The iconic Eames Molded Chair just got a big upgrade you can’t see

Herman Miller is releasing a new version of its iconic Eames Molded Plastic Chair. It will look, smell, and feel exactly like the iconic mid-century design—but it will be made with 100% recycled plastic.

The first Eames Plastic Chair was created by Ray and Charles Eames for a competition held by MOMA in 1950, although the first ideas for this low-cost, mass-produced furniture started two years earlier. The designers actually made the first prototypes with stamped metal, which then changed to fiberglass and, ultimately, to plastic.

The new model swaps the virgin polypropylene—the high quality (but environmentally devastating) oil-based polymer used in virtually everything from outdoor furniture to Lego blocks—for a 100% postindustrial recycled plastic, which then can be recycled when the owner is done using the chair. According to a company spokesperson, this change of material alone will save 122 tons of virgin plastic per year, netting a 15% carbon reduction annually.

If you are wondering if these chairs will be as durable and solid as the originals, the company assured us via email that the new builds passed “the same safety, quality, and durability tests as the previous models, and they are supported by a 5-year warranty.” 

Herman Miller also promises that the chair has the same feel, and it is as gentle to your posterior, as the original, “with the usual subtle matte texture and the exact soft tactility.” The chair’s improved sustainability is good news unto itself, but this recycled edition adds nine new colors, too.

Obviously, the best one is the deep red.