Penlau catalog - functional design furniture

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Inside the mind of Penlau. Minimalist; visually attractive; carefully selected materials; intelligent compositions; uncompromising quality; attention to even the smallest detail; and most importantly, great functionality.

If you could enter Trine Penlau’s mind, these would be the design considerations you would meet. After more than two years of careful planning we have materialised these thoughts into a range of products and created a world full of visual inspiration. We call it the PenlauŽ universe.

Welcome inside.

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The Penlau story. The Penlau story is not your traditional story about a trained furniture designer who sits and designs night and day, finds somebody to produce one or two of her products and then tries her best to sell them. Trine Penlau has a different background altogether. She originally graduated as Art Director and until 1998 the only designs that came from Trine’s hands were advertising campaigns for large, international companies. She did well. So well in fact, that since 1990 she successfully managed her own advertising agency.

When Trine gave birth to her first child however, she also said goodbye to the world of advertising. She closed down her company and, for the following two years, dedicated herself 100% to her new role as a mother. Then, in the beginning of 2000, Trine started to make a living from her unerring talent for interior design and her strong visual sense. She started by writing articles for Danish interior and lifestyle magazines. She also did selected TV appearances, and managed to write, design and publish a book through her own publishing house.

Well on her way into a whole new industry, Trine also started getting ideas for new products – not by sitting down and thinking, “I want to design a beautiful vacuum jug”. Instead, these came from concrete needs – typically from her everyday life, or when she wanted to arrange and furnish her own home. As a result, Trine designed and produced a series of small interior products in 2002 that she exhibited at fairs in Denmark. With that, the Penlau company version 1.0 had seen the light of day.

This might all sound quite simple. But Trine was responsible for, and involved in, every step of quite a long and exhaustive process; from product development to construction, production, sales, distribution, marketing and administration. And while the company evolved, so did the product ideas in Trine’s mind. From small and simple interior products, Trine saw a need for larger and more advanced products requiring extensive development and production facilities.

At the same time, Her talent for product development, interior design and marketing became more and more sought after, which made it difficult to keep up. Especially for a person like Trine who refuses to make any compromises.

What do you do? Continue and pray that everything goes well? Or stop to consider if there are any alternatives? Trine did the latter. The dilemma was obvious. There was a strong potential for future growth but she could not continue to do everything on her own. As a result Steen Tromholt joined Penlau in 2004. Like Trine, Steen also comes from a very different professional background. He founded a direct marketing company in 1988 which grew to become Denmark’s leading marketing and Internet consulting agency during the 1990s. As Managing Director Steen led the company through massive growth during which they expanded from 3 to 225 employees - with offices in Copenhagen, Hamburg and London – until the company was finally sold in 2000.

Steen could immediately see Penlau’s potential for growth. He was also well aware of the challenges. But perhaps most importantly he was able to bring an entirely new perspective.

And different thinking it certainly was. The company Penlau was simply shut down Instead of imitating others and continuing to design new products more or less at random, Trine and Steen put their heads together and designed on a much grander scale; a company vision, a strategy, and most significantly, a Penlau® universe. This all happened during 2004. It’s now 2007 and we’re ready to present the results.

Welcome inside the Penlau® universe. Great product design relies to a very large extent on the ability to engross oneself in the product; its details, function, design, choice of materials, the processing and production method. If you want quality this comes as no surprise. But why stop at that? Or rather, why begin with that? Trine Penlau’s approach to product development is probably quite atypical. She starts off very differently by thinking, “why isn’t there a product that does this or that? If there was, then you would also be able to use it in such and such a way.”

In Trine Penlau’s universe a good product design is not just a question of focusing on the product.

When a sketch for a new product idea is first put down on paper she immediately begins to think ‘outside’ the product. How can this product be used to furnish or organise the room? How can you use the same product for different purposes? Can the product be customised to each user’s need? And so on and so forth.

We are convinced that in order to create a great product you must be able to first see the product in a wider context, since this is how people will be using it – in harmony with the rest of their home.

It is thus not until we can see a product work in its wider context that the product idea is approved. Thus not until then can we engross ourselves in the product. So the criteria for a Penlau® product are quite ruthless: it has to be super functional, super beautiful, super quality.

