The Coolest Thing in This French Chateau is a Modern Zig-Zag Couch Made of Pine

Modern pine couch zig-zag

Have you ever seen a couch quite like this? Probably not – and that’s exactly how designer Pierre Yovanovitch wants it. When outfitting the living room of his own home, the Chateau de Fabregues in Aups, France, the interior and furniture designer wanted virtually everything to be custom – so he created it himself. The result is is like a showroom that’s actually livable, putting the spotlight on Yovanovitch’s talent and paying tribute to the humble farming origins of the home, which is set on 90 acres of woodland.

The space is lovely – from the paintings by German artist Stephan Balkenhol to the vintage rattan chairs – but the most eye-catching element is unquestionably the highly unusual bespoke couch taking up considerable real estate in the living room. It’s upholstered in a warm, pale shade of pink, which Yovanovitch loves for the “softness” it adds to the room. But check out the stacked log frame made of pine.

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“In every client project, and for myself, I try to make a story around the room. Here, I don’t want to use any shiny fabric, bronze and so on, because it was a farm. You feel that in the architecture. I try to respect the style of the house, but in a modern way, a nicer way. I used simple objects, lots of wood.”

The inspiration behind the sofa, he explains, is “very brutalist, because it’s sharp. But it’s also cozy. Because of the shape, you’re sitting close to each other. Very warm and very comfortable.”

Read the full interview at The New York Times.

Solid Pine ‘Wave Shelf’ Changes its Shape Within Seconds

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At first glance, it looks like this bookshelf is made almost entirely out of small pieces of dimensional lumber – an unusual choice, but not unheard of. Put push or pull on any one of those boards and the shelf will change its shape in your hands, the individual segments sliding and shifting. The Wave Shelf by Studio Lorier is a fun twist on solid pine shelving, giving the user total control over how it looks.

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Each of the layers moves independently, shifting to either side. You can create zig-zags, offset each layer from the next and straighten it back up again in a matter of minutes. The designers don’t show us the back of the shelf, so it’s unclear exactly how it works, but once you’ve chosen your desired configuration you just have to tighten a single screw in the back to hold it in place.

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The shelf made its debut at Salone Satellite in Milan, an international design event dedicated to designers under the age of 35.

Modern Pine: Refresh Your Home with Stylish Wooden Furniture Designs

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Furniture designers have favored pine as a primary material for centuries, taking advantage of its beauty, sustainability and versatility to create such time-honored classics as the Windsor chair. That love continues unabated into the 21st century with fresh, modern designs (and beloved mid-century modern pieces, which are virtually timeless nearly a century later.) With streamlined silhouettes and high quality materials, these 6 modern pine furniture designs found on AllModern.com prove that softwood is always in style.

Eco-Friendly Pine Bench

Eco Friendly Pine Picnic Bench

Available in 22 colors, from dusty rose to a clear varnish that lets the pine’s natural beauty shine through, this eco friendly picnic bench folds flat for easy transport and storage. Eco-friendly and 100% made in the U.S.A., this bench features stainless steel hardware and is shipped in packaging made from recycled materials.

Solid Pine Lighted Display Cabinet

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Stained with a weathered charcoal finish, this dramatic cabinet with built-in lighting lets you show off treasured objects through its two glass doors. It’s made of solid pine and aged iron metal hardware, with three adjustable wood-framed glass shelves and dovetailed drawers.

Brimfield Pine Console Table

brimfield pine console table

The elegant simplicity of midcentury modern style makes it easy to integrate into virtually any home. This pine console table is made of sustainably sourced pine, with a beveled solid pine tabletop creating a sunken tray-top surface.

Solid Pine Hammock Stand

solid pine hammock stand

Reminiscent of boat-building techniques, Vivere’s 15-foot solid pine hammock stand is classy and comfortable, with a weight capacity of 450 pounds. Its curving frame is finished in natural wood oil to protect it from harsh weather conditions.

Eco-Friendly Pine Platform Bed

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The solid pine used to make this modern loft-style platform bed is sustainably sourced and finished with a non-toxic sealant so you can sleep more soundly at night. It’s available in gray, weathered finish or a warm wood tone.

Bramble Coffee Table

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A solid pine tabletop adds a rustic feel to an industrial steel base in the Bramble Coffee Table by Mercury Row, now on sale for the budget-savvy design enthusiast.

