What do you do, if you want to open a café or restaurant in Mumbai, but save on furniture? Simply contact NUDES, no it’s not a firm supplying dance bar girls, but a Mumbai-based architectural firm that has come out with viable corrugated cardboard furniture.
It’s to the credit of Nuru Karim, founder of NUDES, that he took it upon himself to use biodegradable material in the form of corrugated cardboard for furniture and furnishings. So, it doesn’t come as a surprise that the café where corrugated cardboard was used is aptly called Cardboard Bombay. It covers an area of 152 square meters and is located in Mumbai’s central business district.
Using such seemingly flimsy material, that is best used for packing delicate stuff, certainly raised eyebrows. However, according to Karim, corrugated cardboard is not only versatile and sustainable but also capable of absorbing sound. To test the toughness and other parameters of corrugated cardboard, NUDES researchers put it through a series of tests to observe how it would react to humidity, water, and temperature changes.
Once their research confirmed the suitability of this material, they focused on designing the various items of furniture and other fitments. The company did not just create simple tables and chairs, but also focused on the style quotient. So, you have stylish undulating chairs, alluring light fixtures, wax-treated tables, and other furniture.
The success of using this material is not only making the café patrons wonder in awe but also making the environmentalists happy because corrugated cardboard is not only biodegradable but is also a hundred percent recyclable.
These are not the only benefits. Since corrugated cardboard comprises 50 percent air, the furniture is lightweight and can be easily moved around. The table tops are impregnated with wax to make them waterproof and easy to maintain. Also, slicing the cardboard fluting at different angles and curvatures helped create intricate patterns and textures.
So, if you are in a mood to meander through the organic free-flowing cardboard caverns, visit Cardboard Bombay. It’s an experience worth cherishing.
Cardboard Bombay | NUDES