Collectively, we call this, Functionality with an edge®.

Our products are ready to enter your universe. Use them as you like or according to your interior design needs. On the following pages you can step into the Penlau® universe. Let the universe inspire you. Get an impression of the thoughts and ideas that lie behind each and every Penlau® product. If you would like to know more about a specific product, you can always look up the product information details on the last pages of the brochure. And don’t forget to visit our website at www.penlau.com, where our visual universe becomes an experience in itself.

Penlau ® dishbox – small, in wood and steel/details page 53

Penlau ® add console – high/details page 49

Penlau ® swop lamp – ceiling, with light grey inner shade and dark grey outer shade/details page 45

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Penlau ® dishbox – large, in wood/details page 53

Penlau ® add table – high and Penlau ® add console – low/details page 49

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Penlau ® add table/details page 49

Penlau ® dishbox in steel/details page 53

Penlau ® swop lamp – ceiling, with white outer shade/details page 45

Penlau ® deco photo frame/details page 41

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Penlau ® swop lamp – table, with light grey inner shade and sand outer shade/details page 45

Penlau ® add console – low/details page 49

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Penlau ® dishbox/details page 53

Penlau ® candle–flower holder/details page 53

Penlau ® add table – low/details page 49

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Penlau ® dishbox – small, in wood and steel/details page 53

Penlau ® dishbox – small, in wood and steel/details page 53

Penlau ® add console – low/details page 49

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A universe that spans far beyond the products. When you buy a Penlau® item you don’t just buy a product. We have put a lot of thought and a part of Penlau’s soul into each and every product; thoughts and considerations we would like to share with you.

When you decide to buy a Penlau® product, we first and foremost see it as a great compliment.

In return, we give you the opportunity to register the product via our website and repay you with tailor-made inspiration from the Penlau® universe along with 1 extra year of warranty - in addition to the standard warranty and claims period in the market where you have purchased the product.

We only sell our products through carefully selected dealers, who are already known for being among the best and most professional operators on the market. For the same reason we will only be operating in a few selected markets during 2007, so that we are able to provide the necessary service and support to our dealers from the very start. If you would like to know who sells and knows the most about our products, please go into the “find shop” section at www.penlau.com.

On our website you can also find further design inspiration. “Penlau® universe” is a separate area on the site which is continuously updated with visual inspiration. In addition, the website gives you the opportunity to read more about our products, look at the different models and variants, and see, for example, how one of our lamps look with different lamp shades etc. You will also be able to see the recommended retail price on all our products and as an extra service you can even place your order via our website and have the products delivered directly to your door.

The one thing that is not accepted in the Penlau® universe. Compromise. It is easy to make a decision that your company will not accept any compromise. Making sure that it is actually also complied with in every aspect of your daily business, and in every little detail, is a very different matter altogether. You realise how easy it is to take a shortcut. How tempting it can be to increase your own profit at the expense of quality. How easily you can come up with an apology for not following your original intentions. But it doesn’t pay off in the long run. And it couldn’t be further away from the philosophy that Penlau® is run and driven by. If you buy a Penlau® product you buy a product without a single compromise.

Functionality… All of the Penlau® products are characterised by ingenious design. They are functional and useful – not just “nice”. They are always designed with a specific need in mind – not just for the sake of revenue. Every detail and every function is thoroughly considered. The “easy way out” is simply not an option. And our products are timeless – due to their functionality, design and quality. …with an edge®. Penlau® products surprise the user and give the owner an “a-ha” experience. It could be due to the product’s multi-function, or an innovative solution to one’s everyday needs, or perhaps simply due to the product’s originality, accessories, flexibility and variation.

The design is genuine. It is stripped of redundant gimmickry that does nothing for the look or function of the product. We dare to set our own design standard without being dependent on what others do.

