Many of Emo's projects are ultra-modern and hewn predominantly from glossy plastics and metals. The Italian, industrial design consultancy often works in sports equipment, electronics and modern furnishings. Their recent design project, Hug, shown at the Salone del Mobile, finds an interesting middle ground—the form is smooth and modern but with a distinct sense of craftsmanship created through the uneven and hand-sawed surfaces.

The wooden stool—design to match the Elite brand of furniture and accessories—mixes a very traditional and well-worn material with a new, colorful rope handle, adding a bit of playful and contrasting function.

Emo says that it is only by chance that their project collection has a common appeal. "In every project we approach, we collect values directly from the brand, then we transfer them to new products. Elite has brand values completely different from other clients we are working with." Which is what the final product is very different from others they have worked on, though they followed the same project process.

According to Emo, the design was an enjoyable diversion from the norm—"Designing Hug was a lot of fun because it is a simple object—other products we work on are normally much more complex and stress along the design exploration is quite high." It was imagined and "born to make you smile... A sincere Hug. "

Some other hand-picked posts you might enjoy on our Design Blog:

Tailored Wood Benches from Raw Edges Studio
The Rev-->Table: Furniture with a Digital Fingerprint
Burnt Out: Fire Sculpted Furniture by Kaspar Hamacher