Somewhere between exploring the Grand House and catching your fourth talk of the day, you'll probably want a comfortable place to pause. At Grand Designs Live this year, there's a good chance the bench you settle onto will be made of paper.
We’re Paper Lounge, and we make clever folding furniture from Kraft paper. From 2 to 4 October, we’re supplying benches and tables for the seating areas and talk spaces at the NEC. We won’t have a stand, but you’ll fi nd our furniture in the places where people stop, recharge and talk about their plans.

Yes, it's really paper

Most people pause for a second before they sit on it. Fair enough. Paper isn't something you'd normally trust with your whole weight, which makes the fi rst sit a pleasant surprise.
The strength comes from the shape, not the sheet. Inside each piece is a honeycomb of hexagonal paper cells, which helps spread weight across the structure. The stools in our range are rated to support up to 100kg, while our 150cm bench has a total capacity of 300kg. Yet the same bench weighs just 8kg, making it easy to move when the space needs to change.

The best way to understand it is simply to take a seat. Between talks, visitors can try the benches for themselves and see how the material feels in use, rather than taking our word for it.

The curved, sculptural shape catches the eye, while the paper construction invites a closer look. It is unusual enough to start a conversation, but practical enough to do the straightforward job of giving visitors somewhere to pause.

Why it belongs at a show like this

Grand Designs Live spends three days exploring homes that use less and waste less, with a Sustainability Hub devoted to energy-effi cient living. We liked the idea of the seating following the same practical, resource-conscious thinking.
Show furniture often travels a long way for a short job, and traditional pieces can be bulky to transport and store. Ours opens and closes like a book. A 150cm bench folds down to about 13cm deep and a circular table to roughly 4cm, so furniture for a busy seating area can be packed into a relatively small space and returned to storage for the
next event. When a piece eventually reaches the end of its useful life, its paper construction means it can be recycled, subject to local recycling guidance.
For a busy show, that fl exibility matters throughout the day as well as behind the scenes. Talk areas can fi ll quickly, and the furniture needs to support the fl ow of visitors without dominating the space. Lightweight benches and tables can be positioned where people need a breather, grouped to create places for conversation or folded away when an area needs to be rearranged. This helps create welcoming places for visitors to pause, share ideas and plan the next part of their day.

It earns its keep at home too

This is the bit that matters for your own project. The benches and tables we’re bringing to the NEC are the same designs that people use at home, where their fl exibility remains useful long after a single event. A bench provides extra seating when a couple more people join you for Sunday lunch, while a side table can be opened when friends come round, then folded fl at and stored behind the sofa once they’ve gone.
The same idea works in any room that has to serve more than one purpose. Instead of giving permanent fl oor space to furniture you only need occasionally, you can open a piece for guests, hobbies or a temporary workspace, then fold it away so the room can return to normal. That makes the range particularly helpful in fl ats and multipurpose rooms, as well as during decorating or renovation work, when keeping the available space clear can make everyday life much easier.
There is one limit worth knowing. Kraft paper does not like damp, so it is furniture for dry rooms rather than the patio. Tables can be paired with felt or plastic tops, with the plastic option providing a wipe-clean surface, while benches can be fi tted with faux-leather pads. The benches and circular tables are each available in eight colours, including white, brown and black, as well as a recycled option, making it easier to fi nd something that suits your room.
Having that choice means occasional furniture does not have to feel like an afterthought. A neutral fi nish can blend into the room, while a brighter colour can add contrast or help distinguish one area from another. It is furniture that adapts to the occasion without asking you to redesign the whole room around it.

Come and find us

Look out for our benches and tables in the seating areas and talk spaces at the NEC from 2 to 4 October. Take a seat between talks, rest your coffee on one of our tables, then look underneath to see how it is made. We hope it gives you a fresh idea for flexible furniture at home, too. When you’re back from the show, explore the full living collection for more colours, sizes and ways to make your space work harder.