Final Project: Tensegrity Table — A Study in Japandi-Style Furniture Design

3 weeks ago

Unrulr Documentation

About Japandi Style Furniture:

The use of Japandi style in modern homes, studios, and minimalist interiors. This design language began to emerge more prominently in the late 2010s, combining elements of Japanese and Scandinavian design traditions. It embodies a feeling of calm, simplicity, and intentional living. The first image shows how this style is used to create a sense of warmth and balance. Alternatively, it can also create a kind of emotional restraint—the second and third images show how these spaces can feel almost too minimal, quiet, and controlled, bordering on emptiness.

Key characteristics:

Clean, simple forms with minimal ornamentation and an emphasis on function.
Natural materials such as wood, linen, stone, and ceramics, often with visible grain and texture.
Muted color palettes with soft neutrals, warm tones, and subtle contrasts to create a calming atmosphere.

Historical Context:

Japandi style is a fusion of two design philosophies. Japanese design emphasizes minimalism, craftsmanship, and a connection to nature, while Scandinavian design focuses on functionality, comfort, and simplicity. Both traditions share an appreciation for restraint and intentionality, which makes their combination feel natural.

In the modern context, Japandi reflects a cultural shift toward slower living and more mindful design. It moves away from excess and instead prioritizes quality, durability, and purpose. Furniture is not just decorative, it is meant to be used, lived with, and appreciated over time.

There is also a psychological aspect to Japandi design. The same simplicity that creates calm can also feel restrictive if pushed too far. Spaces can become overly minimal, where the lack of variation or decoration creates a sense of stillness that borders on emptiness. This can result in a “clean, but quiet” aesthetic, where everything feels controlled and intentional, but slightly removed from everyday life.

In this way, Japandi furniture design communicates both comfort and restraint, balancing warmth and minimalism while constantly negotiating how much is enough.

From there, I moved into sketching and early drawings to work through the geometry and understand how the tensegrity structure would function.

This was my first physical prototype, focused on proving the tensegrity concept and understanding how tension and compression interact. however i wanted to try something new and a better more inventive design that i think meshed with the Japandi style more.

initial sketches of my second iteration.

At this stage, I focused on material selection and chose higher-quality poplar wood that would give a smoother, more consistent finish. I was looking for pieces with subtle, clean grain that aligned with the Japandi emphasis on natural materials without being overly busy. Poplar also provided a good balance between workability and strength, making it easier to machine, sand, and refine while still holding up structurally. This choice allowed me to achieve a cleaner final look while maintaining the durability needed for the tensegrity system.

I don’t have a great photo of this step, but I used the table saw to make very precise cuts, including joinery and etched connection features directly into the wood. I followed my drawings closely and was working to about 0.01-inch tolerances, which is significantly tighter than a tenth of the blade width and required careful setup and consistency.

During one of the cuts, I had help setting up the saw, and the piece was accidentally dropped. This meant I had to scrap my second iteration. It was frustrating at the time, but it ultimately worked out for the better. That version was a bit clunky in its proportions, and starting over gave me the opportunity to refine the design. It also allowed me to practice wood finishing techniques on the scrap material before moving into the final build, which improved the overall quality of the last iteration.

Over the weekend, I went down to Denver to continue working on the project in my sister’s studio, which gave me access to a more complete set of tools and a better workspace. Her friend Ian was there working on furniture as well, and he helped me refine several of the joinery cuts and improve the overall precision of the build.

Using this space allowed me to be more intentional with the fabrication process, especially when it came to alignment and clean connections. Having guidance on some of the more detailed cuts made a big difference, and this step helped elevate the quality of the final iteration.

This project explores the intersection of structural engineering and minimalist design through a wooden tensegrity side table. I was drawn to the Japandi aesthetic for its focus on simplicity, natural materials, and intentional form, and used those principles to guide the design.

The final structure exposes the system rather than hiding it. A central wooden dowel carries compression while tension cables suspend the top surface, creating a floating effect. This reflects balance both visually and structurally.

Across three iterations, I refined the geometry, improved stability, and tightened tolerances. The final version is simpler, stronger, and more intentional, with darker wood tones that emphasize materiality and contrast.

The design reflects three key Japandi characteristics: simplicity through reduced form, natural materials through exposed wood and finish, and balance through the tension-compression system.

This project pushed me to combine precision with restraint and showed how engineering decisions can directly shape aesthetic outcomes. Thank you to Josh in the woodshop and Ian in Denver for help with joinery and fine detailing.

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