Organic & natural at home: light wood, rush and calm
In this photo: Beech three-seater bench with rush seat – 1960s (€ 645) · Danish Design Rocking Chair, Ilmari Tapiovaara Model Fanett, Scandinavian, 1960s (€ 395) · Vintage design beech stools / footstool, 1960s (€ 75 each) · Hans-Agne Jakobsson Cone-Shaped Chandelier (€ 345)
Organic & natural at home: light wood, rush and calm
Vintage in light wood, rush and soft shapes: few things, well made, with space around them.
In this photo: Japanese octagonal blue and white inban dish – Meiji, c. 1870–1900 · Vintage design beech stools / footstool, 1960s (€ 75 each)
Organic and natural: less, but better
Some interiors calm you the moment you walk in. There is little in them, what is there is made of wood, and the light can reach everywhere. That is the core of organic and natural living.
It is not a bare style. Wood, rush, paper cord and earthenware give warmth; the emptiness between them gives calm. Every piece needs a reason to be there.
In this article you can read where the style comes from, what to look for and how to use it. The images show pieces from our own collection; click on a piece to view it.
What is organic and natural living?
It is not a style from one country or one period, but a way of choosing: natural materials, soft shapes and visible craftsmanship. Its main source is the Scandinavian design that flourished between the 1930s and 1960s in Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Designers such as Hans Wegner, Alvar Aalto and Ilmari Tapiovaara made furniture in light wood, without decoration, intended for ordinary homes. Good craftsmanship and simplicity went together.
Related to it is japandi, a more recent word for the mix of Scandinavian and Japanese simplicity. From the late nineteenth century Scandinavian designers looked to Japan and recognised their own preferences there: natural materials, honest construction, attention to emptiness.
The four dining chairs in the photo are Model 83 by Niels Otto Møller for J.L. Møllers Møbelfabrik in Denmark, with a rosewood frame and a seat of woven paper cord. Above them hangs a cone-shaped aluminium lamp by Hans-Agne Jakobsson for the Swedish firm AB Markaryd.
In this photo: Set of 4 Niels Møller Model 83 Rosewood Dining Chairs, Denmark, 1975 (€ 2.395) · Hans-Agne Jakobsson Cone-Shaped Chandelier (€ 345)
Why is this style so loved?
Because our homes are full and so are our days. An interior with few stimuli feels like breathing space. Organic and natural gives that calm without becoming cold.
The style is practical too. Furniture is light, movable and made for daily use. A chair is a chair; it does not have to be anything else.
And it is durable in the ordinary sense of the word. A good Danish chair from the 1960s or 1970s lasts for generations, and a seat of paper cord or rush can always be rewoven.
The strength of organic and natural: wood, weaving and craftsmanship
Look at a Scandinavian chair and you see how it is made. Spindles set into a seat, a back of bent wood, a joint that is allowed to remain visible. The construction is the beauty.
The spindle-back chair in the photo shows this: a wooden seat, curved spindles and a back 98 centimetres high. The design is related to the Fanett chair by Ilmari Tapiovaara.
Next to it stands a beech stool from the 1960s with a seat in black ribbed fabric, 45 centimetres high. As a footstool, side table or extra seat: in this style a piece of furniture may do more than one thing.
In this photo: Vintage spindle-back chair – Scandinavian design classic (€ 75 each) · Vintage design beech stools / footstool, 1960s (€ 75 each)
How do you combine organic and natural without it becoming bare?
Emptiness is not the same as bareness. A room becomes bare when everything is smooth and new. It becomes calm when the few things in it have texture and age.
So mix wood types and tones. The Danish chairs in solid pine in the photo, in the style of Rainer Daumiller and made around 1975, are sturdy and warm in colour. Next to an old work table and a stone wall they gain something timeless.
Add one object from another world. Japanese work fits in naturally. The octagonal dish in blue and white porcelain is Japanese, from the Meiji period, around 1870–1900. The decoration was applied with paper stencils. One dish on an empty table is enough.
In this photo: Set of 4 Danish pine chairs in Rainer Daumiller style – circa 1975 (€ 595) · Japanese octagonal blue and white inban dish – Meiji, c. 1870–1900
What to look for when buying vintage in wood and woven seats
Look at the joints. In good work the back and legs fit tightly and nothing wobbles. Loose joints can be glued, but that should be reflected in the price.
Examine the seat. Paper cord and rush wear at the front edge; a sagging seat has to be rewoven. Ask whether the seat is original.
