Klafs – founded in 1928 – has been creating market-leading sauna spaces, to benefit the body and soul, across the globe ever since founder, Erich Klafs, made the company’s first sauna in 1952.

Its recent collaboration with design agency Studio F. A. Porsche has set new standards in international sauna design, resulting in the new S11 sauna that combines novel design with exceptional functionality.

Klafs’ vision for the collaboration was to create an iconically-designed classic that’s an oasis of deep relaxation and fascinates people with its unique aesthetics for decades to come.

The two industry leaders have combined their design and functionality expertise to recreate the traditional sauna experience by incorporating stylish design principles, using high-quality materials and craft, with the natural stimuli of warmth, light, colour and sound to create a holistic wellness experience that fits perfectly with the user’s need for deep relaxation.

Feel-good design
Using design techniques, which are said to be a first in sauna design, the aesthetic of the S11 sauna has been created by using rounded elements that create a flowing transition between the benches, walls and hidden technology.

The cabin has an open-plan aspect to allow natural light into the sauna. The inner walls that run along three sides feature ornamental, horizontal wooden slats, set at precise angles that give a ‘floating’ illusion to the cabin’s wooden structure. Semi-transparent walls are made from traditional Japanese Washi paper and a frameless glass front offers an elegant, spacious feel.

The illusion of free-floating benches inside the cabin – which are available straight or angled, in Hemlock or Obeche – combine with Klafs’ sound technology to convey a feeling of warmth, space and depth, while the colour gradients and light are softly refracted to give the cabin a magical glow.

“From every angle, the combination of carefully dimensioned wooden slats, the rounded wall edges and the washi paper invite you to let your gaze wander into the distance,” Klafs MD, Phillip Rock, explains. “This creates a calm and relaxing atmosphere, combined with a visual and acoustic experience, which allows users to completely withdraw into the world of wellbeing.”

Light and sound
Sauna users can create their own mood-enhancing experiences by choosing between automatic programmes [ceremonies], based on sensual aspects of nature.

These ceremonies include: Pulses of Nature (rays of sunlight shimmering through treetops); Magic Blue Sea (gentle waves moving rhythmically to the sound of the sea); Night and Light (gentle relaxation from the blue to the golden hour); or Relaxing Amber (a warm, pulsating, sensory journey) and Colourful Senses (an experience full of exotic colours).

Studio F. A. Porsche senior designer, Adam Bieta, says these “light and sound sequences allow the user to relax in their own dissolving sense of space”.