Overlapping "petals" surround Mario Alessiani's Bloemi lamp
Padded panels based on tulip petals form a shade for this lamp created by Italian designer Mario Alessiani for furniture brand Formabilio.
![Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/04/Bloemi-lamps-by-Mario-Alessiani-emulate-tulip-petals-_dezeen_sq.gif)
Designed by Mario Alessiani for Italian company Formabilio, the Bloemi lamp is named after the Dutch word "bloem" meaning "flower".
![Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/04/Bloemi-lamps-by-Mario-Alessiani-emulate-tulip-petals-_dezeen_16.jpg)
"Iconographically inspired by tulips, the slight roundness of the petals is reproduced through the padding of the panels of the lampshade, slightly overlapped with each another," said Alessiani.
![Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/04/Bloemi-lamps-by-Mario-Alessiani-emulate-tulip-petals-_dezeen_9.jpg)
The rounded panels that make up the shade are formed around sections of MDF, which are padded in polyurethane foam then covered in a cotton and acrylic-blend recycled fabric.
"The materials were chosen to donate a natural aspect to the object," Alessiani told Dezeen.
![Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/04/Bloemi-lamps-by-Mario-Alessiani-emulate-tulip-petals-_dezeen_20.jpg)
Six petals are fixed to a hexagonal wooden structure, which also holds the bulb in the centre.
Arranged in a ring like a flower head, the sections overlap so they each rest behind the one before and hide the wooden frame from view.
![Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/04/Bloemi-lamps-by-Mario-Alessiani-emulate-tulip-petals-_dezeen_18.jpg)
The lamps hang from the ceiling on a thin wire and the electrical cord meanders up to the ceiling rose.
The pieces are handmade in Italy, as are all of Formabilio's products.