CONVERSATION PIECE

We all know the feeling of being given a challenging task and having to put together a team to tackle it. That's exactly what happened when we were tasked with creating a chair submission for the 2015 Humber Chair Show. But instead of just building any old chair, we wanted to make something special that would generate conversations and be a real eye-catcher.

INTRODUCING OUR CHAIR DESIGN & PROTOTYPE

Conversation Piece

After much discussion, we came up with the idea to build a chair that would inspire people to chat with one another while sitting in it. We sketched and debated, and eventually settled on a design that we thought would do the trick. Now we just had to build it.

We began the process by creating a massive two-part mold that would clamp the plywood down after we had steamed and glued it together. It was a frustrating and chaotic process that taught us a lot of lessons along the way. But finally, we had the two pieces of steam-bent plywood that would form the basis of our chair.

Next up, we needed to figure out how to add some cushioning and upholstery to make the chair comfortable. Thankfully, our college introduced us to a local upholstery factory that showed us how to create our cushion and mount it on the chair. They were so generous with their time and expertise that we felt like we owed them a lifetime supply of pizza.

Fast forward to the big day of the Humber Chair Show. We set up our giant conversation starter and waited for the crowds to arrive. It was a bit nerve-wracking, but we were proud of what we had created and excited to see people interacting with it.

As soon as the doors opened, people started pouring in to view the chairs. And to our surprise, our chair quickly became the center of attention. We invited people to come sit with us and have a chat, and soon we had a group of six people crowded together in our cozy creation. The crowd grew bigger and bigger as people loved seeing everyone chatting around our chair.

We were exhausted but thrilled with the reception our chair was getting. And when the show ended, we were honored to be awarded the People's Choice Award. Our whole team accepted the award gratefully and celebrated by going home for a week long hibernation.

In the end, we learned a lot about teamwork, creativity, and the power of a good conversation starter. And we had a blast doing it.