Cloud Lounge
Lounge Chair + Ottoman
This is a project from my college days that holds a special place in my heart, which is why it remains in my portfolio after all of these years. The assignment was simple; Design a chair. No restrictions. Being able to do something so open-ended was a little intimidating at first, but once I got going, I was on a roll.
ROLE
Industrial Design
Research
Prototyping
PLATFORMS
SolidWorks
Keyshot
The DAAP Shop
Designing a chair with no restrictions...
Where do I start?
Now that I've seen 1000 chairs,
what else inspires me?
Now let's sketch...... a lot!
Now let's narrow it down and refine!
After making hundreds of sketches, it was finally time to narrow things down to a final direction. The lounge chair with the ottoman was locked in a this point, and now I wanted to make two pieces that flowed together perfectly. I started with scale models and eventually settled on a final direction. I then refined the design and moved on to full-scale models to check proportions and whether or not you could sit on it (You can).
Now it came time to make the final full-scale model. This was something I planned on keeping in my house forever, so I wanted to do the best job possible. I started by heat bending and welding the metal bars for the legs, which I later got powder coated. Then, I had my acrylic pieces router cut to the perfect shape and threw them into a kiln. Once properly heated, I put it into a mold and folded my seat and ottoman. I spray painted the underside of the acrylic to create the cloud feeling and applied velcro strips to hold on to the professionally sewn cushions. Finally, I found the perfect pieces of hardware to hold everything together.
Materials
Marine Leather
Stainless Steel Rods
0.5" Acrylic
What I learned
I went into this project with no knowledge of welding, heat bending, or powder coating, but came out of it with an amazing chair that I'm proud to have in my home. I haven't welded anything since then, but it gave me a new appreciation for model making, which is reflected in future projects.