in case you feel like easing into cardboard decor with just one or two pieces. The Paperpedic bedframe from Karton also doubles as a storage unit: It has eight pullout drawers and assembles in just a few minutes. The bed is ideal for a guest room because it can morph from a single to a king-size bed and has the load capacity of close to a ton.
Light the way to responsible living. The homeowners of this Queen Anne–style home in Chicago's trendy Lincoln Park neighborhood are doing their part in creating a more environmentally friendly future, and it shows in their decor choices. Case in point: Their entryway's honeycomb pendant lights by Gray Pant are handmade in Seattle from salvaged corrugated cardboard.
Make a bold statement with colorful cardboard. This modern storage solution makes a splashy, functional and ecofriendly addition to any living room or home office. Reinhard Dienes created his Georgia sideboard and Dickens bookshelves from fully recyclable cardboard in seven different colors. Lightweight and sturdy, each snazzy shelf has an edge strength of up to 190 pounds, making it a desirable accessory for modern decor fans and bibliophiles alike.
Invest in a modern cardboard icon. Frank Gehry did the impossible by alternating the directions of several sheets of cardboard and gluing them together for durability and strength, eventually creating the iconic Wiggle Chair. It can throw a curve into a sitting room that's overwhelmed with angles and straight lines.
Use cardboard in strategic locations. Anyone with kids knows that all furniture surfaces are open to scrawls, doodles and spontaneous artwork — making kids' bedrooms or play areas a great place to have cardboard decor.
As you can see, these kids know how to maximize their cardboard furniture. This Paper Play Set, which includes a table with a storage cavity and a set of six stools, triples as a flat work surface, storage unit and foldable canvas. Reuse the surfaces time and again with erasable markers and crayons.
Dress it up. Want to use cardboard in your home but don't like the — pardon the expression — stale-as-cardboard appeal? Take cues from this DIY mom, who covered each cardboard letter with scraps of fabric to make a playful and colorful alphabet wall in her little girl's room.
Get crafty with cardboard shapes. This gorgeous piece of wall art is made of the most unattractive of materials: toilet paper rolls. Architects Lauren and Kyle Zerbey used an online tutorial by DIY blogger Tali Buchler to craft this whimsical piece of wall art in their Seattle home; they colored the insides of a few pieces yellow to give splashes of citrine amid a sea of brown shapes. If you'd like to take a stab at making the wall art at home, protect the natural look of the exposed cardboard and make the art piece water resistant by spraying semigloss polyurethane on the cardboard.
Solve storage problems with cardboard. The five iterations of Karton's Berlin Method storage system can stand solo or be grouped to create an easy way to keep everything organized.
The shelves are extra strong and capable of carrying the weight of your vintage magazines or stacks of dishes.
More:
Tastemakers: Our Cardboard Life
Using Boxes to Clean Up Clutter and Inspire Creativity
The shelves are extra strong and capable of carrying the weight of your vintage magazines or stacks of dishes.
More:
Tastemakers: Our Cardboard Life
Using Boxes to Clean Up Clutter and Inspire Creativity
Related Stories
Organizing
How to Create a Joyful, Clutter-Free Home Office
Follow these steps to get rid of the paper piles and make room for beauty and better organization
Full Story
Remodeling Guides
15 Ways to Create Separation in an Open Floor Plan
By tidgboutique
Use these pro tips to minimize noise, delineate space and establish personal boundaries in an open layout
Full Story
White
Design Pros Share 10 Favorite Creamy White Paints
By Becky Harris
These off-white color choices include versatile tones, warming hues and pleasingly soft shades
Full Story
Entryways
4 Designer Tips for a Fashionable Entry
By tidgboutique
A pro shows how adding color, statement pieces and more to a foyer can set the right tone for the rest of the home
Full Story
Most Popular
7 Major Decorating Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
By tidgboutique
Gain confidence to start your interior design project with this advice from a professional designer
Full Story
Living Rooms
4 Must-Have Features for a Small Living Room
By tidgboutique
A designer shares important ways to live large in a tight space and make it look stylish
Full Story
Most Popular
7 Common Decorating Mistakes to Avoid
Pros share solutions to design problems they often find in people’s living spaces
Full Story
Most Popular
How to Decorate a Living Room
By tidgboutique
A designer offers tips for creating a comfortable space that reflects your style
Full Story
Budget Decorating
Where to Splurge and Where to Save When Decorating
By tidgboutique
See where it makes sense to invest in durable essentials and focal pieces, and where to economize on other things
Full Story
Lighting
Pro Tips for Lighting 10 Rooms and Outdoor Areas
Get professional advice for lighting your kitchen, bathroom, living room, office, patio and more
Full Story
My cat would shred my "furniture" in a week. Corrugated cardboard is like catnip.
love the idea of ecofriendly factor..
Enjoyed the article.