Design with White Pine: Plans for Three DIY Furniture Projects

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Have you checked out all the pine plans at carpenter Ana White’s website? Based in Alaska, White is probably best known for her imaginative tiny house designs, which include incredible space-saving modifications like an automated elevator bed that rises and lowers at the push of a button. But her website is also packed with inspiration and detailed plans for all sorts of projects, created by White herself or submitted by users. We found three examples that make use of beautiful white pine, from an easier console table to a more complex storage bed. Care to try your hand?

Beginner Level: Pine Console Table

pine console table ana white

Modeled on the expensive Hyde Console Table at Pottery Barn, this ‘knockoff’ costs a mere $50 to build yourself, and it’s not too difficult. Though it’s listed as an intermediate project, it’s definitely doable as long as you have a minimum of carpentry experience. This one is left unfinished to allow the pine to age and weather naturally, but you could always paint it or stain it if that’s your preference.

Intermediate Level: Rustic X Coffee Table

rustic x coffee table

ana white coffee table

Ready for a sturdy handmade coffee table with a beautiful rustic look? Ana White’s Rustic X Coffee Table is one of her most popular projects, with a surface made of 2”x6” stud-length boards. User Aleeman27 posted images of his version, made of raw white pine and coated with Cabot Natural Stain with glossy polyurethane for a mirror shine.

Expert Level: White Pine Storage Bed

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White’s Farmhouse Storage Bed with Drawers packs lots of storage into a compact space, and it’s the kind of solid, durable furniture you can pass down as an heirloom. She notes that it’s best not to attempt this bed if you’re a beginner, because “for the drawers to work, you must build perfectly square, and all cuts must be square and straight.” In the photo above, a user named Wisconsin Woodworker shows off their interpretation made of local white pine sourced from the Wisconsin Northern State Fair grounds in Chippewa Falls.

Weekend Project: How to Build a White Pine Farmhouse Table

build a farmhouse table

Here’s a fun Eastern White Pine woodworking project you can complete in a weekend: a rustic farmhouse dining table. The site ‘DIY Projects with Pete’ will guide you through the whole process of building this gorgeous wooden table out of 4×4, 2×4 and 2z10 lumber. As Pete says, “The large beams give this table a bold look and make the table as solid as a tank.” Modified from a plan found on Ana-White.com, a source for hundreds of free woodworking plans,  the table is long and wide enough to accommodate the whole family.

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Like traditional tables, this one is built to last, so you can hand it down to subsequent generations of your family. The project takes about a day to assemble and finish, and calls for a power drill, miter saw, Kreg jig, orbital sander and clamps along with the screws and wood. Every single step is meticulously photographed and documented, including the addition of two benches finished with steel wool and vinegar for a weathered appearance.

Classic Stunners to Modern Twists: A Gallery of Eastern White Pine Furniture

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The versatility of Eastern White Pine really shows when you get to see this sustainable softwood rendered into furniture in a broad range of styles, including classic, traditional, country, rustic and modern. Here’s a sampling of ways in which craftspeople have made the most of Eastern White Pine’s ease of carving, natural knots and markings and other trademark characteristics.

Classic: The Windsor Chair

windsor chair

Originating in England in the 16th century, the Windsor chair is now an American classic, as colonists replaced the British version’s elm seat with Eastern White Pine, which is easier to carve into a comfortable, deep-saddled seat. Thomas Jefferson was said to have sat in a Windsor chair while signing the Declaration of Independence.

Traditional: Custom-Built Farm Tables by A Vintage Wren

classic eastern white pine table

Based in New Hampshire, custom furniture maker A Vintage Wren often uses locally sourced, sustainable Eastern White Pine as the main material in their contemporary wooden creations, like this table.

Country Style: Sadie’s Amish Hutch 

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Fitting right into farmhouse-style interiors, Sadie’s Hutch is handmade by the Amish with premium-grade Eastern White Pine, available in a variety of paint, stain and antiqued finishes.

Rustic: Benches Made of Eastern White Pine Trunks

eastern white pine trunk benches

So simple, so gorgeous! Artist Virginia Overton created an outdoor installation for the Whitney Museum of American Art in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District, including these rustic benches made of solid slabs of Eastern White Pine.

Modern: Handcrafted White Pine Furniture from Spain

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Spanish furniture brand Ventura uses sustainably managed white pine for its gorgeous range of modern wooden furniture, including desks, stools, side tables, cabinets and even a casing for a 1965 Fender Deluxe Reverb amp.