Eames Fiberglass Side Chair DSW

Overview

DSW stands for Dining Height Side Chair Wood Base. In this model the Eameses set their one-piece shell on a wooden frame with four legs. Vitra argues that mixing plastic with timber lends a classic design some warmth and an easygoing character, and that a loose seat cushion adds to that.

Image source: Vitra — Eames Fiberglass Side Chair DSW · © Vitra and the respective rights holders. Quoted to accompany INTEBEE's independent design commentary and research. · View official product page ↗ · Image use & copyright policy

Construction

The shell is polyester reinforced with glass fibre, coloured all the way through, and its surface is deliberately uneven. Underneath sits a non-stackable base in maple or honey-toned ash, stained and lacquered, braced by steel rod cross struts in basic dark. A moulded foam cushion can be ordered; it is screwed to the shell, and Vitra's service team can swap it.

Specifications

Without the cushion the chair is 465 mm wide, 550 mm deep and 830 mm high, with the seat at 430 mm. Seven shell colours run from 01 Parchment to 05 Sea Foam Green; the wood comes as golden, dark or black maple, or as honey-tone ash.

Plastic meets wood

The page for the DSW sets it apart from the wire-based Fiberglass Chairs by its four-legged timber base. Vitra dates the model to 1950 and names its product family Eames Fiberglass Chairs.

Material notes from Vitra

Vitra specifies the timber as ash (Fraxinus excelsior) and maple (Acer platanoides) sourced in Western Europe and/or Poland. The shell material is the same dyed-through fibreglass found across the family, with colour shifts and small pigment specks regarded as part of its character, and some shades remaining slightly transparent, as in the earliest chairs.