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NOT SEAMLESS
Probably no one thought that lamps made of old donated jeans would be adorning the offices of the prestigious advertising firm Forsman & Bodenfors. And perhaps not the least Maria Zeilon, textile designer, and Lill O. Sjöberg, MFA designer, who together are SKRYTA [slow design]. Their shared interest in innovation and crafts has led them on a sustainability journey that they don't really know where will end. But they know where it starts.
"We were asked to participate in a regional project in 2013–14, where waste material from the Red Cross's operations would be put to use," says Lill. "When asked, we both wanted this to be something that could be repeated, that would not just be a one-off event. Textiles are the material most donated and that are not always sold. We chose jeans to start with, and began experimenting with different patchworks with the fabric. We finally decided on denim seams, which we tried various ways braid, and from these tests, the first lamp shades emerged."
"In connection with this, we received an offer to work with the Swedish Prison and Probation Service in Borås, and we really wanted to give it a try," says Lill. "We were given access to a textile hall at the prison with a number of inmates. We established very good contact and succeeded with our project. We think it was because we turned things around and asked, 'what are they capable of doing?' instead of presenting something and saying 'can you sew this?' Our idea was well suited to the purpose of the whole project. The lamp was easy to make, they were had to work together and learn new techniques."
In each lamp there is a leather tag with a number so that you can see who made the lamp. From the start, SKRYTA was strict about the participants signing their lamps, so that they could feel pride and a sense of participation in what they had done.
"The value for us in this work is greater than the monetary value. It can't be measured in money. " Lill O. Sjöberg, MFA designer
After the first project was finished and the Prison and Probation Service's textile workshop was closed down, the duo applied for another collaborative project. Maria had a contact at the help organisation Göteborgs Stadsmission, where there were workshops for job training, and the pieces then fell into place. Within a week of their first meeting with Stadsmission, they started making samples together. With SKRYTA's experience with the Prison and Probation Service, everyone involved was aware that certain demands could not be placed on those participating.
"And we continued with the reverse mindset – what can the participants do?" Maria explains. "So that it's always on the terms of the participants, which is incredibly rewarding. And without sacrificing the design."
THE PROCESS OF A LAMP
When the designer duo adds new models to their collection, they work out the design, instructions and dimensions of the lamp shade. They then construct a lamp at a leisurely pace, taking their time. Job training is not rushed either.
"Making a lamp shade can take 6 to 9 hours, more or less a day's work if you have all the materials and tools in place," says Maria. "We think it should be like knitting, something that you can put aside and then take up again. With the start-up work for each new lamp shade version, we now have a fixed range. However, the products available can be adapted in colour and size to better suit various preferences. Each project is typically for 1 to 10 lamps. As production time can vary, production is just right for the way our company is set up."
"In addition to waste material, we also engage small local businesses. The company that makes the braids for the lamps, for example, is here in Gothenburg," says Lill. "We want to keep it that way for the entire process. It feels good when you've started thinking along those lines – how we can support the community and create awareness of the craft. It's another aspect of our product. We were quite nervous when we showed our lamps the first time, since delivery time is so long – things are a bit different. But it's just added our to story and reinforced our concept. You choose us because this is what you want."
GLOBAL AWARENESS
Among SKRYTA's suppliers are Göteborgs Stadsmissionen, an internationally known producer of birch-bark products in Fjärås and carpet manufacturer Kasthall in Kinna. All these local partners have provided insight and feedback that have helped the company move forward. Even far beyond Sweden's borders.
"We've had a showroom of sorts at Kasthall, where we installed the lamps for architect lunches but never taken them down," says Lill. "It's been an incredibly good platform for us, having the opportunity to show our wares to architects. We wanted their feedback – 'what do we need to think about?' They told us that we need to have more solutions than just E27, such as a light engine. We had to Google to find out what a light engine was! We found the Dino at Fagerhult and after that, we modified our lamp shade frame so that you could choose either the light engine or E27."
"We now have projects all over Europe with these lamps, and it has spread," says Maria. "We've just participated in an exhibition of Nordic sustainable companies at the Swedish Embassy in Berlin, which was great fun." There is completely different awareness nationally and internationally about this way of thinking.
"We see it as a complement to other lighting. Our products are more about decoration, mood, embellishment – or storytelling." Maria Zeilon, textile designer
REUSE, REDUCE, RECYCLE
Although the duo has now been active with their work for almost 6 years, it is now that they are experiencing a real boost.
"During the past year, we're really seeing a different interest," says Maria. "The work we've put in is now starting to be more in tune with the rest of society. We were a bit ahead of our time – but now we're exactly where we need to be. For example, we won the sustainability award Nyttigaste Affären 2019 in collaboration with Ergon at Göteborgs Stadsmission with our socially sustainable business concept. (Link http://nyttigasteaffaren.se/2019-ars-vinnare/ )
"We're mostly targeting the public sector or businesses, and those who buy our products have no objections to our prices or production rates," says Lill. "That's because they've heard the story behind the lamp, and they consequently understand the value behind it. We want to be very clear about that, because we get a lot of requests from people who want to borrow our lights. But we want them to retain their intrinsic value, that they should not be taken out of their context."
In the future, SKRYTA would prefer to scale up the company rather than expand with other products.
"We've received queries from different customers who want larger quantities of our products, which means we have some decisions to make," says Maria. "We hope to work this out in a good way. But regardless of the project, we always try to be as circular as we can. We've even found a solution that allows us to reuse leftover materials from our lamps to make other lamps. That's probably the height of being circular!"
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