The refusal to compromise continues through to the production phase; in the choice of materials, production methods and choice of manufacturers. For every product, all of these points have been considered over and over and over again. You will get an impression of this when you read the product descriptions on the last pages. And on our website you can read the full story about how each product came about. You may ask us, “Where are the products manufactured?” The simple answer will always be, “Where they do it best.” For instance, with the Plexiglas lamp shades for the Penlau® swop lamp we have been to Germany, Italy and Asia. We have had different samples where the shade was both cast and extruded in different materials. The result is that we buy the raw material from a factory in Germany that is recognised as one of the world’s leading factories within the field. From there, it is transported to a factory in Denmark that mixes exactly the kind of colours Penlau wants. Finally, a robot in another Danish factory moulds the shades, glues a metal ring onto the shade and packages the final product without it being in contact with human hands. In this way, there is an uncompromising story to tell about all our products.

Penlau ® dishbox/details page 53

Penlau ® deco magnet board with deco boxes/details page 41

Penlau ® deco box – small and large on a Penlau ® deco magnet board/details page 41

Penlau ® add consoles/details page 49

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Penlau ® dishbox – large, in wood and steel/details page 53

Penlau ® add consoles – high and low/details page 49

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Penlau ® dishbox – large in wood and steel/details page 53

Penlau ® swop lamp – rack, with light grey inner shade and dark grey outer shade/details page 45

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Penlau ® swop lamp – wall, with light grey inner shade and dark grey outer shade/details page 45

Penlau ® dishbox – small, in wood/details page 53

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Penlau 速 universe: The bedroom. See more bedrooms at www.penlau.com

Penlau ® swop lamp – table, with light grey inner shade and dark grey outer shade/details page 45

Penlau ® add console – low/details page 49

Penlau ® dishbox in wood/details page 53

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Penlau ® add console – low/details page 49

Penlau ® dishbox – large and medium, in wood/details page 53

Penlau ® swop lamp – table/details page 45

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Penlau 速 universe: The bathroom. See more bathrooms at www.penlau.com

Penlau ® dishbox – small, in wood and steel/details page 53

Penlau ® dishbox – large and medium, in wood/details page 53

Penlau ® deco mirror/details page 41

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Penlau ® deco box – small, in wood and steel/details page 41

Penlau ® deco magnet board with deco boxes in wood/details page 41

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Penlau 速 deco shelf/details page 41

Penlau 速 deco shelf/details page 41

Penlau 速 add consoles/details page 49

Penlau 速 dishbox/details page 53

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Penlau® deco line Holes in the wall – the final chapter. Have you ever felt like changing the arrangement in your home? If so, you probably also know that it is not far from thought to action when it comes to rearranging furniture. Things immediately get a lot more difficult when we are talking about items that are fixed to the wall. There are holes drilled and perhaps even markings. The spontaneous idea to rearrange the living room or the children’s room has suddenly turned into quite a project – and one that requires planning and hard work.

This was how Trine Penlau first got the idea for a decoration line; a “line” that hangs on the wall and allows for fast and flexible wall arrangements where you can quickly and easily fix different elements to the deco line according to your mood or practical needs.

How it works. The deco line is mounted on the wall. This requires a few tools. But the good news is that it can then stay there permanently. In itself the line is quite anonymous and minimalist. So if you prefer to have bare walls for a while, the deco line will simply appear as a simple design element. You can mount the line horizontally or vertically. You can also have one line on its own or many deco lines next to or on top of each other – all depending on what you feel like and have space for.

You can buy different elements for the deco line. These are all mounted to the deco line without the need of any tools. And what’s even better is that they can be exchanged just as fast with other elements. And the flexibility continues. For some of the components, you can also buy magnetic accessories which can be fitted and disassembled with your bare hands.

The result is a multi-flexible, multi-purpose, and multi-functional decoration system that fits your décor needs and moods indefinitely. It’s easy, it’s simple and it’s fast.

How it is made. The idea is simple. The product is simple. Yet the development of the product has been anything but simple. Our ultimate goal was that you shouldn’t need any tools once the deco line was up on the wall, that it should be able to be used horizontally or vertically, and that it should be strong enough for an indefinite number of rearrangements. Naturally, this presented a number of challenges.

The Penlau® deco line series is the result therefore, of a number of different manufacturing processes. The line and the frame for all the elements are made in extruded aluminium. The Penlau® deco box is assembled according to methods used hundreds of years ago. The Penlau® deco photo frame is mounted with the same kind of glue used in aerospace industry. And we have literally travelled the world flat: all the aluminium is manufactured at a factory in Italy.

