David Trubridge

The Wool Lantern

We were immediately inspired by the material qualities of the merino fibres, particularly the potential for these to be used to diffuse light. We were eager to design a light using these fibres as a natural diffuser and sought to retain the natural feeling of wool in the finished piece. We chose to use bamboo to build a structural skeleton to define the shape of the light. Drawing from the studio’s experience creating modular kitset products, we created a simple form of naturally curving bamboo spines. From this base form, we created a template outlining the gently curved surfaces to be applied to the exterior. We used some translucent hemp fabric from Hemptech NZ to hold the wool fibres contained within this form. We stitched layers of fabric together, carefully encasing thin sheets of merino fibre between each layer and leaving pockets for the bamboo spines to be slipped in. The final design celebrates New Zealand materials and lifestyle.