Hasta La Ideas

Three items that add new value to Icelandic dining

From model Elettra Wiedemann’s Goodness pop-up restaurant at Hotel Natura to the recently-developed products showcased around Reykjavik, new ways to work with food was at the forefront of Icelandic design at this year’s DesignMarch fair. Young designers are tapping into their surreal natural environment, creating new cuisines or updating classic kitchen wares to express modern opinions on nutrition. Below are three clever items that weave Icelandic traditions into modern design, highlighting the brilliance of country’s emerging talent.

Wheel of Nutrition

Icelandic designer Hafsteinn Juliusson emphasizes portion control with a series of colorful pie-chart plates. Developed with Portuguese designer Rui Pereira, the Porcel porcelain plates offer eaters three options for proportional consumption: Diet, Extra Ordinary or Supersize. The simple idea is the latest from HAF, the studio Juliusson set up after finishing his Masters from Milan’s Scuola Politecnica Di Design, which focuses on creating meaningful products within the world of design while avoiding mass production. The Wheel of Nutrition plates were on view during DesignMarch at the Italian aperitivo he hosted and are available in short supply at the Icelandic design shop Kraum.

5 x Pancake

Product designers Tinna Gunnarsdóttir, Stefán Pétur Sólveigarson, Ingibjörg Hanna Bjarnadóttir, fashion designer Sonja Bent and engineer-turned-jewelry designer Steinunn Vala Sigfúsdóttir each updated the classic Icelandic pancake pan for Kraum. The kind of item found in every kitchen cupboard and given to kids leaving for college, the pan hasn’t received a redesign since created in 1950 by the casting company Málmsteypan Hella. The five designers commissioned by Kraum breathe new life into the quintessential appliance by creating new handles that reflect a more modern aesthetic, enticing future generations to continue the tradition.

Roll Cake Chopping Block

A collaboration between the Iceland Academy of the Arts and food R&D institute Matís, the Designers and Farmers Project works with farmers from around Iceland to create new food products that reflect traditional national fare. Last year we enjoyed their toffee-like Rhubarbbrittle candy, which comes wrapped in rhubarb-inspired paper.

This year we learned the story behind their guillotine-like chopping block, which perfectly cuts a rye bread roll cake stuffed with lamb paté or Arctic char. The group was inspired by the life and work of the renowned early 20th-century Icelandic writer Þórbergur Þórðarson, an eccentric character who greatly enjoyed roll cakes. Þórðarson was obsessed with measuring things, and could often be found wandering around, measuring distances at Hali—the farm where he was born and now one of the farms on the collaboration’s roster. The chopping block ensures that each slice of roll cake is exactly one thumb-length long in tribute to his fixation.

Six design items for kids of all ages from DesignMarch 2011

With the sheer amount of Scandinavian creativity, it’s clear kids in the region get an early start thanks to high-design playthings. We recently had a chance to check out some of the latest games, toys and more at the country’s annual design showcase, DesignMarch where there was no shortage of aesthetically-appealing products. As entertaining to adults as they are to wee ones, check out a few of our favorites below, as well as our round-up of designs made from locally-sourced, natural materials.

Puzzled by Iceland brings beautiful scenic photography to the mind-building childhood tradition of puzzles. Accompanying each entertaining puzzle, mythical and historical facts relating to each depicted scene teach kids about Iceland. Designed for varying ages and skill levels, the puzzles come in 48- or 500-piece editions starting at $28.

Creatively designed for comfort and fun, Sunbird clothing combines playful fringes and bright colors with extremely soft and easily-maintained cotton to keep everyone happy—from the children wearing it to parents and passersby. Pieces start around €33 and are available from the Sunbird shop online.

Stáss Ornaments‘ bunny- and swan-shaped Fairytale Clocks add a charming splash of color to any kid’s bedroom. The colorful epoxy-coated aluminum clocks are a nice display of functional allure. Check
Stáss retailers for availability.

Signý Kolbeinsdóttir and Helga Árnadóttir—the duo behind the imaginative Tulipop notebooks, notecards and prints—add whimsy to paper goods with illustrations of otherworldly characters. Wall stickers and seasonal gift tags round out their collection of environmentally-friendly designs, typically made with organic materials. Products sell from their
online store for around €12 each.

Designer Anna Þóunn’ cuddly Fjöll pillows are inspired by the natural bond between Iceland’s pure mountains and the sheep that roam them each spring. Made of real sheepskin, one side features a fuzzy place to lay your head and the other a graphic depicting the mountainous scene. Each is filled with the highest quality down, and following the shape of the sheepskin’s original form, unique in shape and size.

Check out Iceland design shop Epal for many of these products and more from Iceland’s top designers.

Paper-thin potato chips flavored with sea salt

With tricky terrain, Iceland has a difficult time growing bountiful produce. As we saw at the recent DesignMarch festival, the country’s creative community aims to change this with a wealth of new food products made from hearty crops like rhubarb or potatoes.

A great example of Icelandic ingenuity, budding design studio Björg í Bú recently launched Microchips—a paper thin potato chip that is simply baked, dried and flavored with sea salt.

Björg í Bú focuses on designing products with an emphasis on their unique Icelandic properties. A pure product of nature, the chips are made exclusively from Icelandic potatoes, grown in the country’s “uncontaminated and nutritious earth.”

Microchips are a clever alternative to classic crisps with packaging to match. They come housed in a small box that unfolds into a bowl, perfect for sharing. Once all the chips are consumed, the box’s interior graphics reveal intriguing facts (in both English and Icelandic) about potatoes and their significance to the country, all playfully placed around a map of Iceland.

Recently launched, Microchips are currently only available in select stores in Iceland.