Best of Design 2026: Salone del Mobile and Milan Design Week Highlights and Key Moments

Explore our favourite collaborations, installations and design

trends from Milan Design Week and Salone del Mobile 2026 

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Milan did what Milan always does. It inspired and refused to let you leave. Salone del Mobile 2026 and Milan Design Week have come and gone, and Design Hunger was there for all of it.

Special collaborations caught our eyes, unexpected pairings that reminded us how powerful design becomes when creative minds meet.

Here are the moments we are still thinking about from Milan 2026.

Design Crushes from Salone del Mobile 2026

Design Crush No.1: House of Capricorn

Making its Salone debut, House of Capricorn tapped into one of the week’s key directions: slow, culturally rooted design.

Presented as a conceptual home centred on craftsmanship. Portuguese at its core, reimagined through a contemporary, graphic lens.

Design Crush No.2: Baccarat × Emmanuelle Luciani

Emmanuelle Luciani collaborated with Baccarat on Crystal Crypt, a multi-sensory project blending film, sound, scenography and choreography.

Set in a fictional future, the work reimagined crystal as a rare, almost mythical craft, placing Baccarat’s heritage within a narrative that feels both cinematic and otherworldly.

Design Crush No.3: Dooor × Calvi Brambilla

Dooor presented a dynamic installation designed by Calvi Brambilla.

A space of all-white, abstract forms was continuously reshaped by bright green vinyl partitions, turning movement into architecture, and flexibility into the core of the design.

Design Crush No.4: TERRE and GRID by Tubes

Tubes reimagined design heating through two new radiators.

GRID, by Elisa Ossino Studio, transforms the radiator into a slim, geometric surface with integrated shelves and hooks, functional and graphic at once.

TERRE, by Sebastian Herkner, introduces terracotta, using Tuscan clay to create a more elemental, material-led object.

Design Crush No.5: Bitossi Ceramiche, New Collections 

Bitossi Ceramiche presented a series of new collections that continue its dialogue between heritage and contemporary design.

Among them, Dittico by Martino Gamper introduces a new vase series defined by sculptural simplicity. Onda II by Muller Van Severen evolves through inversion — shifting the balance and perception of form — while The Shapes of Resistance II by Rooms Studio explores subtle changes in colour and texture.

Design Crush No.6: Scarabeo Ceramiche

Scarabeo Ceramiche presented its latest bathroom collections. From minimal shapes to more expressive finishes, the pieces highlight a strong focus on material, colour and everyday function, bringing a more design-led approach to bathroom spaces.

Design Crushes from Milan Design Week 2026

Beyond the fairgrounds, the city also became an exhibition. These are our favourite moments.

Design Crush No.1: Longchamp × Patrick Jouin

Longchamp released a new collaboration with Patrick Jouin, extending the maison into furniture and objects. The collection blends signature greens, leather and material-driven design into a more contemporary expression of the brand.

Design Crush No.2: H&M HOME × Kelly Wearstler

Inside Palazzo Acerbi, H&M Home x Kelly Wearstler unveiled a collection that marks a clear shift for the brand.

Furniture and objects in wood, metal, marble, ceramics and textiles move beyond accessories, with bespoke pieces shown alongside previews launching in September.

Design Crush No.3: ORA Home

Launched during Milan Design Week 2026, ORA Home introduced a new perspective on contemporary furniture.

Based in Lisbon and produced in Northern Portugal, the brand focuses on longevity, material honesty and craftsmanship, with pieces that feel understated, refined and built to last.

Branding of Ora Home done by Studio Unika, also based in Lisbon. 

Design Crush No.4: Aesop, The Factory of Light

Aesop transformed Chiesa del Carmine into The Factory of Light, an installation exploring light through craft and process.

The space unfolded as a sensory journey, culminating in the debut of the Aposē lamp, a handcrafted, limited-edition piece shaped by the same attention to detail that defines the brand.

Design Crush No.5: Fermob at Le Design Défilé

Fermob stepped into a more immersive design language at Le Design Défilé.

Part of the French Living in Motion collective, the exhibition — conceived by Jakob+MacFarlane — brought together 53 French creations in a scenographed journey of light, movement and sound.

Design Crush No.6: AMORAW × American Vintage

American Vintage partnered with AMORAW, the studio of Milan-based artist Linda Calugi.

Working with raw stoneware, Calugi shapes organic, instinctive forms, from tableware to sculptural pieces, rooted in nature and material exploration. A quieter collaboration, focused on process, texture and craft.

Design Crush No.7: Hermès Home Collection

Hermès presented a structured installation designed by Charlotte Macaux Perelman and Alexis Fabry. Built around a grid of sculptural columns, the space guided visitors through the collection with a focus on material and craft.

Among the highlights, the Stadium d’Hermès table by Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby stood out for its fluid, figure-of-eight form in marble marquetry.

Design Crush No.8: Bottega Veneta × Kwangho Lee

For its third collaboration with Korean artist Kwangho Lee, Bottega Veneta presented Lightful, an installation suspended within its Via Sant’Andrea store.

Sculptural light pieces, crafted in deep black and green tones selected by Creative Director Louise Trotter, explore weaving through a more conceptual lens. The result feels both material and immersive. 

Design Crush No.9: RIPA, Dear Elvira & Fortunato

RIPA presented Dear Elvira & Fortunato, designed by Roberto Cicchinè, a reinterpretation of the chair and table.

Rooted in Italian tradition, the pieces are reduced to essential forms and updated through aluminium, marble and natural fibres. Clean, balanced and quietly contemporary.

We loved it, a week full of ideas, energy and so much creativity. Thank you for having us, Milano. Were you there? Did you have a favourite moment?

One thing we know for sure is… We’re already excited for next year!

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If you enjoyed this article, you should check out some our interviews: Longchamp x Patrick Jouin and H&M Home x Kelly Wearstler at Milan Design Week 2026