New Material: 100% Vegetal, Cuir de Bois by Chloé de la Chaise

At Ground Control, during Paris Design Week in September, we were instantly drawn into one of the young designers’ exhibition: Chloé de la Chaise had put together a modest stand comprising various products made from a material she invented on her own

Cuir de Bois, as she had originally named it—but regulations require her to change the word cuir, “leather”—, is a special recipe for combining wood fibers and natural rubber as a vegan alternative to animal leather. Laughing, Chloé de la Chaise told ArchiExpo e-Magazine during PDW:

People keep stopping by to touch the ‘leather’ and, as soon as they do, the soft touch captures them. It’s almost like they want to make love to my products.”

She had objects ranging from handbags, a sports bag, jewelry, sneakers and more. As everything was impeccably made, we asked her what sneaker brand she’d worked with and she said:

Actually, I didn’t have much time when I got the announcement that I was selected to exhibit at Ground Control. I had to take an old pair of sneakers and make them myself.”

Wow. There’s another well-rounded young designer. We hope to see this material on the market very soon!