CULT ITEM: Casalino Jnr

THE PANTON Jnr chair has a new rival. Except that the less easily recognisable, but equally iconic, Casalino Jnr chair from German design company Casala isn’t really new.

First designed in 1970 by Alexander Begge (the Casalino was his only famed creation), the award-winning stacking chair died out in the 80s due to rising costs in oil. But now it’s back. With a brand new contemporary table to accompany it - designed by Hamburg-based regular Casala collaborators, Jonas Kressel and Ivo Schelle - and in five new colours, Charcoal, White, Red, Green and Macchiato (a rather lush light coffee shade).

The palette may not be original – the 21st-century colours were chosen by Casala with the help of Kressel + Schelle - so gone is the flashy, wild orange, but the scratchproof, impact-resistant chair itself has been cast from the original mould, so it’s less a replica and more a genuine reissue, say Casala.

Officially the relaunch of the Casalino (and yes, there are adult versions too!) is to coincide with Casala’s 90th birthday. But interest in the baby Casalino has been building for some time… Vintage versions have been on the online shop, Bianca & Family, for the last year or so, and, Little Fashion Gallery’s Marie Soudre Richard, who sells the vintage numbers has been a fan for a number of years. “Paul, my son, has been using it [a vintage one] since the age of one. He loved the round design and that it wasn’t angular, and he also really likes the bright colours.”

As for Soudre Richard, she appreciates the fact it “works well with modern design like a Nume table, as well as a vintage little school desk. It can be moved around easily by the child himself because it’s not too heavy, and it’s very sturdy because it’s all in one piece – straight from the mould.” Practicalities aside, it “works effortlessly within a stylish interior,” she confirms.