Damaged and non-repairable coats and parkas from 66° North are given new life as a progressive and unique product line in the form of chairs. Erm (Icelandic for “sleeve”) aims to creatively transfer an object’s intended purpose between categories, from a wearable clothing item to household furniture.

The sleeves are stitched together forming a long cylinder that covers a single piece of bent, steel rod that can be fitted with new sleeves again and again. Each chair has a unique look depending on the coats used to make it.

With ERM the designers Arnar Ingi and Valdis Steinars explore how the life cycle of a product can be extended by jumping from its original role. How can a puffy coat become a chair? And can it become something else after that?

The project is an examination of how product categorizing can be used as a starting point instead of a restriction when designing innovative solutions for discarded products. The project is in collaboration with 66° North and tailored by Nína Guðrún Guðlaugsdóttir.