The Penlau® deco shelves and magnet boards are produced and spray-lacquered at a factory in Sweden. The wood for the Penlau® deco boxes is American Walnut which is processed and assembled at a factory in Vietnam owned by a Danish cabinet maker. Finally, all the elements are mounted at a factory in Latvia.

42/details Penlau® deco magnet board Use Penlau® deco magnets to attach different things to the magnet board – or attach different Penlau® deco accessories (see below).

Magnet board material: Spray-lacquered iron plate. Magnet board colour: Light grey. Depth: 2.8 cm / 1.1 inches. Horizontal and vertical use.

The Penlau® deco line Each element needs to be fixed to the Penlau® deco line. If you already have a Penlau® deco line and would like to switch the element, simply buy an extra element. If not, then remember to buy a Penlau® deco line for each element you would like on the wall.

Material (all elements). Frame: Brushed and anodised aluminium.

Measurements (all elements): Length: 111.5 cm / 43.9 inches.

Height: 38 cm / 14.96 inches.

For recommended retail prices, further information about the products and inspiration, please visit www.penlau.com.

Penlau® deco whiteboard Write on the whiteboard using board markers for whiteboard and/or use the Penlau® deco magnets to attach different things to the whiteboard. You can also attach different Penlau® deco accessories (see below).

Whiteboard material: Steel ceramic whiteboard. Whiteboard colour: Off white. Depth: 2.8 cm / 1.1 inches. Horizontal and vertical use.

Penlau® deco mirror Look in the mirror, see yourself and bring light into the room. The Penlau® deco accessories cannot be fixed to this element.

Material of mirror: Glass coated with silver. Depth: 2.8 cm / 1.1 inches.

Horizontal and vertical use.

The Penlau® deco accessories The Penlau® deco accessories can be attached to all the Penlau® deco elements except the Penlau® deco mirror. All accessories are easily attached with magnets.

Penlau® deco line The base unit is sold separately. Without this you will not be able to mount the elements. The unit is mounted to the wall horizontally or vertically.You can use the Penlau® deco magnets (see next page) directly on the decoline.

Material: Brushed and anodised aluminium. Length: 108.7 cm / 42.83 inches. Height: 7.7 cm / 3.03 inches. Depth: 1.5 cm / 0.59 inches.

Penlau® deco shelf The entire length of this element is a narrow shelf. You can also use the Penlau® deco magnets to attach different things to the shelf – or attach different Penlau® deco accessories to it (see next page).

Shelf material: Spray-lacquered iron plate. Shelf colour: Light grey. Shelf depth: 10 cm / 3.94 inches. Depth of entire element: 12.8 cm / 5.04 inches. Horizontal use only.

Penlau® deco magazine shelf, right One half of the element has a magazine shelf on the right side, while the other half is an ordinary shelf. You can also use the Penlau® deco magnets to attach different things to the shelf – or attach different Penlau® deco accessories to it (see next page).

Shelf material: Spray-lacquered iron plate. Shelf colour: Light grey. Height of magazine shelf: 18.5 cm / 7.28 inches. Depth of magazine shelf: 5 cm / 1.97 inches. Depth of shelf: 10 cm / 3.94 inches. Depth of entire element: 12.8 cm / 5.04 inches. Horizontal use only.

Penlau® deco magazine shelf, left Half the element has a magazine shelf on the left, the other half is an ordinary shelf. You can also use Penlau® deco magnets to attach different things to the shelf – or attach different Penlau® deco accessories (see next page). See specifications under Penlau® deco magazine shelf, right.

Penlau® deco blackboard Write on the blackboard using chalk and/or use the Penlau® deco magnets to attach different things to the blackboard – and/or attach different Penlau® deco accessories (see next page).

Blackboard material: Steel ceramic black board. Blackboard colour: Dark grey. Depth: 2.8 cm / 1.1 inches. Horizontal and vertical use.

Penlau® deco photo frame – large Material: Brushed and anodised aluminium frame with clear glass. (W/D/H): 109.8/0.7/36.5 cm / 43.23/0.28/14.37 inches. You can put one large frame on one Penlau® deco element.