Mind the type of wood. Rosewood, teak, beech and pine each have their own colour and value. Rosewood has become rare and accounts for a large part of the price of Danish chairs.
Look for a mark or stamp under the seat. Not every good piece is marked, and a seller should say honestly when something is ‘in the style of’ a designer and when it really is by that designer.
And look beyond Scandinavia. The old Dutch bench in the photo, with a high slatted back, wide armrests and a hand-woven rush seat, is 100 centimetres wide and, with its simplicity and dark wood, fits well in this interior.
In this photo: Old Dutch wooden bench with woven seat (€ 395)
Organic and natural in a light, calm interior
This style and an old, light room strengthen each other. Limewash, stone and a bleached wooden floor have the same calm as the furniture. Nothing needs to be added to finish it.
Let the light do the work. Place chairs and benches near a window, keep the windowsill empty except for one object, and hang no curtains where they are not needed.
Limit yourself to three tones: light wood, one dark accent and white. The dark accent can be a chair, a seat or a dish. The room needs no more contrast than that.
In this photo: Beech three-seater bench with rush seat – 1960s (€ 645) · Danish Design Rocking Chair, Ilmari Tapiovaara Model Fanett, Scandinavian, 1960s (€ 395) · Set of four sculptural pine dining chairs – 1970s (€ 195 voor de set)
How would De Huiszwaluw use organic and natural?
We would start with a bench in light wood. The slender three-seater bench in beech from the 1960s, with wavy ladder backs and a woven rush seat, is 123 centimetres wide and looks almost weightless.
Opposite it we would place the Fanett rocking chair by Ilmari Tapiovaara from the 1960s. A rocking chair brings movement into a quiet room, and the spindle back lets the light through.
For the dining area we choose chairs with a shape of their own, such as the four sculptural pine dining chairs from the 1970s with their keyhole-shaped opening in the back. Simple, but not anonymous.
Below you can see the organic and natural vintage currently in our collection. Stock changes; pieces that have been sold can be found under ‘Previously in our collection’.
Now in our collection: organic & natural
Holmegaard Klemt pinched decanter with ring stopper – Jacob E. Bang, Denmark, mid-20th century€ 79
Set of 6 Pastoe ST09 ladder-back chairs – Cees Braakman, birch, 1950s (to be reupholstered)€ 495 voor de set van 6
Set of 4 rattan dining chairs with Target back – McGuire style€ 345 voor de set van 4
Pair of rattan armchairs with Target back – McGuire style€ 395 per pair
Wooden bar stool with round solid seat – untreated wood, late 20th century€ 55
Banana leaf planter on foot – woven vase, contemporary€ 75
Large banana leaf floor basket – conical shape, 81 cm, recent€ 95
Rattan bench with petal-shaped back – two-seater, recent, in vintage style€ 100
Rustic teak bench made from a single plank – old teak, late 20th century€ 245
French farmhouse bench on trestle legs – solid wood, early 20th century€ 195 * GERESERVEERD / ON HOLD *
Extra large pine farmhouse table – 238 cm, French country style, 20th century€ 275
Set of 2 wooden director’s chairs – green canvas, folding, vintage€ 295 voor de set van 2
Stoneware jug with pouring spout – wood-fired French grès, 19th – early 20th century€ 95
Small demountable table – burr wood with curved legs, plant stand€ 85
Wicker fruit bowl on foot – hand-woven rattan, vintage€ 65
Folding oak magazine rack with slats – vintage magazine stand, mid-20th century€ 165
Monumental wooden wine press screw as a column – early hand-carved screw, 18th century or earlier, 170 cm€ 750
Antique oak grain measure with iron mounts – marked ‘No. 32’, 19th century€ 295
Wooden folding table with X-legs – 120 x 69 cm, 3 available€ 145 each
Woven basket in white earthenware – attributed to Émile Tessier, Malicorne€ 175
Large round pine three-legged table – cricket table, Ø 110 cm€ 595 * GERESERVEERD / ON HOLD *
Small round coffee table in Swedish Gustavian style – cream painted, early 20th century€ 225
Japanese octagonal blue and white inban dish – Meiji, c. 1870–1900
Brown stoneware jug with handle – 19th century€ 75
Beech three-seater bench with rush seat – 1960s€ 645
