Interior Decor

Lichen + Karimoku Reimagine Familiar Forms for Today’s Living

September 17, 2025

Great design doesn’t always begin with a blank slate – it often starts with something overlooked. That’s the case with Lichen’s latest collaboration with Karimoku Furniture. The New York–based design incubator and studio has reimagined two unassuming objects: the applebox, a backstage workhorse of the film industry, and an archival sofa originally made by Karimoku for meeting rooms. By bringing their eye for form and function to these utilitarian beginnings, Lichen gives each piece a new life – one that feels fresh, familiar, and perfectly tuned for contemporary living.

Photo: Carbon Stories

Inspired by the trusty applebox, the CMPT by Lichen distills the film set essential into a modular storage box system. Like its predecessor, it’s designed for versatility. It seamlessly shifts from seat to side table to storage, making the most out of small spaces while taking up a small footprint itself. Lichen preserves the sense of utility but elevates it through craftsmanship and materiality, using beautifully milled pure chestnut wood. With three components – the AppleBox, the AppleBox Joint, and the Glass CMPT Table – users can choose their own adventure in deciding how to incorporate the collection into daily life. Stacked horizontally or vertically, used individually or connected with the AppleBox Joint, the AppleBox becomes storage or a seat. The table itself can perfectly store four AppleBoxes neatly underneath, from edge to edge, creating dual functionality.

A wooden drawer containing a green blanket and a book is partially open beside a glass-topped table holding books and papers on a brown cork floor

Photo: Carbon Stories

A person wearing a blue striped shirt and brown pants sits on a wooden stool in an indoor setting with warm lighting

Photo: Carbon Stories

A wooden shelving unit with books, storage boxes, and decorative items is placed in front of a green sofa in a well-lit room with ceiling lights

Photo: Carbon Stories

A light wood cabinet with a sliding door holds a rolled magazine, a book titled "Design," and two woven baskets on a lower shelf. A green chair is partially visible behind it

Photo: Carbon Stories

Close-up of wooden storage drawers with round cut-out handles, set against a cork floor and partially visible green upholstered furniture

Photo: Carbon Stories

A wooden box with round cut-out holes stands on a wooden floor next to a green sofa, with plants and furniture in the background

Photo: Carbon Stories

A wooden spool-shaped object sits on top of a light wood box with a round hole, indoors, with blurred background furniture

Photo: Carbon Stories

A glass coffee table with a light wood frame sits on a hardwood floor in a living room with a green sofa and several potted plants

Photo: Carbon Stories

A glass-top coffee table with a wooden frame and a wooden box-shaped seat set on a green carpet in front of a shoji-style wall

Photo: Carbon Stories

A rectangular glass-top coffee table with a light wood base sits on a green carpet in front of wooden shoji screen panels

Photo: Carbon Stories

A dimly lit modern living room with dark sofas, low wooden tables, decorative lamps, and an open kitchen in the background

Photo: Masaaki Inoue, Bouillon

Originally introduced in 1982 as a leather sofa for reception and meeting rooms, the Karimoku Re:issue by LICHEN ZE Sofa collection now finds new relevance in today’s homes. “When it comes to furniture design, you sometimes have to get as close to the origin as possible,” explain Ed Be and Jared Blake, co-founders of Lichen. “We always look back at past designs to see how we can reinterpret them for contemporary ways of living. Taking a sofa from the 1980s and making it feel timeless in 2025 shows how tradition can evolve into something new and relevant.” Lichen strips the piece back to its architectural essence, updating proportions and materials while reinstating the original differential feed stitching technique that creates the gathers along the seams of the sofa. The updated design, which includes the ZE Sofa (2- or 3-seater), ZE Lounge Chair, and ZE Ottoman, feels rooted in tradition yet refreshingly modern.

A black leather sofa sits beside a low table with magazines and a small lamp in a dimly lit modern living room

Photo: Masaaki Inoue, Bouillon

A person in a white shirt and dark pants sits on a green sofa in a room with wooden floors and shoji screen walls

Photo: Jared Blake, Lichen

Innovation doesn’t always mean reinventing the wheel – sometimes, it just means giving past objects a second look. With Lichen’s contemporary lens and Karimoku Furniture’s manufacturing expertise, old stories are retold in ways that feel both relevant and new.

A dark green, tufted sofa is placed on a wooden floor in front of shoji screen panels in a minimalist room

Photo: Jared Blake, Lichen

An orange upholstered armchair sits on a light floor next to a small round lamp and a potted plant; a text poster hangs on the wall behind it

Photo: Masaaki Inoue, Bouillon

Photo: Masaaki Inoue, Bouillon

Two people sit on a dark leather couch in a dimly lit room; one is reading a book while the other stands behind, leaning over to look at the pages

Jared Blake and Ed Be, co-founders of Lichen. \\\ Photo: Masaaki Inoue, Bouillon

To learn more about Lichen and Karimoku Furniture’s latest collaborations, visit karimoku.com.

As the Senior Contributing Editor, Vy Yang is obsessed with discovering ways to live well + with intention through design. She’s probably sharing what she finds over on Instagram stories. You can also find her at vytranyang.com.

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