THE EVOLUTION OF GRÖNSKA – ILSE CRAWFORD’S COLLECTION GROWS WITH ADDITIONAL COLORS

Kasthall’s Grönska collection, created in a design collaboration with British designer Ilse Crawford, is being updated this autumn with four new colors. Inspired by the Swedish landscape around the Kasthall factory in Kinna, Västergötland, Sweden, Grönska pays homage to the magnificent colors of nature and Kasthall’s craftsmanship.

The design collaboration, which began in spring 2017, consists of three woven rugs, Fåra, Glänta and Ängsmark, as well as the tufted mats Täppa and Åker. Ilse Crawford, in collaboration with the Kasthall Design Studio, explored different weaving and tufting techniques in order to reflect the irregularity, softness and tactility of nature. These qualities are infused into the rugs – and in turn to the homes or public spaces where we spend time.

Now the Grönska collection is being expanded, presenting Fåra and Ängsmark in four new colors. In the new color updates, additional months have been added: August, October and February, with August representing two of the four new colors. The color updates consist of a wide span of neutral colors in direct response to market demand. The inspiration for the new color updates was drawn from the light, fresh green tones of nature, the barren winter landscape and fields ready for harvest.

– The Grönska collection was an interpretation of the verdant green landscape we saw when we first visited Kasthall. Seeing the changing seasons through a green filter we have realized just how many nuances there are with almost daily shifts in tone. So, we have introduced some more subtle distinctions. A trace of yellow here, a greenish grey there, exploring the in between shades of green and to integrate with different living spaces, says Ilse Crawford, Studio Ilse.

– Ilse shares the same values of sustainable, durable design as Kasthall and she understands our Scandinavian design and cultural heritage. We are also proud that the Grönska collection pays tribute to the place where we have been located since 1889. Expanding this lovely collection with more colors is a fun and important move. Ängsmark and Fåra are key trendsetters right now, says Lena Jiseborn, Head of Design at Kasthall.

FROM KINNA’S FORESTS TO THE FLOORS OF THE WORLD
Since Kasthall was founded in 1889, the company and factory have been located in the little town of Kinna. The ideas that led to the creation of Grönska were sparked when Ilse Crawford’s first visited the factory and saw the surrounding meadows and fields. The collection was developed as a tribute to the life, colors, patterns and textures of the Swedish landscape.

– The factory feels very connected to the surrounding fields and farming land, so designing a collection of rugs that pay tribute to the Swedish nature around the factory was a natural step. Like Kasthall’s rugs, it is a landscape created by people and their machines, says Ilse Crawford.

Grönska’s new colors will be available from November 2019.

ÄNGSMARK

Ängsmark is a thin, light hand-woven rug interspersed with lines of chenille. Kasthall and Studioilse use overdyed mélange yarns, specially developed for the Grönska collection, to bring subtle depth and variations in color like those found in the fields and meadows of Sweden. The mélange yarn is twisted with fine hair yarn in a contrasting color which appears randomly over the surface and adds to the effect. Ängsmark is available in six colorways reflecting the changing seasons.

FÅRA

Fåra is a handwoven rug that uses a newly developed bouclé yarn in pure wool with a beautiful irregular quality, woven in stripes to expose the wool base. This gives the appearance of earth and fields that have just been ploughed. The stripes are intensified by carefully considered contrasts of color. Fåra is available in six colors reflecting the changing seasons.

ÅKER – LIMITED EDITION

Åker is a limited-edition tufted rug of 50 hand-numbered rugs, made in horizontal block stripes of different textures, colors and techniques. A range of tufting types is demonstrated in each stripe – cut and loop pile, cut pile and bouclé pile, using a mixture of linen, wool and mélange yarns. The blocks work together to conceptualize the textures and colors of the farmland that surrounds the Kasthall factory.

GLÄNTA

The handwoven quality of Glänta is achieved using a thick chenille yarn, where its natural luster provides warmth and softness underfoot. It is woven in such a way that it reveals the structure of the weft yarn beneath, to give the rug a beautiful irregularity and the impression of light flecks
of earth peeking out from within a glade. Glänta is available in four colors reflecting the changing seasons.

TÄPPA

Täppa is a soft and tactile hand tufted rug of wool and linen that uses a special technique combining cut and loop pile. This renders Täppa a soft, shimmering but sturdy surface. The wool yarns create a block of rich color, while the linen yarn creates the pattern, they appear in natural shades like seedlings that have just sprouted. Täppa is available in four colors reflecting the changing seasons.

ABOUT ILSE CRAWFORD
Ilse Crawford is a designer, academic and creative director with a simple mission to put human needs and desires at the centre. As founder of Studioilse, together with her multi-disciplinary, London-based team, she brings her philosophy to life. This means creating environments where humans feel comfortable; public spaces that make people feel at home and homes that are habitable and make sense for the people who live in them. It means designing furniture and products that support and enhance human behaviour and actions in everyday life.

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