Set of 2 French country chairs with rush seats€ 295
Mid-century hand-carved oak stool with live edge – 1950s€ 245
2 minimalist Dutch oak ladder-back armchairs with rush seats – 1930s€ 350 voor het paar
Set of 4 old Dutch oak ladder-back chairs with rush seats – 1960s€ 495
Old Dutch oak ladder-back dining chairs with rush seats€ 145
Dutch oak ladder-back armchair with rush seat – 1950s€ 195
2 Dutch oak ladder-back armchairs with rush seats – 1960s€ 395
2 Brutalist oak lounge chairs with rush seats, circa 1935€ 645
2 English oak armchairs with ladder back and rush seats€ 445
17th-century salt-glazed stoneware jug€ 145
Pair of low Brutalist oak lounge chairs with new rush seats – circa 1935€ 745
Brutalist oak fireside chair – wabi-sabi armchair€ 245
Pair of Brutalist oak lounge chairs with rush seats – the Netherlands, circa 1935€ 395
Set of 4 Brutalist oak dining chairs with bouclé seats – 1970s€ 795
Set of 4 Danish pine chairs in Rainer Daumiller style – circa 1975€ 595
Set of 4 Scandinavian pine ladder-back chairs with seagrass seats – 1960s€ 545
Pair of Brutalist oak throne chairs with rush seats – the Netherlands, 1930s€ 595
Set of 4 white rush dining chairs – Vico Magistretti / Charlotte Perriand style, 1970s€ 995
20 wooden bistro chairs with woven seats – for hospitality venues with character€ 45 each
Vintage chaise longue / daybed in bleached wood and white leather€ 995
Set of four sculptural pine dining chairs – 1970s€ 195 voor de set
Pander desk from circa 1920€ 995
Vintage hand-woven geometric rug, 1970s–80s€ 375
Vintage hand-woven wool kilim / flatweave rug, 1970s–80s€ 375
Old Dutch wooden bench with woven seat€ 395
Set of four Thonet 676 PF armchairs designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh€ 1.195
Long French wabi-sabi bench in weathered pine – circa 1900€ 595
Large antique Chinese wooden sculpture with child – wabi-sabi€ 345
Large sculptural burr wood coffee table – circa 1970€ 945
French freestanding rattan bar from the 1970s€ 1.095
Vintage wooden valet stand from the 1960s€ 345
Set of 4 white bistro chairs with bouclé seats – warm & timeless€ 200 per set van 4
Old church chairs | wooden ladder-back chairs with woven seats€ 25 each
Vintage-style plywood stacking chair – beech wood€ 55
Van Bennekom Mixed Slate & Oak Coffee Table, Netherlands, 1970s (Paul Kingma Style)€ 695
Vintage spindle-back chair – Scandinavian design classic€ 75 each
Vintage design wooden chairs with space for your magazine€ 45 each
Set of Four Mid-Century Modern Danish Dining Chairs, Papercord and Solid Pine€ 1.195
6 wooden armchairs in light beige, green and greenish white – 1970s€ 150 each
Old African stool inlaid with beads€ 250
Large chalk-white brocante wooden floor lamp€ 125
Story Book Brutalist Wabi-Sabi Oak Fireplace Lounge Chairs€ 395
Set of 4 Niels Møller Model 83 Rosewood Dining Chairs, Denmark, 1975€ 2.395
Hans-Agne Jakobsson Cone-Shaped Chandelier€ 345
Set of 4 Brutalist Fishbone Chairs, Spanish Oak and Bouclé€ 2.095
1960s Dutch Wicker Bucket / Basket Chair with Icelandic Sheepskin – 2€ 445
Danish Design Rocking Chair, Ilmari Tapiovaara Model Fanett, Scandinavian, 1960s€ 395
2 White Dining Chairs in the Style of Charlotte Perriand, France, 1960€ 295
Swedish design bar stool by Börje Johanson, 1970s€ 65
Set of 16 Erik Magnussen ‘Magnus’ Chairs for Paustian, Stackable€ 295 per stoel
Vintage design HESTRA Tord Björklund ‘Jeans’ folding chair, 1991€ 445
Vintage design beech stools / footstool, 1960s€ 75 eachPreviously in our collection
Read on about other styles
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Dutch designDutch design at home: sober, clever and surprisingly warm
Classic antiquesClassic antiques at home: centuries old, and made to last
Art nouveauArt nouveau interior: lines that grow like plants
BrutalismBrutalism at home: heavy wood, raw iron and shapes with weight
French countryFrench country living: wood, stone and the calm of country life
IndustrialIndustrial living: honest materials, clever shapes and a rough edge
Art decoArt deco: clean lines, warm materials and a touch of daring
Mid-centuryMid-century design: timeless, warm and still modern
Wabi-sabiWhat is wabi-sabi living, and why does imperfection make an interior more beautiful?