BACKYARD MINIMALISM reaches new heights with VITEO’s incredibly stylish Outdoor collection. In piece after piece, slim teak or larch slats are combined with sleekly shaped metal in what amounts to a beautiful union of the natural and manmade worlds. Based in wine-rich southeastern Austria, VITEO has been building outdoor furniture for over four years in conjunction with local craftspeople.
viteo.com
Via: the style files
Popularity: 7% [?]
SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE, West Elm’s Wood Deck tiles are the outdoor equivalent of indoor Flor tiles (previously featured here). Even better: these pieces require no assembly and can simply laid flat for quick and stylish wood decking. Our only point of contention is the exotic nyatoh wood; we just hope it’s plantation sourced.
$99, westelm.com
Popularity: 6% [?]
ADIRONDACKS GO MODERN with Loll’s outdoor furniture line; they also go synthetic, as each piece is made from 100% recycled plastic (stainless steel fasteners hold everything in place). Although a traditional round-backed version is available, we prefer the more sleek and minimalist flat-backed chairs. Also available: matching ottomans, side tables and picnic tables.
$139-$659, vivavi.com
Popularity: 5% [?]
SMALL BACKYARDS are a perfect fit for Room & Board’s sexy, space-saving Pacifica collection. Sophisticated and minimalist, each piece of outdoor furniture sports a powder-coated finish over steel to protect from the elements. We particularly like the slatted steel design motif, as well as the beautifully designed arm and lounge chairs. Note that the table is available in both a square and rectangular version.
$149-$749, roomandboard.com
Popularity: 5% [?]
SUSTAINABLE TEAK generally makes for inviting, casual lounging, yet the Maku Lounge Chair’s outlined armrests and contemporary lines add a healthy dollop of sophistication. Designed for both indoor and outdoor aesthetics, the Lounge Chair (like all of Maku’s furniture) is targeted primarily at surfers, travelers, and other lifestyle enthusiasts. However, we believe that the audience for clean lines, quality construction and eco-conscious attitude goes far beyond this select group; this is handsome furniture we’d love to have in our own homes.
$829 (+$229 w/cushion), makufurniture.com
Popularity: 6% [?]
ECHOES OF MID-CENTURY DESIGN reverberate through the Palms Teak Lounger, which sports gently curved laminated teak sections and brushed stainless steel legs. The clean, organic design is most apparent in the fixed lounger version, although the adjustable chair is decidedly more functional. Note that the chair is both ergonomically and environmentally comforting: the top-grade teak is sourced from sustainable forests.
$1,699, shopgrounded.com
Popularity: 31% [?]
WE’VE SEEN minimalist chaise longues before, but Jeanne Scandura’s Float Wave Chaise is about simple as it gets. Constructed from fiberglass-reinforced resin, the Float Wave is little more than a double wave whose basic form makes it equally appropriate indoors and outdoors. Speaking of outside use: the chaise’s marine-grade gel-coat finish offers protection from UV light and temperature extremes.
$3,800, nova68.com
Popularity: 7% [?]
METAL DECOR FANS will definitely appreciate the stainless steel construction of Aiden Seat; the ribs are regularly spaced, the angles perfectly perpendicular, and the frame inherently able to withstand heavy loads. Outdoor and indoor friendly, the seats can also serve as end and coffee tables. The latter function is likely the more appropriate, as sitting on an Aiden for an extended period of time will likely give one a case of grill butt.
$498-$698, chiasso.com
Popularity: 7% [?]
ALTHOUGH IT’S EASY to get wrapped up in the minimalist style of John Caldwell’s Silver Collection of outdoor furniture, the real beauty is in the tiniest of details. From the way the armchair’s cast aluminum frame cradles each wooden slat to the recliner’s nearly invisible yet ergonomically appropriate curves, each piece is replete with elegant and thoughtful features. The unfinished, kiln-dried teak will develop a silvery patina over time and, as a double bonus is harvested from managed plantations.
$798-$1,698 (seats), dwr.com
Popularity: 4% [?]
OUTDOOR furniture needn’t be typical: these contemporary seats and tables by La Jolla-based Afton Grove bring man-made perpendicularity to the poolside. Tightly interwoven synthetic, leather and abaca weaves form the base of each piece, and are available in several dark/neutral shades. Note: Afton sells directly to interior designers, showrooms and architects.
aftongrove.com
Popularity: 4% [?]
STAVES are narrow strips of wood that comprise traditional oak wine barrels; Viva Terra deftly recycles and repurposes these pieces to form furniture and tableware. From top: the natural curvature of a stave forms a pagoda-like bench but is equally suitable as an oversized bread bowl or a stylish candle holder. Most useful is the stave chair which sports alternating slats that allow it to be folded flat.
$48-$219, vivaterra.com
Popularity: 7% [?]
In Freudian psychology, the ego serves as mediator between the libidinous Id and the Ideal Ego (Superego). French design firm EgoParis is arguably a physical manifestation of the ego, with a balance between sensuous design cues and sensible, long-lasting materials. Above: the Tandem Sunlounger and Daybed are composed of beautiful, fluid lines and made from equally beautiful materials. Rot-proof and UV treated cane work for the seats lies flush with high quality teak, both of which are suspended in a minimalist aluminum frame.
In addition to lounge chairs, the Tandem Collection provides functional armchairs that come in left, right and middle variants for multiple grouping configurations. Corner tables and ottomans finish the collection and are stylish enough to be used both inside and outside.
The Premiere Sunlounger and Chaise Longue (nicknamed “Fish”) are seductively curved chairs made from aluminum and cane work. I particularly love the way the teak armrests on the Sunlounger integrate perfectly into the aluminum frame.
Both the Multiposition and Low armchairs feature inclined seats; coupled with strategically curved lines, the chairs seem to possess a graceful, motive energy. The Multiposition in particular resembles the elegant brush strokes of an accomplished cartoonist, with each of the four positions akin to a frame from a flipbook.
EgoParis also provides a downloadable program that you can use to custom design their furniture; choose from their entire lineup and swap out colors on the fly. Even more useful: a variety of backgrounds are available so you can visualize and situate your furniture in the setting of your choice. For those of us whose financial constraints dictate otherwise, this allows us to manifest our “Ego”, albeit digitally.
furniture-egoparis.com
Popularity: 4% [?]
