Design

Your Meditation Station: The Sedeo Stool

Meditation is pretty hard. Okay, okay, maybe not the mediation itself; once you’re sitting down and closing your eyes, trying to use whatever technique you’ve been taught, you’re doing it. Meditating isn’t about doing it right, it’s about trying to do something and accepting that sometimes you’ll go deeper than other times. What makes meditation really hard is the other stuff: making time, having space of your own, and most important (for me), being comfortable.

A lot of research has been done on the effects of meditation on anxiety, stress and depression. Everyone has their own experience with how these benefits manifest but, for me, meditation allows me to simply observe the world more, rather than getting wrapped up stuff that doesn’t matter. Perspective is key, especially during those long Scandinavian winters.

My primary problem with meditation has always been the issue of comfort. If I’m too comfortable, I fall asleep. In minutes. On the other end of the spectrum, if I’m uncomfortable I struggle to go deeper into the mediation. During a ten day silent retreat of Vipassana mediation, the hardest part wasn’t keeping my mouth shut, it was actually finding comfort in the meditation itself. It’s a very arduous process to just observe the sensation of your legs feeling like they’re about to fall off, and trying to not to laugh every time you fall over when you stand up.

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Sedeo Stool

 

So when I discovered the Sedeo stool, I was excited. I wish I had it years ago when I began meditating. When you begin to practice, it’s important to have a good foundation. Similar to how it’s easier to learn guitar when the instrument is in tune, or to learn wood carving when your tools are properly sharpened.

The Sedeo stool is simple; a small, low wooden bench that creates a seat while your knees are bent and legs are slipped under the seat plank. It’s so well-designed that you find yourself surprised by the way your body fits into and around it. Not only does it sit in the happy middle of comfort and support, it’s also really great for posture. As it strengthens your posture, you become less aware of having to sit up straight, leading to deeper meditation over time.

 

Sedeo Meditation Chair in Case
Cecilie on Sedeo Chair

 

Designed by Joshua Morrison and Petter Thörne at Copenhagen-based design firm Fundament, the Sedeo chair is foldable, portable, sleek and sustainably-made. The stool is made of FSC certified oak from Frankfurt, Germany, and hand crafted by furniture makers in Copenhagen. In fact, the stool and carrying case are produced by a social enterprise in Copenhagen Denmark called HKI, which trains people with minor disabilities to be expert cabinet makers and tailors. So not only is it beautifully designed, there’s a lot of good karma in this stool.

Though it is designed to fit almost all sizes, it is important to note that not everyone is able to use the stool. Most sit on it and think: bliss! Others, not so much. But if you’re in the majority that find this stool comfortable, you’ll find that it will help your ability to meditate by creating a clean and comfortable physical slate, so that you can clear your mind. And, as they say, the rest will follow.

 

 

You can buy the chair here.

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Freya McOmish

Freya McOmish is a co-founder and Creative Director at Scandinavia Standard. Half Danish, half Australian. Background in law, film and philosophy.