Started by Andrew Dickson and Mark Lowe in 2004 to satisfy a passion for design and materials, Acronym Designs focuses on furniture, producing a growing range of unique designs that use a variety of materials and manufacturing processes. They like to blend natural and high tech materials, creating a sleek, modern appeal with classic sensibility. Whenever possible, they “use materials that are sustainable, renewable, reclaimed, or recycled,” which includes FSC-certified wood and veneers and reclaimed African Mahogany.
They’ve recently added some new lines to their collection; Slack (chaise pictured above) is crafted from durable reclaimed Locust wood and is designed for stylish relaxation, indoors or out, and is offered in a variety of configurations for flexible seating arrangements. The Fundament collection (pictured below) uses oak recovered from the manufacturing of industrial products. The edge grain construction and pegged mortise and tenon joinery results in long-lasting quality and a level of detail that doesn’t come with your standard patio table. The simple structural form and the traditional joinery combine, making these pieces both pastoral and modern.
Acronym has also recently upgraded their materials, switching over to a completely non-toxic and low-VOC finishes for all of their products. The finish uses 100% tung oil, which is a citrus-based solvent that replaces mineral spirits, turpentine, and other harsh solvents. Tung oil has been traditionally used for finishing boats, so has properties suitable for outdoor furniture. Andrew from Acronym also notes, “Our next sustainable challenge is packaging, which we would like to achieve ZERO waste, with all packing being reusable many time and is shipped back to us. This will result in reduction of wood and other packaging materials used for crating, reduced shipping weight (were using composites), improved protection for furniture, and no waste for customer to dispose of!” Sounds like a great plan; we wish them the best of luck. Learn more about Acronym at their website [www.acronymdesigns.com], or stop by their MySpace page [www.myspace.com] to get more info on the latest goings on and to read their blog about design, sustainability, and eco-Capitalism, among other things. More pictures of their older work are below.
