Greta is a contemporary kitchen sofa, inspired by the traditional sofas used in many Swedish kitchens. It is part of the launching collection of the new Swedish brand Tre Sekel (Three Centuries), where I have also worked as creative director.

Tre Sekel mainly make furniture for the dining room, and there was simply no kitchen sofa in the range. I somehow felt a craving for a new kitchen sofa and sometimes heard even from my friends that they were looking for kitchen sofas at the flea market. The most common kitchen sofas in Sweden are probably the ones with a box under the seat, but I wanted more of a pin sofa. A sofa that can do without a table in front, a sofa that could also grace an entrance. Some time ago I designed a sofa with a high pin back for the project Stockholm Wood. I still have that sofa in the office and I still like it. Greta is in the same spirit but is more adapted to the kitchen, dining room or hallway.

Tre Sekel makes all the furniture in locally grown high quality birch wood grown in Dalarna, Västergötland and Värmland. The wood has been cut at a sawmill in Alingsås which Tre Sekel has worked with for generations. They select the best birch to make extra strong and durable furniture. Another advantage of the Swedish birch is that there is no risk of it breaking off handsomely as can happen with timber moving between different climates. After the wood has been cut in Alingsås shipped to Tibro, about two hours away, the entire sofa is manufactured in the factory in Tibro. It is then painted by hand with egg tempera, a completely natural finish consisting of eggs, flax oil , pigments, water and 0.01 percent preservative – only the minimum needed for the paint to survive in room temperature without rotting. This type of finish has been around for about 1,000 years and was very popular during the 1700s. It just keeps getting stronger with each passing year.

Name: Greta is named after Herbert´s wife, he who started the factory in 1944.

The dimensions of the sofa are 125 cm wide, depth 45, height 114 cm.

Launched: In May 2013

Price: 15,670 SEK in egg tempera

Stores in Sweden: Artilleriet, Länna Möbler, Vålamagasinet, Svenssons i Lammhult, Ekeby Möbler, Gothnells Möbler, Tumba Möbler, The Home Company, Sagers Möbler