Product Spotlight
Steel is the material of the workshop, the filing room and the server cabinet. Oak is the material of the dining table. Very little furniture tries to be both at once, because the join between them has to be resolved in the open.
The Enfold Sideboard, designed by Thomas Bentzen for Muuto, solves that join by refusing to make one. Powder-coated bent steel forms the case, and solid oak caps it top and bottom. The name describes the construction.
Steel Folded Around Oak
Muuto's own copy describes steel that "gently enfolds its top and bottom in solid oak", and the construction follows that literally. The body, the internal shelves and the doors are all powder-coated bent steel. The top and the base are solid oak, treated with a clear oil or a matte clear lacquer, depending on the finish.
What that does in a room is subtler than a two-tone paint job. The oak reads as a horizontal plane you can put things on, the steel reads as the volume underneath, and the eye separates them cleanly.
Underneath are adjustable feet, which matter more in older Canadian houses than the spec sheet suggests. A long case on an uneven floor either rocks or shows a widening gap along the baseboard, and the feet are what you level out of it.
The Ridged Door
The fronts are ridged steel, and they slide. Muuto calls the effect a "vibrantly modern expression", and the practical effect is this: a corrugated surface holds a shadow, so a wide run of door reads as texture across its whole width.
The sliding fronts settle a question that catches people out with credenzas. A hinged door needs clear floor in front of it, which a hallway or a spot behind a dining chair rarely has. Sliding fronts need none, so the piece can sit in a passage where there is no clear floor to swing into. The shelves inside are adjustable, and there are discreet cable outlets at the back.
Four Sizes, Three Working Heights
Tap a dot to open the piece. The 58" Enfold in oiled oak and deep red, along a dining wall at the height where serving happens.
The four sizes are not simply the same cabinet scaled up. They run across three heights: one low enough to sit under a television, one that clears a window sill, and two at close to counter height. Each is shown below in a different finish, though most finishes run across more than one size.
73"
Oiled Oak and Dusty Green
58"
Black and Anthracite Black
49"
Lacquered Oak and Grey
39"
Oiled Oak and Deep Red
The long low one runs 73"W x 17.7"D x 18.9"H, which is about sofa-seat height and the natural choice under a television or along a living room wall. The 49" is the middle ground at 24.6" high, the size that clears most window sills and still holds a full shelf.
The two tall pieces both stand 33.2" high, which is close to counter height and the reason they suit a dining room. The 58" gives a long serving surface, and the 39" takes the same height into a narrower wall. Every size shares the same 17.7" depth, so a run of them lines up flush.
The Media Console Question
A set-top box, a games console and a router are all black, and none of them is designed to be looked at. The Enfold puts them behind a solid front, and the cable outlets in the back let the wiring leave the case with the doors closed.
The low 73" size is the one for this. At 18.9" high it sits a turntable at the height of a coffee table rather than a counter, and the length leaves the platter clear of whatever else is on top. For a room where the television is the anchor, the same piece takes a soundbar on top and the boxes behind the doors.
Muuto names a media console, a hallway and a tall sideboard for storage as the three uses, which is a fair summary of where it ends up. The other pieces we carry for that job are in media storage.
Choosing a Finish
Five combinations, and they divide into two temperaments. Oiled oak with Deep Red or with Dusty Green are the warm ones, where the steel is a colour and the oak is the frame around it. Lacquered oak with Grey or with Dusty Green is cooler and quieter, closer to a piece of cabinetry than a piece of furniture.
The fifth, Black with Anthracite Black, drops the oak contrast entirely and turns the sideboard into a single dark volume. That is the one for a room already doing a lot, where a two-tone case would be one pattern too many.
Thomas Bentzen also designed Muuto's Around Coffee Table, which shares the same instinct for a raised edge and a frame that does visible work. We covered it in our guide to Scandinavian coffee tables.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who designed the Muuto Enfold Sideboard?
Thomas Bentzen, the Copenhagen designer behind Muuto's Around Coffee Table. Muuto does not publish a design year for the Enfold. The name comes from the construction: powder-coated bent steel enfolds the case, with solid oak capping the top and base.
What sizes does the Enfold Sideboard come in?
Four, all 17.7" deep. The long low size is 73"W x 18.9"H, the mid size 49"W x 24.6"H, and two taller pieces stand 33.2" high at 58"W and 39"W. The shared depth means several can run along one wall and line up flush.
Can the Enfold Sideboard be used as a media console?
Yes, and it is one of the three uses Muuto names for it. The shelves are adjustable and there are discreet cable outlets at the back, so wiring can leave the case with the doors closed. The 73" size at 18.9" high is the one most often used this way.
Do the doors slide or swing?
They slide. That matters in a hallway or behind a dining chair, where a hinged door needs clear floor in front of it to open. The fronts are ridged steel, which holds a shadow and keeps a wide run of door from reading as a flat panel.
How do you care for the oak and steel?
Muuto's guidance for the oak top is to ask a local hardware store about tabletop oils intended for indoor use. Treat the top as you would any solid wood surface and keep standing water off it. Wipe the steel with a soft damp cloth.
A sideboard tends to change jobs over its life: dining storage first, then media, then whatever the room becomes. The four sizes cover most of that, and the construction reads the same way in a formal dining room as it does in a den.
If you are deciding between sizes for a particular wall, our design studio sizes these to a wall every week.
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