Penlau® deco photo frame – medium Material: Brushed and anodised aluminium frame with clear glass. (W/D/H): 54.9/0.7/36.5 cm / 21.61/0.28/14.37 inches. You can put up to two medium frames on one Penlau® deco element.

Penlau® deco photo frame – small Material: Brushed and anodised aluminium frame with clear glass. (W/D/H): 27.4/0.7/36.5 cm / 10.79/0.28/14.37 inches. You can put up to four small frames on one Penlau® deco element.

Penlau® deco box – large, wood Material: American Walnut treated with oil. Six neodymium magnets are mounted on the back of the box. (W/D/H): 36.5/10.0/18.0 cm / 14.37/3.94/7.09 inches. You can put up to three large boxes on one Penlau® deco element or different combinations of small and large boxes.

Penlau® deco box – small, wood Material: American walnut treated with oil. Four neodymium magnets are mounted on the back of the box. (W/D/H): 18.2/10.0/18.0 cm / 7.17/3.94/7.09 inches. You can put up to six small boxes on one Penlau® deco element or different combinations of small and large boxes.

Penlau® deco box, small, steel Material: Brushed stainless steel. (W/D/H): 15.9/7.7/18.0 cm / 6.26/3.03/7.09 inches. The insert can be used along with the Penlau® deco box – small, wood.

Penlau® deco box – mini, wood Material: American walnut treated with oil. Two neodymium magnets are mounted on the back of the box. (W/D/H): 18.2/10.0/5.0 cm / 7.17/3.94/1.97 inches. Use it for board markers, chalk, keys, accessories, etc.

Penlau® deco magnets Material: American Walnut treated with oil with one strong neodymium magnet. 2 x 2cm / 0.79 x 0.79 inches. Pack of six magnets. Can be used for all elements (except the Penlau® deco mirror) and put directly on the Penlau® deco line.

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Penlau® swop lamp On. Off. And so much more. In addition to providing light, a lamp also creates atmosphere.

But most lamps can only create two different atmospheres: full light, or no light. This was one of the things Trine Penlau had on her mind when the first ideas began to take shape, to what has culminated in the Penlau® swop lamp.

The other thing that pervaded her thoughts was the desire everyone gets sooner or later to redecorate. You can move the furniture around. You can buy new pillows. You can add an additional touch of freshness with a cool, new vase. OK, but what about the lamps at several hundred Euros a piece? These are not so easily replaced as the seasons change or when you have the same guests again on a Saturday night.

All that had to be changed. Trine wanted to design a lamp that could create several different atmospheres. A lamp that could change appearance without having to replace the entire piece.

How it works. The Penlau® swop lamp is a discreet and elegant lamp in stainless steel with a lamp shape in opal glass. It is available as a table lamp, a wall lamp or for mounting in the ceiling – either as a single lamp or as four lamps together mounted on a rack. But there is even more to it than that.

By mounting additional lampshades you can change the look of the lamp, the atmosphere and the light in a wide variety of ways. The Penlau® swop lamp has two additional shades in different lengths – and a wide spectrum of colours – that can easily be mounted to the lamp. You simply “click” the shade onto the lamp – the additional shades are mounted using magnets.

You begin by choosing the actual lamp. Then you choose the colours you would like the shades to be in. More colours will be made available in the future, enabling you to change the design and mood in almost any number of ways.

How it is made. It was a design demand that the lamp should be both functional and beautiful on its own. And it should – contrary to many lamps on the market – be able to withstand a constant changing of lampshades. The basic construction is therefore made from stainless steel – as well as the interior parts. This gives the lamp strength and the high level of finish we demand of all our products. The visible stainless steel parts have been polished with diminishing grit levels – a process that involves polishing every part of the lamp five times.

The fixed shade is made of opal glass. As it turns out, however, opal glass is quite a broad term. There is the cheap, industrially manufactured kind. And there’s the mouth-blown variety where you have specific requirements for the thickness of the opal (the white layer). As you would expect, the Penlau® swop lamp is mouth-blown with a thick opal layer that provides a comfortable, diffused light where the light bulb is neither visible nor blinds the eye. The surface has subsequently been etched to give the glass a soft and silky finish.

