FURNITURE

Recognizing the need, Charles Eames said, is the primary condition for design. Early in their careers together, Charles and Ray identified the need for affordable, yet high-quality furniture for the average consumer -- furniture that could serve a variety of uses. For forty years the Eameses experimented with ways to meet this challenge, designing flexibility into their compact storage units and collapsible sofas for the home; seating for stadiums, airports, and schools; and chairs for virtually anywhere. Their chairs were designed for Herman Miller in four materials -- molded plywood, fiberglass-reinforced plastic, bent and welded wire mesh, and cast aluminum. The conceptual backbone of this diverse work was the search for seat and back forms that comfortably support the human body, using three dimensionally shaped surfaces or flexible materials instead of cushioned upholstery. An ethos of functionalism informed all of their furniture designs. "What works is better than what looks good," Ray said. "The looks good can change, but what works, works."

The Eameses' molded-plywood chair was their first attempt to create a single shell that would be comfortable without padding and could be quickly mass-produced. Throughout the early 1940s, the Eameses and their colleagues experimented with this concept. Discovering that plywood did not withstand the stresses produced at the intersection of the chair's seat and back, they abandoned the single-shell idea in favor of a two-piece chair with separate molded-plywood panels for the back and seat. The chairs -- plus molded-plywood tables and wall screens -- were unveiled to the public in 1946. Variations of these designs are still in production.

This device used molds and weights to stamp metal chair shells. The expensive metal-stamped chair was replaced by a low -cost fiberglass reinforced plastic chair.

La Chaise was created for the 1948 "International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design." The name "La Chaise" was both a reference to sculptor Gaston Lachaise and a pun on his name. Vitra AG has produced the chair since 1990.

The Eameses' fiberglass chair solved the problem of how to make a seat out of a single body-fitting shell. The progressive quality and moldability of plastic made it even more alluring to the Eameses than plywood or stamped metal. Fiberglass had been used during the war by Zenith Plastics to reinforce plastic on airplane radar domes. Working together, Zenith and the Eameses re-conceptualized the use of the material, creating one of the first one-piece plastic chairs with an exposed rather than an upholstered surface. Zenith began mass-producing fiberglass armchairs in 1950 for the Herman Miller Furniture Company (today Herman Miller, Inc.). The chairs have only recently gone out of production.

Inspired by trays, dress forms, baskets, and animal traps, the Eames Office investigated bent and welded wire mesh as the basis for furniture designs. The wire-mesh chair, like the fiberglass chair, was a uni-shell design. The shell could be adapted to various base configurations and upholstery types. Ingenious techniques were developed to mass-produce suitable upholstery, and special molds were created as forms over which to weld the wire shells. The office adapted a resistance-welding technique used for making drawers and developed an innovative method for reinforcing the shell's rim with a double band of wire. The wire chairs are still in production.

Accent Tables - One Fine Decorative Solution

You decided that it's time you redecorate your home, but you realize that everything you have in place is looking pretty good. However, you do notice that there are some empty spots here and there that are really taking away from the rest of the space. This is actually not a big deal to correct and all you need to do is purchase a few accent tables for your living space.

That's right, accent tables are a great way to complete the look of any room in your home. How so, the reason being is that they are extremely appealing to the eye and have a lovely decorative quality to them, courtesy of their lovely styling and designs.

For example, you can get one that features an antique style with a looping scrolling metal base supporting a wood table top that features a lipped apron. Both are stained a lovely, rich chocolate color and the table top might even have a decorative pattern on it. Or, you can get one that has a wood pedestal base that supports a clover leaf table top with the whole thing being finished in a bold cherry color with the table top having highlighted gold edging.

These are just a few of the decorative accent tables that are available as well because there are a slew more to choose from. So many that it would be foolish to go into all of them, but one thing to keep in mind is that any selection is possible. Like, if you're into gold, you can get a golf themed one or if you like sailing, there are those that feature a sailing theme. Basically, the sky is the limit.

In addition to being pleasing to the eye, accent tables also have a practical side to them because remember, they are a table. So, they offer you a great spot to set down family photos, vases filled with flowers, and anything else you feel like putting on display or setting down. They can also have other features too. For example, some will come with curios built right into them so you can easily put on display any special keepsakes that you might have. There are others that have drawers built right into them and some of them will come with shelves, which is great if you need some space to store different items.

For a great way to check out all the possible accent tables that you could purchase for your space, the thing to do is to hit the Internet for some online shopping. It's fast and convenient since you don't even have to leave your home to do it. And, what's even better than that is what you purchase will be shipped right to you, so you don't have to worry about how you are going to get it from here to there.

In the end, if you have a few empty spots throughout your home, just turn to decorative accents tables to fill them up. There are many to choose from, making it easy to find the exact one that's right for you and the décor of your space.

Lounge, Coffee & Outdoor Party In The Comfort Of Bean Bags

Bean bag chairs are meant for outdoor fun as well as indoor entertainment and parties. Owing to their light weight and comfort, more and more people are adopting the usage of bean bags. Bean bags have been capturing the future of furniture, be it any place in the world. They have been put to both indoor and outdoor use because of their bold and smugger look and the convenience and comfort.

Sun Lounge Bean bag Chair:

These are the bean bags meant for outdoor usage. Generally used along the beach side and for camping purposes, sun lounge bean bag chairs are easy to carry. They can be folded and back packed. These are slightly different from love sac . Another special feature of this lounge bag is that it has various pockets and openings to facilitate storage of necessary accessories and materials. This sun lounge bag can be converted into a party bag or a beach bag at any point in time.

Backyard Usage:

A lounge bean bag or a sun bath bean bag chair can be comfortably and convenient placed outside your house in your courtyard. If you are looking at arranging an outdoor party in your courtyard or compound, you need not worry about getting extra chairs and stuff, as your internal bean bags can be safely used for providing comfort to your guests. Apart from this, the usage of bean bags, will definitely improve your image and position in the mind of your guest and relatives as it provides a more royal look to entire set up.

Coffee Parties with Bean Bags:

What can be more relaxing and great than meeting your friends over coffee and gossiping and chit-chatting while resting at your own lounge bean bag. Stretching out at your lounge bean bag will give you the utmost comfort of the world. Especially, if the coffee with your friends is getting dull day by day, and if you look forward to make it interesting, you need to provide comfort to your coffee friends. This comfort can be defined only by lounge bean bags. They help to add color to the entire setting and make conversations interesting.

Thus, apart from the traditional uses, more funky and colourful uses of bean bags are also possible. It entirely depends upon your own creativity that you put it into what kind of uses. A little research over the internet and some visits to the furniture stores will help you to skim through the various options and types available for usage.