Here's a peek at some of the year's very first new furnishings and prototypes, from a wardrobe that looks like wall art to an armchair with an endless train of footstools. While Milan's annual Salone del Mobile is undeniably still global furnishings event, it's no secret that many of the year's launches first break onto the scene at IMM Cologne, Europe's second largest fair, annually held in Cologne, Germany. From January 18-24, some 1,200 companies from 50 countries showcased their wares at the Cologne exhibition center, Koelnmesse, and Interior Design was live on the scene. Here's a peek at the hottest of the year's first new offerings, from a wardrobe that looks like wall art to an armchair with a train of footstools, to a lamp tapping an ancient tradition for bending bamboo, and more.

1. Slot Wardrobe from Schoenbuch
So simple, yet so elegant, wall-mounted wardrobe Slot by Sebastian Herkner can easily be mistaken for wall art. Polished chrome rods are paired with customizable panels, offered in mirror, glass, or matt- and high-gloss paint, to slip into a wide range of interiors.

2. Bright Grid Textile by Maharam
One of three new buttoned up geometric textiles following a bold color theme, cotton-polyester-nylon blend Bright Grid by Scholten & Baijings in collaboration with Maharam comes in five colorways, including a seriously flamboyant florescent-green over a warm mustard.

3. Kayoubi Installation by Moritz Waldemeyer
With perforated fabric artfully hung to form a tent housing the same fabric layered, chandelier-like, over LEDs, London-based German designer Moritz Waldemeyer made waves at an off-site exhibition presented by DAMN magazine. Entitled "Kayoubi," which means 'Tuesday' or 'fire day' in Japanese, the installation flickered with a fire-like light and offered innovative uses for Japanese manufacturer Alcantara's trademark highly durable polyester-polyurethane-blend covering material, also called Alcantara.

4. Sound Lounger for danishdesignMAKERS
Integrated speakers cocoon the head from the winged back of the Sound Lounger by Thomas E. Alken. Included in an exhibition by design collective danishdesignMAKERS, the lounger is made to order, with customizable size, materials, upholstery, and sound system.

5. Slice Armchair from Ligne Roset
With the repeated addition of a footstool, a train of seating can stretch infinitely for the wood and foam Slice armchair by Pierre Charpin, a reissue of a 1998 limited-edition produced by Cinova. A removable wool cover ensures color options are just as endless.

6. 624 Bench and 924 Table from Rolf Benz
Norbert and Silja Beck's sophisticated and modern take on the picnic table began with the 924 wood table launched in 2015. A new finish, walnut old grey, and bench seating now joins the line. With a solid wood frame, the 624 bench can be upholstered in leather or fabric.

7. Moolin Lamp from Lasfera
Bamboo poles form the base and shade of designer Henri Garbers' handcrafted Moolin standing lamp, which taps an ancient bamboo-bending tradition employed in China. Available in four sizes, the lamp is formed from oiled instead of chemically treated bamboo, cultivated for its thickness in a region near Shenzhen, China.

8. Easel Table from Driade
The simplicity of a painter's work station is the muse for the Easel table by Ludovica+Roberto Palomba. Available in three lengths and two widths, the table has a thick top of transparent tempered glass. Virtually invisible, the clear top turns the eye to the table's elegant easellike base, actually two wood structures available in solid canaletto walnut or ebonized ash.

9. Home Accessories from Vitra
To add to its growing line of home accessories, Vitra is delving into a rich iconic past. Two of the new items joining the Home Complements Collection are by American designer Alexander Girard—Mother Fish and Child, a pair of wooden fish the designer created for his own home in 1952, and Graphic Wall Panels, the designer's take on the tree of life, unveiled in an exhibition in 1968.

10. Ellipse Mirror from Red Edition
A clever take on the circular wall mirror, the Eclipse mirror finds a permanent home for a rare natural phenomenon. With grey tinted mirror 31.5 inches in diameter positioned just shy of a brass frame, the sun and moon nearly align with every daily mirror check.

11. Fishnet Chair from Walter Knoll
A Turkish classic reclaims the spotlight with the Fishnet chair by Sadi & Neptun Ozis. In 1959, a post-war lack of materials made Sadi Ozis weave fishnet between the chair's bent tubular steel frame. The 2016 version is upholstered, and one of three iconic furnishings from 1950s and 1960s Turkey that Walter Knoll is reissuing.

12. Attitude Sofa from Brühl
Multifunction earns an A+ with the Attitude sofa by Kati Meyer-Brühl. Back cushions in contrasting color, cross-stitching, button tacking, and headrest are all options for the rounded two-seater, which is also upholstered in a removable cover of leather or fabric and available in two degrees of firmness.

13. Jason Sofabed from Softline
A high-backed sofa with rounded edges, Jason by Busk+Hertzog folds down in a snap for both functional and fashionable sleep arrangements for the occasional houseguest.

14. Cocoon Rug from Danskina
Soft tufts rise in irregular clusters within a wide frame border to create the handwoven Cocoon, a wool-cotton blend rug by Hella Jongerius launched as part of the Cross collection. The rug's loose knots offer both a visual and tactile experience—without sacrificing durability.

15. Marius sideboard from Hartô Design
Pierre-Francois Dubois channeled the hull of a ship for Marius, an MDF and oak veneer sideboard with solid oak legs. Doors, formed by slats of wood laid in opposing directions to recall sails, are offered in three colors—natural oak, light grey, and a statement petrol blue.

 *This article was published on interiordesign.net.