Design Icon: The Eames Molded Plastic Armchair Illustration by Libby VanderPloeg. Earlier this week, we kicked off our new Flower Glossary, a weekly series that showcases specific flowers and all of the essential facts about them. Today, we are launching another series, much in the same “baseball card” vein: Design Icon. Many times a week, we find ourselves receiving comments and e-mails from readers asking us to identify such-and-such a product, and very often, the product in question is none other than an Eames Armchair. Or a Saarinen Tulip Table. Or an Alvar Aalto vase. Although these classic objects are as ubiquitous as they are beautiful, it is often difficult to ascribe a title or a maker to them. You might, for example, call a George Nelson design “that clock with all the balls on it.” (Don’t worry—I am absolutely guilty of this, too.) To celebrate some of history’s most iconic and enduring design objects (and to give you the tools to identify them), we have decided to begin this series.
Each week, you will be treated to a lovely illustrated image of an iconic design (courtesy of the talented Libby VanderPloeg) and all of its essential “tombstone” information, from its official name to facts about its materials and construction. So, without further ado, here is the first installment of our Design Icons series—a true classic that never gets old: Charles and Ray Eames’ Molded Plastic Armchair. – – – – – – – – – – – Design: Eames Molded Plastic Armchair Designers: Charles Eames (1907-1978) and Ray Eames (1912-1988) Materials & Construction: Originally produced using molded fiber glass. You can usually identify this material from its textured, crosshatch-like appearance. In 1989, in response to Ray Eames’ insistence that the non-recyclable fiberglass was detrimental to the environment, Herman Miller began producing the chairs in recyclable polypropylene. In 2013, however, it was announced that Herman Miller would again be producing the iconic chairs in fiberglass, albeit a more sustainable version that was less hazardous to the environment.
The chairs are available in both armchair and dining chair versions. They are able to be paired with numerous interchangeable bases, among which include wooden dowels (depicted above), metal “H” bases, metal “Eiffel Tower” bases, and a stackable version. Fun Fact: Although today, the designs of Charles and Ray Eames have achieved “legend” status and are oftentimes sold at luxury prices, many of their works (the molded plastic armchair included) were originally developed as low-cost, mass-production solutions. In fact, the Eames’ molded plastic chairs, constructed from easily manufactured and reproduced materials, were originally conceived as an entry for MoMA’s 1947 International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design. Purchase: Design Within Reach, $419 More Information: “Molded Plastic Chairs” from the official Eames Office website Two weeks, two reviews from yours truly. I tried something a little different with this week’s review.
I figured playing with light would work well with all-white, minimal Herman Miller Eames Molded Plastic Chair. The curvy, white edges worked well with highlights and shadows, allowing for a product that could be defined by light rather than on its own accord. It was a fun experiment to try, and I think it turned out alright. Aside from that, the Herman Miller Eames Molded Plastic Chair is our go-to chair when our nieces and nephews come over. If it wasn’t for the Eames, we’d have stains on our dining room chairs. We’ll likely pick up another couple of these when our family grows. Check out the review on Tools & Toys when you have a couple minutes.Almost eight months ago we had decided to build a new home. I really wanted a set of Eames shell chairs and a Eero Saarinen dining table, with that idea the hunt began. When I got thinking about the total price I cringed a little so I resorted to a Burke table. My area does not really offer the opportunity to grab these very cheap.
eBay and Etsy were the places I found my shells. Some were in great shape and as you can see the two blue ones were pretty bad. With out reinventing the wheel I read up on the restoration processes via Chairfag. I pretty much followed most of the steps but added a few of my own. Make the jump to read the steps I took and see the end results. These two blue shells were in pretty bad shape. They were pretty dirty and very faded. First step was to remove the old shock mounts. Some of the mounts were in OK shape but I decided if I was going to replace some, I would replace them all. A tip here would be NOT to pry up on the mount once you have the tool under the mount. If you pry up you could remove more fiberglass than you want to. The white shell was a perfect example, the old glue really held on to the fibers. Just continue to tap around the mount until you are all the way through. Once you have removed the mounts, you have to now sand the remaining glue from the shell. I used a hand held sander and some medium grit sandpaper.
While I sanded, I kept the area wet using a spray bottle and just a little dish soap. Always use something to cover your mouth and nose, You do not want to be breathing dust and fiberglass. After the glue was removed I then used a finer grit to finish up the area. Next I sprayed down the shells to get rid of any dust that had been left behind. I let them air dry for a day before the next step. Finding replacement shock mounts was easy. I just went back to Special K Products. I used their shock mounts for a couple of DCM chairs that I restored. You can also get the two part epoxy from them. I have to say that they worked perfectly, two for two from these guys! To mark placement of the shock mounts, I attached the mounts to the base and then placed the base on the flat spots where the mounts are supposed to go. I then used a pencil and traced the mounts leaving an exact guide were to apply the epoxy and the mount. I mixed the two part epoxy, which is quick set and placed just enough so when the mount is pressed to the shell a little presses out around the edges of the mount.
After you have set the base on the shell and pressed, you will need to hold it in place for a few minutes until the epoxy is firm enough to unscrew the bolts and remove the base. You could also just glue these on one by one now that you have the exact location. Zach, from chairfag has a better method but I did not have the old base part that he used. Now that all of the mounts were on, the chairs needed to be cleaned and sanded. I read somewhere that OxiClean worked good on embedded dirt. I found a gel spray from OxiClean, I first prayed down the chair and then sprayed the chair with the gel and let it sit for a few minutes. I then used a fine sanding block and started to work the gel into the chair. I have to say that the combination of sanding and the OxiClean gel worked amazing, it really cleaned up the two blue chairs quite nice. On the other shells I just used a scrub sponge. After I was satisfied I rinsed them off really well and let them air dry for a couple of days. Make sure you wear a mask and keep the area wet during this process.
The next step is applying the Penetrol and in the UK it is called Owatrol. It was pretty easy to put on. Wear gloves and use a lint free rag. Soak the rag and apply it to the shell. Pay attention to the surface and whether you are putting too much on, you will be able to see pooling or over glossy areas. I used a dabbing/rubbing technique for the application. Apply to the backside then screw the base on, next apply to the front side. I did not apply it to the white shell as it may turn yellow over time. I actually ended up putting 3 coats on the blue shells, one heavy coat and two lighter coats to even out the shine. This is an oil based product so it will need a few days to cure before you go sitting on them. The next challenge was to find some basses. My first love is the walnut dowel base but I had mentally written these off due to cost. I did a little research and came across a company called Modern Conscience. They offer the whole range of reproduction basses at some pretty good prices.