Backpack of wood - Norwegian design

In this post we will go trough the idea, process and result of the work i did creating my own backpack made out of wood.

As an eager experimental craftsman i could not resist the image of my self climbing up in the mountain with a backpack made completely out of wood. I love to hike in the forrest where i come from and the trees have always amazed me, which was my rot of inspiration when it came to build and design this backpack.

A big part of my concept was to only use materials made of wood, which means no glue, screws or nails. The second thing was to experiment with birch bark, which have been used for centuries to create baskets and to waterproof old traditional Norwegian log houses. The quality of this beautiful material is its resistant to water and its ability to be bendt.

As many craftsmen before me i have shosen not to use nails, but rather Japanese wood joinery. This time the traditional dovetail, which you can notice if you look at the corners of the backpack. It holds the plywood together with out using glue or nails. It does not only look really great, but are also good for the environment.

When it came to make the back i struggled for a long time to understand what kind of material and construction i could use without ending up with the result of an uncomfortable product. All i did now at the start was that it had to be soft and adaptable to my back. And as i said before birch bark is bendable and soft, but only manageable when cooked in boiling water. When the bark reach a high temperature the wood fiber gets soft and it can be bendt, when the temperature gets low again it hardens.

But the back is not only made out of birch bark but also a piece of wood which have been formed after my own back. The material of this is a tree called ash, which have the strength to be bendt a lot , which was necessary when i tighten the birch bark around it, but also for a everyday use being pressed against my back.

As an craftsman i have to say that this is one of my proudest works through the years as a student at Bergen school of architecture. With its beautiful design consisting of oak, birch, ash and plywood it is something which gives me the feel of the forrest where i grew up. When i today hike up the mountain carrying my backpack i often think about the great value of something crafted by yourself. The product are genuin, environmental friendly and something els then the result of todays mass consumption of things.

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• woood