LAYER founder Benjamin Hubert describes the Vale collection for KFI Studios – featuring a chair, high and low stools, and armchair – as “a study in restraint.” The assessment rings true in regards to the seating collection’s gently organic form, subtle hues, and minimalist design language. But Hubert’s statement is also applicable when taking into account the chairs are manufactured using recycled PET plastic bottles pressed into the form of a PET felt shell, an eco-friendly effort to abstain from adding to an already excessive amount of manufactured plastic in and out of circulation today.
The Vale collection’s felt cover wraps around and drape over a steel frame, with the shell attached to the frame only using simple bolts, allowing for easy disassembly and eventual recycling at the end of the seating’s life. The curved shell is indented in the center to cradle the occupant with a distinctive edged detail.
If additional support is desired, KFI Studios offers optional matching cushions for both the chair and armchair.
Launched in June at NeoCon in Chicago and winner of three awards at the annual exhibition, including an Interior Design‘s 2023 HiP Award, the collection of sustainable chairs takes its name from the Middle English word for “valley,” physically manifested in the seating’s rolled edge wrapping around the entirety of the shell form.
Similar to its precursor, the Eames Molded Shell Chair, the Vale collection’s stackable design makes it especially suited for office and institutional settings, including schools, universities, and homes.
Vale is currently available in six colors – Charcoal, Grey, Stone, Midnight, Sage, and Garnet – across side chair, arm chair, lounge chair, ottoman and various height and style stools, for contract customers via authorized KFI Studios’ reps and dealers starting at $750.
