To celebrate MEZZANINE’s regional issue and to support and promote the crisis in homelessness, the magazine’s editor and creative director, Marcus Piper, along with publisher Chris Rennie, has teamed up with Wollongong based furniture maker Chris Nicholson to create the MEZZANINE stool.

Chris Nicholson on the MEZZANINE stool.

Piper, a trained industrial designer who has found his feet as a multi-disciplined designer on the south coast of NSW, says, “Through the MEZZANINE stool we have captured the essence of what the magazine is about. Accessible, authentic design for everyday living.”

A recent finalist in the Mercedes-Benz Design Prize, he has donated his time and concept to develop a solid timber stool that is available for $300 – with 10% of the sale price going to Mission Australia. Evident through the pages of the magazine, Piper is a strong supporter of local design and manufacturing, explaining, “It is a really important to support local makers, and living in a regional area it has been fantastic to have Chris’s input and skill pretty much on my door step. It is a really nice thing and a testament to what is happening nationally in design.”

Nicholson, who is better known as Forest Furniture, has built a solid reputation for finely crafted furniture of his own design and has recently created the Swan Street chair (pictured below), his first piece designed and made from his new workshop in the heart of Wollongong. “Working with Marcus on the stool we were focused on creating something simple and affordable that captured both a quality in design and manufacture,” he says.

MEZZANINE’s publisher, Chris Rennie, also a driving force behind the stool, identifies the need to give back. “With youth homelessness at crisis point, we were looking for a way to balance our investment in beautiful, authentic design with our need to support those who lack basic shelter,” he says. It’s a positive message translated into an object that serves many purposes – the flat-packing MEZZANINE stool doubles as a side table and magazine holder.

Available in a limited edition, numbered run of 10, the stool is made from solid American oak with a copper rail to store your favourite issue.

Pick up is available for those in the Illawarra region. Delivery in the Sydney Metro area is $25 – Melbourne $70. Delivery is included in the total prices.

Order yours by February 8 and it will be delivered by February 22.

To find out more and to purchase the chair, click here.