The history of bean bags dates to several decades
back when they were designed in different forms. Here is a brief history of the
development and design of bean bags
The Sea Urchin Chair
This is probably the earliest types of bean bags
ever made. This type of bean bag was designed for the British
Royal college of Art in 1965 , and it was one of the earliest chairs that
completely adapted to the shape and size of its users. This was a foam chair
that appears spherical in shape.
The Sacco or Socco
The Sacco appears to resemble the bean
bag that are designed today. These bags were first designed in 1969 by some
Italian designers, who were working on a particular type of chair that is
stylish , practical, and fitting in nature and they ended up designing the
“Sacco” which was quite popular in Europe in the late 1960s. The original
Saccos ever made were designed from leather materials, and were filled with
some Thermocol pellets that were later replaced with more durable shredded
Polyurethane foams. The Sacco became the first recognized bean
bag to be designed because it perfectly fits and adjust to the shape of the
person sitting on it.
The Sacco was reported to be discovered by
mistakes, and it is quite similar to the bean bags you will find in some stores
in the 1970s.
The 1970s Bean bags
The first bean bags were found in some
departmental stores in 1970s and they became more affordable to common people
around that time. The 1970s bean bag chairs look very much similar
to the quality bags found in stores today, they were made with highly durable
leather as well as Styrofoam pellets. The first professional decorators of bean
bags in the 1970s were able to make relatively lightweight and portable chairs
while therapists were able to identify that the chairs helped some kids having
problems with sensory identification difficulties. Doctors were also able to
recommend bean bags to patients recovering from back surgery in the 1970s.
The 1990s bean bags
Modern revolution to bean bags started in 1990s
and this was the era when such bags and chairs become more functional in
nature. Bean bags were able to penetrate more in the market places during the
1990s era and more functional chairs such as recliners were made but it was
this era some faults were discovered in some cheap quality bean
bag chairs; kids were suffocating and some pets were also discovered to be
inhaling pellets due to poor design and materials in many cheap bean bags.
The modern bean bags
In the present era, modern bean bags are made
with washable fabrics, and stuffed with highly durable biodegradable Styrofoam
pellets. Urethane fillers are also used by some makers. The highly shredded
foam filled into bean bag ensure that they are
comfortable and easy to adjust to the size of the user.
Solid support and low inflammable materials used
in making bean bag today make them relatively
safer.