Milan 2014: Italian manufacturer Zanotta has launched two lightweight and versatile tables by Amsterdam designer Frank Rettenbacher (+ slideshow).

Austrian-born Frank Rettenbacher designed the Mina and Emil tables with slender surfaces and legs braced with thin steel wires that loop around each other to form a sturdy frame.

Mina is intended as an impromptu work surface, while the smaller Emil is designed to stand next to a sofa or bed. "My idea was to create a family of tables for lightweight living," said Rettenbacher. "Their simple and stable wire-frame construction uses minimal material and gives the products their slender identity."

Rettenbacher was intent on making the elements of the tables as thin as possible. "Throughout the project I have pushed for the slimmest possible dimensions," he revealed. "The tabletops are only three-millimetres thick and appear to float upon their supporting wire bases."

The linear frame and top of both tables come in black or white glossy lacquered steel, while Emil is also available in "glam finishes": burgundy, or a pink top on a white frame.

"While serving as practical tables, Mina and Emil also work as 'shelves on legs' for displaying personal objects," said Rettenbacher. "I have given the surfaces a high-gloss lacquered finish to reflect those little things that make you feel at home."

The tables were presented on Zanotta's stand at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan last month.