We are a small team of six, (well, seven) if you count Bella Do – Sherry’s adorable posh pooch. Over the coming months we will introduce the team to you, so you can discover who are the faces and talent behind The Longest Stay.

Ian has recently joined as an Online Marketing Executive, casually relaxed, smart and witty (even in Mandarin), he tell us about his fruitful experience so far…

Ian Drayner,online marketing executive,the longest stay


Vitamin Seat

After uploading our new Big Mushroom Chair and Pineapple Whisky Glasses, I was feeling slightly peckish and decided to explore the internet and investigate fruit inspired designer furniture…! 

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The Big Mushroom Chair and Pineapple Whisky Glass 

I do realise that mushrooms are not a fruit. Unfortunately, vegetable enthused items don’t quite have the same zest as the fruitier options. The exception being this outrageous artichoke table and the mushroom style chair, which certainly doesn’t look like any mushroom I’ve ever eaten. 

Fruit furniture on the other hand is ripe for the picking if the interior design world fancies investing in the trend. Take this banana shaped bar/pool table by audacious designer Cleon Daniel as an example. If nothing else it is big, bold, colourful and definitely a talking point. 

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Now, I’m not suggesting that we discard the iconic (non fruit related furniture) by the likes of Tom Dixon, Eero Aarnio or Verner Panton and replace them with strawberry sun loungers and watermelon themed wallpaper. Nevertheless, personality and humour in design can never be a bad thing. I think designer furniture is a pleasurable, creative passion that goes into the conception, curation and purchase of a product.

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Tom Dixon's Lustre Light Square, Eero Aarnio's Ball Chair and Verner Panton's Panton Chair

The possibilities are endless and range from the sublime to the ridiculous. This is clearly illustrated by the contrast between the subtle Lemon Shaped Sink by Cenk Kara and a more rudimentary Avocado Table by Master of Fate, which despite biology is still not a fruit in my eyes. In a world where an apple dominates the mobile phone market with an orange deciding what tariff we are on, why has less time been devoted to exploring the fruity furniture market? Bowls of fruit in the kitchen have always been a quick tip to brighten up the room. Why not take it a little further?

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Yours Grapefully,

Ian