Corner Block Studio: sustainable designs for life
When someone designs an object destined to be a family heirloom, you know it's going to be special.
This kind of longevity design is rather rare in these days of trend-based consumption, but there's so much to find if we just take the time to look.
An industrial designer by trade, Brisbane-based Natalie Lane is one such creative with a mission to hand-craft unique items that will grace the walls of family homes for generations to come.
Natalie launched Corner Block Studio in 2015, and it's clear a lot of thought and care pours into her designs, being sustainable in more ways than one.
Corner Block Studio’s frames are designed to be versatile, adjusting to what you choose to display in them. Record Jacket Frame in brunette hardwood, via Corner Block Studio
Not only do Corner Block Studio use re-purposed hardwood for their hanging frames (think salvage yards and curb-side collections) and sustainably-grown Queensland hoop pine, but the designs themselves are versatile, with classic style and craftsmanship that will stand the test of time.
“I had been travelling for a few months in India, and when I came home I had a whole lot of photos that I printed and put in a photo album," Natalie says of the spark for her idea.
"I noticed a few years later I had barely even looked at it, it just sat on the bookshelf. I couldn’t pick just one or two photos to blow up and frame - each time I went to do it I chose a different one.
"I thought, 'I wish I could just put the book on the wall and be able to change the page whenever I want.'"
And so Natalie designed her first adjustable hanging frame.
Versatility is key - the Book Frame can adjust to the size of the book, and you get to choose the page! Image via Corner Block Studio
“Typical to industrial design, it began as a problem that you have to solve.”
“The frame itself is classic and the book, or record, or art takes the focus,” Natalie explains.
“I hope that it can display any book in your bookshelf and you can change it up. That’s also about having a product that can last a long time in a person’s life, in their home.
“When your tastes change you can just change the content, so it stays relevant to your life and it can evolve with you."
To me, that's what sustainable design is all about - not only thought in how the product is produced, but how it will age and where it will end up. That's one of the main reasons Natalie was drawn to working with wood.
Corner Block Studio frames are the perfect combination of minimal and sustainable. Image via Corner Block Studio
“It’s a natural material and while I hope that my product will become heirlooms and last a long time, possibly through generations, I still think about it not becoming hazardous or negative if it ever had to return to the land," Natalie says.
“I think wood is beautiful and full of character all by itself, without you even doing anything.”
“It’s something I was confident I could find a sustainable source for, which in the case of the current range, is all reclaimed hardwood.”
You can find Corner Block Studio frames online at www.cornerblockstudio.com, and you can also see, feel and test them in real life at various Australian market events, like The Finders Keepers.