Fendi Casa 2012

Fendi Casa has added a leather-topped table, satin and velvet bed, and generously proportioned sofa to its collection for 2012.

Kenzo Maison collection 2012

Kenzo presented its 2012 Maison collection in Milan this April, created in collaboration with Club House Italia. The range mixes contemporary luxury with traditional detailing, such as button-back upholstery, and Eastern influences.

Fendi brings leather into the kitchen

Villa Livia, Fendi Casa Ambiente Cucina

Italian luxury brand Fendi launched its first kitchen concept at EuroCucina last month, in partnership with Scic. Fendi Casa Ambiente Cucina is described as a continuum between kitchen and living space, and brings new materials into the kitchen - from ebony and acacia wood to crocodile-printed leather.

The Cryptographer by Raw Color

Cryptographer by Raw Color

Inspired by the ever more digital world we are living in, Dutch design studio Raw Color collaborated with Remon van den Eijnden, Peter Bust and programming specialists Bart van der Linden and Studio Watt to design a cryptographer which turns the patterns of digital messages into encoded textiles.

Crossing table by Patricia Urquiola for Glas Italia

Patricia Urquiola's Crossing Table, designed for Glas Italia and launched at Milan Design Week last month, combines functionality, elegance and originality. Made of 8 + 8mm thick tempered transparent extralight glass, the table uses three-dimensional polychromatic decoration to create a detailed geometric pattern of overlapping lines and colours, which change continuously depending on the vantage point.

Dror for Tumi

Expanding suitcase by Dror for Tumi

Dror for Tumi is the result of 18 months of research and development by US designer Dror Benshetrit and the Tumi team. The collection, launched during Milan Design Week 2012, is a series of bags that can expand, morph and transform, adapting with you as you travel between different environments within a day or a trip.

I am your YUZEN by Sione

Japanese textile brand Sione showcased a series of kimonos called I am your YUZEN at Milan Design Week last month. Created in collaboration with traditional Yuzen craftsmen, the kimonos are covered in an array of colourful dots - which represent the traditional technique used to mix colours before painting a kimono.

Davide Groppi at Milan 2012

Italian designer Davide Groppi showed a new outdoor lighting system at Salone del Mobile 2012 last month, displayed in the historic atmosphere of Chiostri dell’Umanitaria alongside furniture by Paola Lenti.

Patricia Urquiola for Baccarat

Patricia Urquiola for Baccarat

Crystal brand Baccarat has collaborated with Patricia Urquiola on Variations, a new collection of stemware and vases. Each piece is made of hand-crafted cut crystal and features a different configuration of 6 core shapes, inspired by Urquiola's memories of her father composing music at the piano.

Four chairs by JAILmake

Pictured left to right: Evening, Afternoon, Noon, and Morning by JAILmake

London-based studio JAILmake has designed a series of four solid ash chairs which encourage increasing stages of relaxation throughout the day; from narrow chairs to work from in the morning to a rocking chair for the later stages of the afternoon, and a lounge chair for the evening.

Paper Music by Molo Design

Softwall by Molo at Milan Design Week 2012

Understanding the possibilities a material like paper has when removed from its primary purposes provides a realm of creative opportunities for designers. Canadian design company Molo took hold of this at Milan Design Week, creating an installation for MOST made entirely from paper.

Vitra at Salone del Mobile

Vitra at Salone del Mobile 2012; photo by Eduardo Perez

At this year's Milan furniture fair, Vitra presented new products stemming from collaborations with Antonio Citterio, Hella Jongerius, Jasper Morrison, Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec and G-Star. The result is a confident new collection with a strong sense of accessibility - enhanced by Vitra's welcoming stand design at the Salone.

Hydro-Fold by Christophe Guberan

ECAL student Christophe Guberan showed an adapted inkjet printer, which can create self-folding origami paper, at Salone Satellite in Milan last month.

Balanced by mischer'traxler at Wait & See

Milanese concept store Wait & See teamed up with design duo mischer’traxler to create Balanced, an exhibition for Salone del Mobile 2012. The concept for the exhibition was "forma mentis" – a Latin expression that means nature of the mind, or mentality. This was expressed through the idea of scales, balancing the raw materials and equipment on one side with the final objects on the other.

Tutti Frutti: food in motion

This video by ECAL Visual Communication students Florian Luthi, Teo Schifferli and Chloé Tun Tun documents a series of foods as they explode, contract, degrade and develop over time - and was on show in Milan last week as part of the design academy's exhibition, Too Cool For School.

For more examples of food in advertising and communication, subscribers can read our food focus report Vegetal Design.

Titanium tableware by SUS Gallery

Sakura Titanium Tableware by SUS Gallery

Japan-based SUS Gallery exhibited a collection of double-walled crystallised titanium cups at Spazio Rossana Orlandi last week.

Front, Nacho Carbonell & FormaFantasma for Booo

New Dutch lighting brand Booo launched its inaugural collection of LED lightbulbs at Spazio Rossana Orlandi last week - including this bursting bubble lamp by Front and a squishy rubber balloon-shaped bulb by Nacho Carbonell.

Kees' tailor-made iPhone cases

Kees Case in Sparkly, Bohemian Blue

Online design brand Kees, founded by Dutch brothers Jonas and Daaf Samson, uses 3D printing technology to create completely personalised iPhone cases.

Atomizers for food by Design Attico

Atomizer Collection by Design Attico

Italian brand Design Attico's new collection, Atomizer, is a collection of table perfumes inspired by antique fragrance bottles, which aim to encourage gentle expressiveness at the table.

Colour-Based on Nature by Irma Boom for Thomas Eyck

Waddensea, Netherlands from Colour-Based on Nature by Irma Boom

During Milan Design Week, Spazio Rossana Orlandi was host to Dutch design publisher Thomas Eyck's new launch - a collection of striped wallpaper by graphic designer Irma Boom which represents different cultural sites around the world.