Freelance designer and interior architect Mia Cullin creates an array of elementally inspired products from her studio in Stockholm. Her studies at Sweden’s Konstfack (or the University College of Arts, Crafts and Design), from which she received her degree in 1998, also took her to Italy and Denmark. Her work, which often shows a fascination for geometry, has been described as simple, poetic and elegant.

Whether she is working with textiles or not, her designs have that handcrafted feeling—folding and origami shapes a hallmark of her creations. Many times, Cullin works with module-like patterns and mixed motifs, which bring surfaces a textural quality. She says she is inspired by details found in everyday life and is drawn to traditional craftsmanship. Her education has created a comfort with all aspects of the product design arena, from explaining her ideas to factory workers and toolmakers to presenting finely finished concepts to clients.

Cullin has created products from materials as diverse as non-woven fabric, leather, steel, plastic and glass. She claims her head is continually chock-full of ideas and that she carries with her a passion for seeking out innovative solutions everywhere she goes. A grand experimenter, she laments that the only thing she is lacking in life is time. Describing herself as dreamy, honest and emotional, she is what experts would describe as the designer’s designer.

It’s no wonder Cullin is an award-winning professional, as he follows each product from sketch to final production. She has received a special mention from the Design Report in 2006 and her design for Flake—a versatile geometric screen that can be used as a curtain or partition, or as a table decoration—was honored with the Interior Innovation Award in Cologne in 2007. The designer has created products for Nola, Ikea, Woodnotes, Habitat, Blå Station and Zero Interior, whose Cord pendant and ceiling fixture Global Lighting distributed in North America.