Crate Quilted Cushion

“To add comfort and function to the Crate series, the Crate quilted cushion is a stitched cushion, specially shaped to fit the seat and backrest of the chair perfectly.” : HAY

The thinnest of the three cushions in the series: 2 cm, a “light padding,” quilted, which dresses the Crate lounge chair from the top of the backrest to the edge of the seat. It is held in place by “a Velcro fastening under the seat and two straps that fasten around the top of the frame.”

The fabric

HAY describes a fabric with a “water-repellent finish” and “high UV resistance, making it resistant to fading, with good color fastness,” for “all-year-round” use. The exact composition is not published on the HAY pages; its retailers list it as solution-dyed olefin, on polyurethane foam. Four colors, matching the wood finishes: beige, sky grey, iron red, and anthracite.

Crate, Gerrit Rietveld’s crate furniture

In 1934, Gerrit Rietveld designed a chair from shipping crate planks: reclaimed wood, visible joints, and an assembly plan that anyone could follow. HAY summarizes the origin: “originally designed to utilize surplus wooden shipping crates.” The series was sold at the time as “weekend furniture” by the Metz & Co store in Amsterdam, notes Titus Darley of Rietveld Originals. HAY reissued it in 2023 with Rietveld Originals: lounge chair, chair, coffee table, and side table at first, then the sofa, bench, and dining table in 2024. Rolf Hay, co-founder of the house: “It’s hard to imagine anything closer to our design values, because Rietveld’s mission was really to create a cool, affordable, and accessible range of furniture for everyone.”