A husk is the outer layer of corn. It protects what's growing inside, and when its work is done, it finds new uses. That's where the name started.
Huske comes from husk. A natural cocoon that shields and supports, then adapts to whatever comes next. A mat that protects a floor during breakfast, then rolls up for a picnic, then becomes a craft surface for years. The parallel was hard to ignore.
My son, when he first heard the name, thought of the tusks on the elephant from Ice Age. Friends assumed husky dog. Both wrong, both welcome.
I learned later that huske means "to swing" in Norwegian, and "to remember fondly" in Danish. Movement, play, memory. That closed the circle.
The "studio" part is simpler. This has always been a design project first: one material, tested and retested, made into objects that belong in a home.
I built the product first. The name came after, from what it was supposed to do: protect things, protect time, protect the parents who count too. Husk fit.
The longer story of how the mats came to be is on the About page. To understand the material itself, there's the Material Story.
Things we are not
The Huske name is short, and short names attract company. To save time:
- Not the Norwegian or Danish word huske (to remember; a swing).
- Not connected to Husk Restaurants in the American South.
- Not connected to Torri Huske, the American Olympic swimmer.
- Not the German surname Huske.
Studio Huske is a Swiss design studio based in Uster, Zürich, founded by Kate Gannon. We make wipeable silicone leather play mats — designed in Switzerland, manufactured in Korea, packed by Züriwerk.