The additional lampshades are made of Plexiglas with a metal ring glued on which fastens to the magnets placed inside the lamp. Every colour has been mixed specifically according to our instructions.

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The Penlau® swop lamp range The lamps are made of brushed stainless steel while the shade is made of mouth-blown, acid-etched opal glass. All lamps have a transparent cord. The extra shades are made of coloured Plexiglas (PMMA) with a ring of galvanised steel.

For recommended retail products and inspiration, website you can also put lamp in exactly the colour

Penlau® swop lamp – ceiling Height: 28.8 cm / 11.34 inches. Diameter of glass shade: 8.0 cm / 3.15 inches. Two extra shades (inner and outer shade) can be added to the ceiling lamp. See page 46.

prices, further information about the please visit www.penlau.com. At our together your very own Penlau® swop combination you would like.

Penlau® swop lamp – table Height: 33.3 cm / 13.11 inches. Diameter of glass shade: 8.0 cm / 3.15 inches. Two extra shades (inner and outer shade) can be added to the table lamp. See below.

Penlau® swop lamp – wall Height: 29.8 cm / 11.73 inches. Depth: 19.3 cm / 7.60 inches. Diameter of glass shade: 8.0 cm / 3.15 inches. Two extra shades (inner and outer shade) can be added to the wall lamp. See page 46.

Penlau® swop shade — inner Total height: 16.30 cm / 6.41 inches. Diameter: 9.0 cm / 3.54 inches. Can be added alone or together with the outer shade to all Penlau® swop lamps. The inner shade comes in the following colours:

light grey

light brown

sand

Penlau® swop shade — outer Total height: 14.7 cm / 5.78 inches. Diameter: 10.0 cm / 3.93 inches. Can be added alone or together with the inner shade to all Penlau® swop lamps. The outer shade comes in the following colours:

dark grey

sand (semitransparent)

dark brown

orange

white (semitransparent)

New colours will be added on a continuous basis. Please check www.penlau.com

Penlau® swop lamp – rack Height (exclusive of wire): 42.5cm/16.73 inches. Length: 100 cm / 39.37 inches. Diameter of glass shades: 8.0 cm / 3.15 inches. Length of wires: 200 cm / 78.74 inches 4 x two extra shades (inner and outer shade) can be added to the rack lamp. See page 46. Steel wires and fittings for mounting in the ceiling in chromium-plated steel are included.

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Penlau® add tables and consoles It would be nice to add something extra. The idea for the Penlau® add table came up many years ago. In fact, one copy of the table has been standing in Trine Penlau’s house for quite a number of years. Already there’s an enormous variety of tables on the market in different sizes, colours and shapes. So why go so far as to design your own table and only have it produced in a single copy?

For Trine there were several reasons. First of all, she wanted a table that could easily be extended. Second, she wanted the table to be white, because horizontal surfaces should always be of a light colour to bring light into the interior. And third, she wanted the tabletop to be practical and resistant to stains. The traditional wooden table with stains from red wine, coffee, the children’s pencils etc., should be a thing of the past. Did such a table exist on the market? Surprisingly, the answer was no. If a table was available with a white tabletop, it was usually not expandable or the additional extension pieces were in other colours or materials.

Or you needed to store the extension pieces in a separate place where they would take up a lot of space and make it quite a task to just extend the table. And when considering resistance to dirt, stains and everyday wear, every tabletop – whether made of wood, veneer, or marble – had its weaknesses.

The end result was that Trine Penlau designed and made her own table. But the story doesn’t end there. Since then, Trine has done some more creative thinking. If you have 8 people sitting around your dining table and later prefer to sit more comfortably on a sofa, why then is there no such thing as a coffee table with extensions? Well, there is now. As far as we know it is a world’s first. And therefore Trine’s single, tailor-made table has now turned into a whole series of tables in different sizes and heights. But they all have one thing in common: you can add something extra to each of them.

How it works. When you buy a Penlau® add table or console, you buy functionality on four legs.

