Bamboo decor: A growing trend

Designers are increasingly exploring the possibilities of this eco-friendly material, writes Anoushka Metrani

India is the second largest bamboo-growing country in the world. On the occasion of World Bamboo Day, observed on September 18, DH on Saturday asked design studios about what’s new in bamboo furniture and decor design.

Started in 2017, Tripura-based Silpakarman creates everything from bamboo — furniture, home decor and utility products. Akshya Shree, founder and CEO, says their aim is to create a product that “could solve modern-day problems with a sustainable and aesthetic touch to it.”

They work with over 250 artisans in the state of Tripura, most of whom are tribals. Artisans are given the liberty to alter the designs, as they know parts of the bamboo well.

One of their latest offerings is Bambar, a moveable bamboo bar. “The artisans were told that we wanted something people could keep in small homes. They made something compact and easy to move. It has racks for wine bottles and glasses, and a full station to mix drinks,” she says.

They also make glasses and kitchen utilities. “A laptop stand we designed has three levels and can be used in three ways. It can be used as a table, a laptop stand, and for sketching or reading,” she explains.

After international exposure and building a rapport with artisans, their designs have gone through much innovation. Their bamboo tumbler went through 11 design changes. Their foldable bamboo chair went through multiple iterations too, says Akshya.

Many artisans use vibrant colours when working with bamboo. “I saw some colourful mats. We usually maintain a natural look but this inspired me to use colours,” adds Akshya.

Helping artisans

Varsha Bajaj, founder of Canboo, started an Instagram page to showcase what artisans were making during the pandemic. It soon turned into a successful business when she tied up with some of these artisans.

“I found these designs on the internet. Many of these designer pieces are available only in Indonesia and China. Since our northeastern culture is rich in cane crafts, I thought of working on this,” she says.

She started the Guwahati-based business with products like fruit, laundry and table baskets. Soon after, she started designing furniture as well. Starting with smaller pieces like tables and chairs, she slowly moved to larger furniture like dining tables and beds.

People usually use the outside part of bamboo in furniture, but in a new project tied up with hotel management and homestays, she has suggested a design where a frame is made out of wood and the inside of bamboo is placed over it.

One of their latest collections was flower-themed furniture. Based on the shape of flowers, it includes a sofa and a side table. Yet another was peacock-themed chairs, which are available in around four variations, ranging between Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000 each piece.

Contemporary aesthetics

Ahmedabad-based Rhizome, founded by Rebecca Reubens, designs functional furniture.

They make furniture for various spaces, including those that help in utilising small spaces to their maximum extent.
“People have different lifestyles. Some live in smaller spaces and have alternate lifestyles. There are people with no children and even groups of friends living together. During the pandemic, when people were working from home, it was called maximisation of space,” she says.

Rebecca started designing furniture for balconies and outdoor spaces in apartments. Since bamboo works well outdoors, she makes furniture for semi-covered places like patios. “We’re also working on furniture for the indoors,” Rebecca adds. Their pieces are customisable.

‘Soop’, their last collection, is inspired by soop used for winnowing grains. Their ‘Fan’ collection shows bamboo in a sliced way. The newest, ‘Skinny’, is a collection of folding chairs, which are lightweight.

Craft and technology

Shashank Gautam’s Mianzi, based in Madhya Pradesh, not only makes sustainable but also aesthetically pleasing designs in bamboo products.

“I wanted to make things that are equally comparable to anything made out of plastic or metal. I found that there is a gap in the development of technology in bamboo products,” he says. They also make furniture, lighting, storage and home decor products. Modularity is a core theme. The latest collection, ‘Metamorphosis’, is futuristic as it plays with the structure of a lamp. “I design five to six forms, and then I combine them. There are so many possibilities with lamps,” he says.

The collection consists of 16 different pendant lamps and 12 linear hanging lamps. Shashank is looking at making wall, table and floor lamps as well.

A butterfly chair took two years to design and is made of six parts, which fits together to make the chair slim and compact.

Another exciting collection, ‘Black Edit’, is made of all-black bamboo pieces. This limited edition includes items varying from furniture to trays.

Bamboo brushes

Yogesh Shinde, founder of Bamboo India, makes daily use items, including bamboo desk organisers and speakers. Now they are focusing on bamboo toothbrushes and dental care. Yogesh says, “We started manually handcrafting 50-100 brushes a day. Today we can make up to 50,000 brushes per day.”

With this product, they have helped avoid over 24 lakh kg of plastic waste to date. The brand is currently working on adding new products to their dental care, like bamboo floss, inter-dental brushes and tongue brushes.