Katy Wallace's box of tricks

Katy Wallace says there's humour in her designs which liven up an apartment. Picture / Babiche Martens

Imagine what the judges might say about Katy Wallace's design range. It will be singled out for being consistently flat, applauded for its ephemeral nature.

Then again they may well praise the designer's clever transformations of the corrugated-cardboard box.

Wallace's U-Fold range of homeware is distinctive - like a bookshelf made from cardboard and screen-printed with a decorated wood grain, a wall-hanging made from aluminium and plastic, or an origami crane; all these items can be neatly folded flat. Wallace says that several years ago, when considering the sheer volume of designs on the market, she realised hers would have to have a clear purpose and a point of difference.

"It's designed to be thrown away if need be. I'm trying to appeal to a spontaneous market, for people who are more mobile. And lugging around large furniture from place to place is problematic. It's very much people taking control of their space."

This is furniture with a Dr Seuss-like appearance.

"It's meant to look more like a prop, a stand-in for the real thing. There's definitely humour attached. It's designed to liven up an apartment, make the space more homely and welcoming."

Even though you can pack and post the bookshelf, it's strong enough to hold 50kg.

"I'm really interested in the engineering of these cardboard works," Wallace says. "They have to be functional and strong. I avoided gluing and adding other elements."

For the past 11 years she has been re-jigging everyday items - to much acclaim.

In 1988, she took banana boxes and turned them into a free-wheeling box drawer. Her Floor Shelf series was inspired by sandwich boards.

"I think consciously about design, about making it more efficient. I'm fascinated by how it gets assembled and made - and how it gets discarded."

Wallace teaches at AUT and will complete the U-Fold range as part of her master's degree in art and design. She is preparing the range for a production run, and later this year will sell it online.

She is also designing a new range for Legacy Timber's Hold brand of pine homeware.

Wallace takes great delight in reshaping tradition, even caravans. In 2003 she took the Katy Wallace Caravan Project on the road. Wallace redesigned a classic 1966 Lilliput caravan and toured the North Island, parking outside museums so people could have a look. She transformed the caravan's shell by changing the original dull stripes to a blue dimpled cover. The interior had retro formica kitchen fittings and a kitchen cupboard covered in wetsuit material.

She still owns the caravan and it gets lots of attention.

"People are really inspired by it. I've had a few offers to sell it, but I can't bear to part with it even if it does mean travelling at a slower pace."

One of the caravan's features was some outdoor furniture that folded flat and cleverly slotted into the floor for easy storage. It impressed Lilliput Caravan Club members and many other visitors who crammed in to the tiny space. "I hope my work opens up people's minds - shows them other options - to think outside the square."