Press Release
Duali Studio Receives the Bronze A' Design Award for Clay and Sway by Duali Mug in Bakeware, Tableware, Drinkware and Cookware Design
The international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition recognizes Duali Studio for bakeware, tableware, drinkware and cookware design
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 23, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the Bronze A' Design Award in the Bakeware, Tableware, Drinkware and Cookware Design category for Clay and Sway by Duali Mug by Duali Studio. The award was conferred within the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who evaluated anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
The Bronze A' Design Award Explained
The Bronze A' Design Award is given to outstanding designs that showcase a high degree of creativity and practicality. It recognizes the dedication and skill of designers who produce work that stands out for its thoughtful development and innovative use of materials and technology. These designs are acknowledged for their professional execution and potential to influence industry standards positively. Winning this award highlights the designer's ability to blend form and function effectively, offering solutions that enhance people's lives and wellbeing.
More About Clay and Sway by Duali Mug
Duali's concept with the Clay and Sway mug was to create a dialogue between two opposing yet harmonious elements, the cool, rigid permanence of porcelain (clay) with soft, dynamic movement of tassels (sway). The challenge was to design an object that would not just sit on the table but live on it. An exploration of how a static object can be imbued with a sense of life. The hand splattered ink pattern on the mug ensures no two mugs are ever identical. The tassels are then hand-tied into the drilled apertures to ensure a clean and honest connection between the two materials.
Award Record
Duali Studio is a winner of 1 A' Design Award, including this recognition.
About the A' Bakeware, Tableware, Drinkware and Cookware Design Award
The A' Kitchenware Design Award is an international design competition recognizing good kitchenware designs by best kitchenware brands and designers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to kitchenware designers, product designers, industrial design studios and kitchenware brands from all countries. Typical entries include pots, pans, cutlery, plates, bowls and glasses. The awarded kitchenware designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/kitchenware
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://dezigners.org/176424
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/176424
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!176424
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/373523
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://duali.co
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Clay and Sway by Duali Mug
- Function
- Mug
- Category
- Bakeware, Tableware, Drinkware and Cookware Design
- Discipline
- Industrial Design
- Industry
- Furniture & Home and Food & Hospitality
- Colors
- Lavender, Silver, Dark Gray, Light Gray and Gray
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Duali Studio
- Country
- India
- Recognition
- Bronze A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #176424
Credits
- Team
- Nishi Patel, Devika Mistry and Preeti Nag
- Image Credits
- All the images, videos and the sound belongs to our in-house Duali Studio team.
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Clay and Sway mug is a minimalist porcelain canvas, made dramatic with spontaneous, hand splattered ink pattern which ensures no two mugs are ever identical. The half-moon handle has textile tassels which are not merely glued on. The tassels are meticulously threaded and hand-tied into the precision-drilled apertures which are integrated directly into the handle during its formation. This is a first-of-its kind mug which fuses porcelain and textile into a functional coffee mug.
- Inspiration
- Why must our most-used daily objects be purely utilitarian? Why can’t they possess the sensory richness, the engagement and personality we expect from couture fashion? We envisioned an object that would not just sit on a table, but live on it. The concept was to create a dialogue between two opposing elements, the cool and rigid permanence of porcelain(clay) and the soft, dynamic movement of textiles(sway). An exploration of how a static object can be imbued with a sense of life.
- Research
- Our research objective was to understand technical feasibility, see the market uniqueness, check durability and to understand the user experience. Over eight months, we subjected over 20 different types of textile threads to a series of aging tests. The primary test involved repeated washing cycles in a standard washing machine for the colour bleed, shape deformation and drying time. We used 3D modelling software for rapid prototyping of handle ergonomics to understand weight and balance. The handle’s specific curvature and the tassel’s weight were meticulously calculated and prototyped using 3D modelling to ensure the perfect balance, preventing any tipping or strain on the wrist.
- Challenge
- Finding the right textile for the mug that is so functional in use was one of the hardest challenge. Our objective was to identify a material with three key performance attributes - exceptional colorfastness, rapid drying capabilities, and shape retention. After subjecting a wide range of textiles to rigorous and repeated wash cycles, we successfully finalized a specialized thread that meets these demanding criteria, ensuring both the beauty and longevity of the final product.
- Realization and Technology
- Our product is entirely handmade from fine porcelain. Each mug is individually hand splattered with glaze which ensures no two mugs are ever identical. Each mug body is individually slip-cast, followed by the manual attachment of its handle. We then drill the handle's apertures before the piece undergoes a patient, multi-day air-drying process. The final assembly is an entirely manual stage: skilled artisans, who specialise in intricate thread work, personally tie every tassel to the cured porcelain, ensuring each mug meets our standards of craftsmanship.
- Operation and Interaction
- The function of a mug is to hold a beverage. We transformed its true function from a mundane moment to a sensory experience. The entirely non-adhesive method of attaching the tassels ensures a clean, secure and honest connection between the two materials - porcelain and textile.
- Project Duration and Location
- The ideation of the mug started in July 2024 and the mug was launched in June 2025. The entire mug is handmade in our Duali Studio in India and the textile artisans who specialise in thread work have finished the tassel work in their workshop. Our production is a multi-stage process where semi-finished porcelain bodies are transported to be paired with tassels. They are then packaged back in the studio and are ready for dispatch.
- Specifications
- The product dimensions with the handle are 292mm x 76mm x 89mm. We used 3D modelling software for prototyping of handle ergonomics and traditional clay modelling to understand weight and balance. The handle’s specific curvature and the tassel’s weight were meticulously calculated and prototyped using 3D modelling to ensure the perfect balance, preventing any tipping or strain on the wrist. Each tassel is hand-tied and cut to precision to maintain the length with the mug body.
- Keywords
- clay and sway, coffeemugcouture, mug with charms, tassels mug, coffee mug with charms
