Bolt and Interesting Times Gang Reveal New Furniture Collection Made from Upcycled Cars

Bolt, the European transport app, has teamed up with Stockholm design studio Interesting Times Gang to craft a furniture collection from discarded car parts. Designed to live on the streets, the modular range – comprising a sofa, lounge chair, pouffe and matching lamps – offers an area for city goers to retreat to and feel at home.

The idea behind the “Living Vroom” collection was focused on converting cars into something that gives back and makes use of sacred city space. With currently half of urban space reserved for car infrastructure, Oliver Wyman’s Shared Mobility’s Global Impact report has shown that shared mobility can decrease car usage by 19% and open up more space in the city.

“Our cities are often built just to get from A to B fast, but little effort is made to make the environment nice to spend time in,” says head of design at Interesting Times Gang Alexander Westerlund reflecting on the brief. “The “Living Vroom” range is doing the exact opposite: making public space more attractive, playful and creating a space to meet strangers and strike up random conversations.”

Looking to put their spin on the world of mechanics, the studio designers headed to a scrapyard to search for car parts that could be given new life as design pieces. Out of the discarded materials presented to them, a mix of nylon airbags provided the basis for their designs. Blending the airbag material with glass fibers for 3D printing, they turned the often forgotten cushion component into a durable structure for the sofa and lounge chair.

Making use of the airbag’s soft texture, the designers cut up swatches and sewed them together to upholster the pieces. The translucent quality of the material also lent the perfect shade covering for the collection’s solar-powered lamps that shine with a bright green glow at night.

The collection will make its debut in Stockholm during the city’s Creative Edition independent design festival.

Find out more about the “Living Vroom” range and upcoming showcase in Stockholm on Bolt’s blog now.