It was only Wednesday, and already, a table was talking to me. But I wasn’t hallucinating from design overload (just yet)—this was at Etro’s 5 Threads, 40 Years exhibition in the Brera district. This Milan Design Week, the Italian house celebrated 40 years of its signature swirling Arnica fabric and pattern. The exhibit was conceptualized around the five bright threads—green, yellow, red, turquoise, and white—that when woven into the paisley jacquard articulate the deep earthy tone for Arnica. The immersive show allowed visitors to explore a thread of rooms, following the carpets through the creation, the icon, and the journey of Etro’s most loved paisley pieces. The previously mentioned talking table narrated the story, while Etro trunks and suitcases became spaces for video projections. Guests who completed the exhibit also got free, Arnica print stools. Smart design, made smarter. —A.C.

Marimekko

Photo: Sean Davidson

Photo: Sean Davidson

Originally from Cairo, living in New York, and finding an ever-welcoming home at Salone Del Mobile, is Laila Gohar. Across a busy week that also included launching the Mediterranean port-inspired Table VII collection for Gohar World, the artist got into bed with Marimekko—quite literally. Their capsule collection was showcased at an installation in Teatro Litta: a larger-than-life bed featuring off-beat stripes and delightful colorways on bedsheets, pillowcases, throws, diaries, sleep masks, and pajamas. “It’s always been a beloved brand in my family,” Gohar said of the Finnish design house. “My parents discovered it in the ’80s, we had it in the home and wore it as kids.” As we cozied up on the gargantuan bed, both Gohar and Marimekko creative director Rebekka Bay tell me that, while they first clicked as friends in New York, the beginning of the collaboration was conceptualized around a shared urge to, well, stay in bed. It all began when Gohar would send Bay photos of herself in bed with her newborn baby. “We thought, when finally doing a collaboration together, we wanted to celebrate all the things you shouldn’t do in bed. Not just as a place to sleep but a place to imagine, dream, hang out… eat!” One guest got under the sheets and slept for several hours, Bay told me. And eat we did—on the Wednesday of Salone, guests were treated to a cornflower blue and yellow striped cake and cream atop the sheets. The prints (cake et al) referenced the brilliant late Marimekko founder Maija Isola’s archive of over 4,000 prints, kept at their printing mill and HQ in Helsinki. “Often production is so far removed from a business, but this is so woven into Marimekko and its culture,” said Gohar, “we delighted in imagining something new with these storied designers across Marimekko’s history.” The collection will launch later in 2025. Laila made the bed—and you can soon sleep in it! —A.C.

Gohar World

Photo: Courtesy of Gohar World