In early 2010, Dutch designer Christien Meindertsma became interested in flax. So she approached a local farmer, Gert-Jan van Dongen, and asked him to sow flax seeds on a farm in his field. By the summer, van Dongen had grown an entire field of flax, which Meinderstma harvested with the intention of using as a design material.
Six years later, the resulting Flax Chair has won two Dutch Design Awards (DDAs)—not just because it looks good, but because in creating it, Meinderstma was able to invent an entirely new sustainable material.