/* COLORS */

Tools for Everyday Life

Tools for Everyday Life
Cover image missing

Tools for Everyday Life is a project showcasing the community of practice surrounding the BA Furniture and Product Design programme at Northumbria University. This community has evolved through a dialogical approach to teaching and learning, where academic and technical staff act as facilitators in an ongoing process of shared inquiry with students. The project sets design briefs to create everyday objects that bring joy in use, proposing artefacts that recognise and celebrate the innumerable skilled actions that shape daily life. The aim is to draw inspiration from materials and processes that not only define the objects people interact with but also shape the relationship with the surrounding environment.

During 3daysofdesign, Northumbria University presents the latest iteration of its Tools for Everyday Life project. The exhibition presents products and prototypes that encourage users to viscerally engage in commonplace activities. The question asked is: “What are the results of a designer treating people as skilled and active users of functional artefacts rather than passive witnesses of a designed experience?” Everyday objects presented in Copenhagen include rulers, pencil holders and money boxes. The designers are academics, alumni, Designers in Residence and students all connected to the BA Furniture and Product Design programme at Northumbria University based in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Related Exhibitions
Kvadrat was established in Denmark in 1968 and has deep roots in Scandinavia’s world-famous design tradition. A leader in design innovation, Kvadrat produces high-performance, design upholstery and curtain textiles, rugs and acoustic solutions for both commercial and residential interiors. The products reflect their commitment to colour, quality, simplicity and innovation. Kvadrat consistently push the aesthetic, technological and functional properties of textiles. In doing so, they collaborate with leading designers, architects and artists including: Patricia Urquiola, Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, Alfredo Häberli, Doshi Levien, Giulio Ridolfo, Peter Saville, Pipilotti Rist, Thomas Demand and Olafur Eliasson.
Kvadrat
February 18, 2022
Materials
Wall & Surface
Part of 2022
Part of 2023
Part of 2024
Founded in 2013, by Massimo Tonetto and Melissa Lunardi, VENICEM manufactures lighting fixtures and furniture that result from an incessant stylistic research. A unique design vision that develops through a profound dialogue between primary shapes and matter.
Balance is essential in the transformation of material into finished products. Each material possesses peculiarities that must be understood, indulged and challenged. In the careful hands of experts, lamps and furnishings acquire traits and irregularities, regarding which investigation into the processes that give shape to the matter is necessary.
VENICEM’s headquarters are located in a place where natural elements are combined with a noble tradition of high quality craftsmanship.
VENICEM
May 18, 2025
Lighting
Part of 2025
AKUART seamlessly integrates high–performance acoustics with a strong commitment to sustainable and visually compelling design. Its solutions are meticulously engineered using environmentally responsible materials and production methods, ensuring exceptional sound performance while minimising environmental impact. By combining acoustic excellence with refined aesthetics and sustainability, AKUART elevates acoustic solutions into integral elements of thoughtful, future–proof architecture and interior design.
AKUART
January 8, 2024
Wall & Surface
Part of 2024
Part of 2025
MAKERS OF BEAUTIFUL RUGS. CREATORS OF DESIGN CULTURE SINCE 1889. Founded in Kinna, Sweden, Kasthall is a Swedish rug maker with a legacy spanning over 135 years. Kasthall offers design experiences characterized by quality, innovation, and the mastery of industrial craftmanship, cultivated through generations. The rugs, created by Kasthall, embody harmony, with a design philosophy aimed at adding beauty and warmth to private and public spaces, fostering meaningful connections. Kasthall is established in over thirty countries, with showrooms in fashion capitals such as New York, Milan and Stockholm.
Kasthall
January 27, 2022
Rug & Floor
Part of 2022
Part of 2023
Part of 2024
Part of 2025
Other Exhibitions
Design Preowned is for the people and the planet. It offers a green, CO2—neutral, and sustainable furniture solution—serving as a refined alternative for the contract market of wooden design furniture. By reducing environmental impact and extending the lifespan of raw materials through careful restoration, it supports a circular economy and helps preserve forests worldwide. Exclusive partnerships with architects, interior designers, and eco–conscious businesses result in timeless solutions that seamlessly combine sustainability and elegance. The platform also provides space for both renowned and emerging design icons to showcase their work and celebrate craftsmanship.
Designpreowned
March 25, 2025
Founded in 1987, Woodnotes combines artistic creativity inspired by Finland’s rugged nature with advanced technology to shape beautiful, locally sourced materials. The softness of wool, the purity of paper, and the glow of linen define a collection of timeless designs with rare aesthetic quality. At the heart of the brand is its innovative use of paper yarn — creating durable, allergy–friendly rugs and blinds crafted from paper yarn and cotton. These are presented alongside a selection of outdoor rugs, tufted wool–linen carpets, and atelier–woven cotton–paper and wool–paper yarn rugs, among others.
WOODNOTES
March 7, 2023
EMFIMA Collection is a Nordic agency company started in September 2016 and today represent the known Italian manufacturers Luceplan, Pedrali, Contardi Lighting and Fantoni. All manufacturers are already on the Nordic markets, but now also represented in Denmark through the EMFIMA Collection. In addition, EMFIMA Collection has entered into a distributor agreement with the Swedish company BOOM Interiør, on the Danish market. The EMFIMA Collection exclusively offers products with a high design profile and complete unique functions. The focus is on high–quality products and exceptional design, with carefully selected brands distributed through a professional and quality–conscious dealer network throughout Denmark.
EMFIMA Collection
February 19, 2025
Aifunghi is a newly founded company established by experienced design professionals with a focus on sustainable solutions. Its approach prioritises local, renewable, and high–quality materials, resulting in a unique blend of creativity, value, and ecological responsibility. Through an innovative manufacturing process, combined with natural materials and refined details, Aifunghi crafts joyful objects that redefine sustainability in furniture, lighting, and accessories—offering a consciously designed collection for a design-minded audience.
Aifunghi
January 27, 2025
×
Tools for Everyday Life
Check back soon!
OSZAR »