We have designed a table that can be adjusted to your needs. Whether you want a small table to seat two – a low side table, a tall and narrow console or an expandable table that can seat up to 16 people – the Penlau® add tables can accommodate all of these. In addition to the tables there are a number of consoles available that can be used on their own as bedside tables, as a small desk, or as a shelf for your stereo – and much, much more. Of course, they can also be used together with the large tables. Put a Penlau® add console next to a high Penlau® add table and you have just made yourself a nice little service table. The same goes for the low consoles for the low tables. Or take the low console and use it as a bench for the large table.

How it is made. To create the super-resistant table top that can stand red wine and be easily cleaned even though the children have drawn all over it, we did not need to search too long.

Actually, we just had to go into the kitchen. There are already a number of tabletops for kitchens that are designed to withstand almost everything. The surface material is high pressure laminate. In the end, our research of laminate materials brought us to Italy where we found some of the world’s leading laminate factories, who are subcontractors to a large section of the Italian furniture industry. It is more problematic and costly to buy the laminate separately and transport it to Denmark, where a factory that specialises in tabletops can glue the laminate onto strong and durable plates. But then again, if you want the best you often have to go that extra mile. And it is the same story with the frame. After about 10 different prototypes made at different factories throughout Europe we finally found a Danish owner of a factory in Latvia that knows how to weld, grind and polish stainless steel so you actually think it is cut from one piece. The frame also comes in another finish. This is made of durable steel that has been treated to obtain a strong surface.

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The Penlau® add table and console range The tabletops and extension pieces are made of high pressure laminate in white. The frame comes in staniless steel or steel with a durable surface. For finishes please see www.penlau.com.

The high versions of the tables and consoles are all 74 cm / 29.1 inches high and 100 cm / 39.4 inches wide. The low versions of the tables and consoles are all 45 cm / 17.7 inches high and 100 cm / 39.4 inches wide.

For recommended retail prices, further information about the products and inspiration, please visit www.penlau.com.

Penlau® add table – low120/30+30 Length: 120 cm / 47.24 inches. Length of each extension top: 30 cm / 11.81 inches. Maximum length of table: 180 cm / 70.87 inches.

The extension leaves are kept under the table.

Penlau® add table – low120 Length: 120 cm / 47.24 inches.

Penlau® add table – high240/60+60 Length: 240 cm / 94.49 inches. Length of each extension leaf: 60 cm / 23.62 inches. Maximum length of table: 360 cm / 141.73 inches.

The extension leaves are kept under the table.

Penlau® add table – high240 Length: 240 cm / 94.48 inches.

Penlau® add console – high30 Length: 30 cm / 11.81 inches.

Penlau® add console – high60 Length: 60 cm / 23.62 inches.

Penlau® add table – high180/60+60 Length: 180 cm / 70.87 inches. Length of each extension leaf: 60 cm / 23.62 inches. Maximum length of table: 300 cm / 118.11 inches.

The extension leaves are kept under the table.

Penlau® add table – high180 Length: 180 cm / 70.87 inches.

Penlau® add console – low30 Length: 30 cm / 11.81 inches.

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Penlau® accessories ‘A box in a box in a box’ – will it ever end? It was mentioned at the very beginning of this brochure that Penlau’s products derive from a concrete need in a real-life situation. We do not consider ourselves as furniture manufacturer. We are not specialised in producing sofas or lamps. And Trine Penlau will never agree to do commissioned work because somebody feels “that we need a decanter in our collection”. Trine Penlau exclusively designs products whose quintessence is “Functionality with an edge®”. On the one hand, it sets a very high and critical standard for the product ideas. On the other hand, it gives us great freedom and contributes to making the Penlau® universe a constant living thing. To prove the point, take a closer look at our accessories.

Let us begin with the Penlau® candle-flower holder. This is a product from the original 2002 collection that can already be found in many homes. A design can hardly get any simpler than this.

Use it as a candleholder – or find a simple, beautiful flower and put it into the holder together with a small amount of water.

The Penlau® dish box is another great study in simplicity. It is a box. Or rather, it is a lot of boxes. You have keys, newspapers, magazines, pens, toiletries, DVDs, oranges and a lot of other things lying around everywhere. It would be quite practical it they were neatly organised.

Other things you might just want to present in a nice way. But typically you will have to buy several different storage products to satisfy all your needs. Wouldn’t it be great to have a bowl that could be used for more than just fruit? The box is not a new concept, we are fully aware of that. But a box in a box in a box might just be.

