Discarded books resurrected in a unique furniture range by Australian designer on the rise, Samantha Parsons
March 3rd, 2008
An obsession with books has led Samantha Parsons, interior designer, to extend the shelf life of old hardback books, by altering their guise and role.
‘Bookscreen’ (pictured below), was the designer’s first creative foray using discarded hardbacks as the foundation material, and forms part of her new product range – Family of Sam.

In a process that required extreme dedication, books were first dissembled, then covers arranged based on colour inspiration, in either a pattern, graduated, or a single hue, employing traditional book binding techniques.
The resulting personality-laden privacy screen or room divider, is an “individual exploration into colour composition, building on the qualities of the original books,” says Parsons.
Contemplating the potential of leftover pages, gave rise to the youngest Family of Sam addition, the ‘Book Block Table’. Surprisingly sturdy, there’s the option of placing your own tray, plate or reading matter on top.
Playing on the notion of library catalogues or book collections, the tables can be created from various book categories – atlases, photography, art, cookery, story books, to name a few.
Heights vary for ‘Book Block Tables’ according to the type of books used.
Books can be selected to suit a specific application, such as food in a café, indexes for a study.
We keenly await the next chapter as Parsons plots to add to the clan. Family of Sam is available from Format Furniture or for custom orders contact the designer.

INDESIGN is on instagram
Follow @indesignlive
A searchable and comprehensive guide for specifying leading products and their suppliers
Keep up to date with the latest and greatest from our industry BFF's!
For Aidan Mawhinney, the secret ingredient to Living Edge’s success “comes down to people, product and place.” As the brand celebrates a significant 25-year milestone, it’s that commitment to authentic, sustainable design – and the people behind it all – that continues to anchor its legacy.
A Western Australian design stockist expands its brief to become a national distributor of the beautiful and unusual.
These handcrafted timber stools from Poliform are suitable for use with kitchen benchs, bar tops and are perfect for café interiors.
The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed
Poised at the intersection of design and service, King Trade has launched a new dedicated hub in Bondi Junction, which offers tailored product, service and pricing for architects and interior designers.
Warren and Mahoney’s design for Beca’s Auckland headquarters turns the mechanics of engineering into poetry, rethinking how workplace design can reveal its own systems.
In a landscape clouded by data and greenwash, Product Aware offers architects and designers a common language for sustainability. Embraced by suppliers – including Milliken – it is setting a new benchmark for trust and bringing clarity and accountability to material specification.