Marshmallow sofa regains legs
At first glance, the Nelson Marshmallow Sofa could easily pass for a set of colourful electronic drum pads.
But as Best Design Ideas explains, the creation from designer George Nelson goes back to the mid- 1950s. Now an exclusive production from Herman Miller in the States and Europe’s Vitra, the Marshmallow sofa is made up of 18 10- inch colourful pillows that resemble larger- than- life- sized marshmallow candies and are held to a fibreglass framework with steel legs.
As manufacturing firm Herman Miller explains, it started with an inventor/ salesman from New York’s Long Island area who first came up with an injection plastic disc that he strongly believed could be produced at a low cost and would be durable.
That inventor brought this idea to Nelson and design cohort Irving Harper, the latter credited in arranging 18 of the discs onto a steel frame.
Between 1957 and 1961, the first Nelson Marshmallow Sofas came
in two sizes — 52 inches and 103 inches. Only 186 of these were constructed before the venture was halted. Two decades later, the 52inch, 18- cushion sofa resurfaced and continues to be manufactured thanks to its outstanding funky appearance and functionality.