How it works. Penlau® dish box is a series of boxes in wood and steel. Both types of boxes are available in four different sizes. A small steel box fits into a small wooden box. The same goes for the medium, large and extra large steel and wooden boxes. The extra large wood box also holds two large wood boxes just perfect. And the large wood box holds two medium wood boxes or four small wood boxes. Thus it becomes a box in a box in a box. And the system continues. You can put a small wooden box on top of another small wooden box that already holds a small steel box. This means that the wooden box can be used as both a bottom and a lid. The same goes for the medium, large and extra large steel and wooden boxes. And so all of a sudden, a whole new range of uses appear. A box in a box in a box never seems to end.

Neither does the use of the boxes. If you have not already noticed it, then take another look at all the pictures on the previous pages. We guarantee that if you buy a Penlau® dish box you will always find a good use for it.

How it is made. The production of the wooden box was no big challenge. It was simply a matter of finding a beautiful and strong piece of wood, and a factory that knows its craft. We found a Danish cabinet maker resident in Vietnam who puts honour into assembling, polishing and oiling the wooden boxes until they become almost as soft as a leather glove.

We quickly realised why we couldn’t find steel containers and kitchen products with sharp edges and straight sides. Because producing such boxes requires hard manual labour where several steel plates have to be put together which again requires a certain thickness of the steel, typically 3-4 times as thick as the standard products which are produced by machines. The same care is taken when it comes to the Penlau® candle-flower holder. For the polishing process alone each holder has to be worked by hand 6 times, beginning with a relatively rough polishing that gradually becomes more and more refined, until the stainless steel has a perfect Penlau® finish.

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Penlau® accessories – product range For recommended retail prices, further information about the products and inspiration, please visit www.penlau.com.

Penlau® dishbox – extra large, wood or steel Wooden box, oiled American walnut (W/D/H): 38.5/30.5/6.0 cm / 15.16/12.01/2.36 inches. Brushed stainless steel box (W/D/H): 36.2/28.2/9.5 cm / 14.25/11.10/3.74 inches. The steel box fits the wooden box and an extra wooden box will make a lid.

Penlau® dishbox – large, wood or steel Wood box, oiled American walnut (W/D/H): 28.0/18.0/5.0 cm / 11.02/7.09/1.97 inches. Brushed stainless steel box (W/D/H): 25.7/15.7/7.5 cm / 10.12/6.16/2.95 inches. The steel box fits the wooden box and an extra wooden box will make a lid. Two large wooden boxes fit into one extra large wooden box.

Penlau® dishbox – medium, wood or steel Wooden box, oiled American walnut (W/D/H): 15.5/12.5/9.0 cm / 6.10/4.92/3.54 inches. Brushed stainless steel box (W/D/H): 13.2/10.2/15.5 cm / 5.20/4.02/6.10 inches. The steel box fits the wooden box and an extra wooden box will make a lid. Two medium wooden boxes fit into one large wooden box.

Penlau® dishbox – small, wood or steel Wooden box, oiled American walnut (W/D/H): 12.5/7.5/9.0 cm / 4.92/2.95/3.54 inches. Brushed stainless steel box (W/D/H): 10.2/5.2/15.5 cm / 4.02/2.05/6.10 inches. The steel box fits the wooden box and an extra wooden box will make a lid. Four small wooden boxes fit into one large wooden box.

Penlau® candle-flower holder The Penlau® candle-flower holder is made of stainless steel. All sizes have an inner diameter that fits most candles. The holder is watertight so you can use it for flowers. Large (H): 17 cm / 6.7 inches. Medium (H): 14 cm / 5.5 inches. Small: 11 cm / 4.3 inches.

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We hope to see you in the Penlau® universe. Throughout the previous pages we have tried our best to give you a taste of the Penlau® universe. If you would like to experience it in the digital world, please feel free to drop by at www.penlau.com Should you wish to experience our universe and see our products in real life you have two options: at our Penlau® universe dealers who carry all our products – or at one of the Penlau® selected dealers who carry one or more of our product series. You can always get an updated list of our dealers on our website.