Could you imagine a world where all of your furniture was held together by a rudimentary material used for packaging? A new trend is hitting the interwebs that uses your cat’s favorite toy as a material for chairs and other movables. Cardboard chairs are a recent, innovative form of furniture, like couches, ottomans, futons, and bookshelves.

One teacher at Bob Jones, Mr. Raper, assigned his class to build cardboard chairs. When they were planning the design, they focused mostly on structural support.

Mr. Raper then tested the chairs to see if they were sturdy enough to hold his weight.  Some worked, some didn’t.

Bob Jones students aren’t alone in the design of cardboard furniture.  One company, Chairigami, located in Highland Park, IL makes cardboard  furniture for people’s homes and offices.  A member of the Chairigami team shared their thoughts about cardboard. “Of course it [the cardboard] doesn’t get too bland or bleak, we love cardboard! Our furniture is delivered to customers in several pieces that are using clear and easy to use instructions. We love cardboard because it’s environmentally responsible and beautiful, too!” One sophomore, Kemi Anderson stated her opinion on Chairigami: “It’s practical and a conversation piece. These chairs are inexpensive. Just slap a cushion on it and be done with it.”

Most people throw away cardboard after they get their package, but you could save so much material by recycling it.  Mr. Raper recycled it for a learning experience for his students, but who knows… maybe you could decorate your whole dorm room with it.