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CIVIL Perfectly Brings a Scandinavian History to Modular Living

03.05.18 | By
CIVIL Perfectly Brings a Scandinavian History to Modular Living

With people moving from place to place, especially city dwellers, furniture needs to work in a multitude of situations. It’s easy to go out there and spend less on disposable furniture every time we move, but it’s money down the drain and more trash in our overly filled landfills. Enter CIVIL. They’re a furniture brand that’s decided to explore a different approach – modular furniture for modular people – focusing on clean lines and accessibility for today’s nomadic culture. While the CIVIL brand calls New York City home, their Scandinavian roots run deep as third generation Norwegian furniture makers. Their heritage runs throughout their designs, as well as the way they run the business, aiming to bring the best furniture possible to more people without cutting any corners.

For those of us that love modern design, you know how high the prices can be, making it quite a stretch sometimes. The reason that is is because most of the cost goes to fund traditional sales and delivery methods and not on the quality. CIVIL provides the same high quality as other luxury brands but they’ve cut out the middle man, choosing to sell their goods exclusively on their website and pop-up spaces. That means, they (and you) don’t have to pay importers, distributers, sales people, showrooms, retailers, etc.

For the designs, CIVIL partnered with Metrica, the renowned Milan-based design studio who bring a wealth of expertise and design savvy to the brand’s first four collections, Noord, Mosaic, Strand, and Vine. To make it happen, they worked with experienced craftsmen in Northern Italy using the highest quality materials out there, from full-grain leathers, cotton fabrics, memory foam, Carrara marble, and stainless steel.

Noord is a modular seating system that came about after they studied how people live in 50 cities around the world. The components can be arranged in various ways depending on the layout of the room – meaning if you move, you can rearrange it to fit your new space. If you need to expand, add a module or two. If you get bored with the look, you can get a new fabric or leather cover for an updated appearance.

Another option to add is the Magic Box – a high tech table that will keep your devices powered up through its integrated USB ports and electrical socket.

Mosaic is a storage system that will grow with you. It can be your library, media center, display cabinet, or workstation, with modules that can be configured in infinite ways. With options like wood or lacquered finishes and colorful dividers and back panels, it can take on many different looks making it hard to imagine it’s the same system. As with Noord, you can easily upgrade, extend, or change up your Mosaic system as your needs change.

Strand is a minimalist, metallic side table with a super thin silhouette made possible by an ellipse-shaped back. Its thin bottom lets it slide under the sofa or bed for easy access to a drink or laptop. It’s made of powder coated, solid Italian steel and available in a four colors.

Vine is a timeless side table designed to live right next to you for convenience. The open design allows for stacking of books, magazines, blankets, or pillows at arm’s length.

Caroline Williamson is Editor-in-Chief of Design Milk. She has a BFA in photography from SCAD and can usually be found searching for vintage wares, doing New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, or reworking playlists on Spotify.