Myyrmäki residential center and Archipelago collection

Vantaa, Finland

Myyrmäki residential center and Archipelago collection by IIIIK – Safe, functional, and cozy everyday living for elderly people

Aging population has become one of the megatrends calling for new solutions. We at IIIIK wanted to react to this growing need, so we created Archipelago, a collection of functional textiles.
Every one of us has a person near us whose health and safety we care about. Growing old often brings loneliness and other social and functional challenges with it. The best alternative for everyone is to live at home for as long as possible. But when the time comes to move to a residential home, people wish to live in an intimate, functional, and safe, yet stylish, environment.

Comfortable living in Myyrmäki residential center
One of the first places where the Archipelago fabrics were used was Myyrmäki residential center. It was opened in autumn 2019 and commissioned by the City of Vantaa. It is the biggest residential center in Finland and it has multifunctional communal spaces as well as service and group housing.

”The goal for Design Desk was to create a fresh and cozy atmosphere for both staff and residents. Every level of the building has a specific monochromatic colorway ranging from yellow, rusty red, purple, and blue to turquoise and green. Each colorway was utilized throughout the floor in furniture, surface materials and textiles. This created a strong and unified identity for each floor, helping the resident to identify their home space. We selected the JAKALA upholstery fabric due to its usability and versatility. The pattern was converted to floor-specific colorways, thus creating a narrative of the same pattern in different colors and combining all the levels together.”

Functional upholstery and fire retardant bed throws
The Archipelago fabrics selected for Myyrmäki residential center were the 100% fireproof Trevira CS upholstery fabric called JAKALA and bed throw called KENNO which is part of the IIIIK washable bedcover collection. This three-dimensional fabric is woven from high-quality materials that imitate the feel of linen. KENNO is certified for IMO2010FTPPart9. The fabric provides functionality that most bedcovers do not: it is washable at 60°C degrees. When washed in high temperatures, it becomes antibacterial.

Designer Liina Blom discloses the idea behind the collection: “My goal was to update the Scandinavian fabric design to 20thcentury: select the best possible, sustainable materials for public spaces and reveal them out as surface fabrics that shout out the ruthless beauty of Finnish coast side. I wanted to find out what nature based design can also look: modern and versatile - a bit robust but exclusive at the same time.”

Made responsibly, ecologically, and ethically
IIIIK fabrics are designed to be functional: they are available also as waterproof, antimicrobial and stain resistant. All versions have at least 80000 Martindale and fire classification test results. Our focus is also in the future, so all our upholstery fabrics are produced using responsible, ecological, and ethical methods in Europe. We have a passion to develop decorative products that are easily customizable according to the esthetical requirements of each space. We are here to update living environments to the new decade!