Jana Schindelhauer from Ikosae

Studio Farn - You share the studio with a group of creatives.

The studio was founded by friends I studied with and they took me and my label in. We are a kind of co-working space, except that everyone has their fixed place and has been there for many, many months or even years. It's not a public place of exchange; but it's still about dialogue and sharing ideas.

What do you do exactly?

I help companies to manage their scraps and offcuts more sustainably. I combine the whole thing with aesthetics, so that ideally a product or semi-finished product is created from it, adding value at the same place where the waste is generated. This material doesn't become waste, isn't taken to the landfill or incinerated, but is reused through pre-cycling.

Sustainability also plays a big role at Rowac - Using a product for generations. Share the story behind your Rowac schemel.

Yeah, I inherited the stool from my grandpa, who used to work as a civil engineer. I'm not sure if he also sat on the Rowac at his drawing table... it's possible. When he passed away at the age of almost 90 and my family and I cleared out his apartment, a few treasures came to light: among them was this Rowac schemel, the seat of which was covered with the nastiest orange plush, like you would find on a toilet seat. And I thought in horror, "What's that?", take the plush off and think, "Oh, holy shit!".

What kind of person was your grandfather?

He was one of the most sustainable people I’ve ever encountered in my life. He kept everything with the thought that one could maybe still use it later. That's a bit like the GDR mentality: better to have than to need. I think he simply cherished everything and preferred to repair, repaint or glue over it three times, even in a very elaborate way, rather than throw something away.

How long have you had your grandfather's schemel and how do you use it?

It must have been in the spring of 2014. As a designer, you have a soft spot for seating - but I didn't have a stool yet. And it's actually in use quite a lot these days. Stools are simply perfect! It served as my bedside table for many years. And whenever there were too many people around, I could just grab it and use it as a seat. And it's still like that today. It’s a multi-functional piece of furniture that not only has a place in the workshop, but also in my bedroom and was my work stool at my small makeshift desk during my time in home office.

What’s the concept behind your bags?

The bag is actually a case study project. In other words, I first looked at the process at manufacturing companies: What is left over/scrap? Which materials that end up in the trash are actually still usable and how could they be reused? Could they possibly even be manufactured in the same location? I gave myself the task of developing a product that is designed to do just that. I felt that it was also important to use the expertise that’s already available on site.

What did you base the design of the bags on?

The design is primarily dependent upon the material and cuts. For my bags, for example, I only use rectangles. These shapes are not only easy to cut, but this results in as little waste as possible when cutting the bag out of the actual scrap pieces.

Do you have a good story to tell about your schemel?

When I was packing the car for the move from Halle to Leipzig and grabbed the Rowac schemel as the last piece of furniture, my neighbour from across the street, who was already restoring Rowac and other furniture at the time, asked me if I wouldn't like to leave the stool behind. And I was like "Sorry, what? Forget it! It's a Rowac - I know that shit!"

Like, "You don't need that old thing, do you?"

Yeah, exactly.

So you really treasured the stool.

Yeah, not only as an heirloom, but it's also kind of my emergency investment. If times get really bad for me, I can always sell the Rowac schemel...