Every summer, designer Nicholas Baker’s family gathered at his great-grandmother’s farm in Kentucky, where he and his cousins turned the hayloft into a playground. They’d climb ladders and rearrange hay bales into secret hideouts until sunset called them inside for dinner. The memory of using bales as blocks eventually sparked the idea for Nicholas’ Hay Bale Sofa system for Moooi.
“I felt compelled to explore how a sofa system could look inspired by this nostalgic memory,” Nicholas says.
The tension on the sofa’s straps references Nicholas’ childhood memories of hay bales on his great-grandmother’s Kentucky farm. Photo courtesy of Nicholas Baker
The Hay Bale sofa’s configuration works like building blocks. Straps hold cushions together in different arrangements, and the tension creates that same bulging shape you see when twine wraps around hay. Want more seating? Push two single chairs together to make an armchair. Need a full sofa? Combine two armchairs and add an ottoman. The whole thing reconfigures without tools by undoing the straps and rearranging.
The design also updates a lineage stretching back to Harvey Probber, who pioneered modular seating in the 1940s. Even using straps as furniture structure has precedents, like in Harry Hasson’s 2009 collection that used heavy-duty ratchet straps to hold plywood pieces together for people who moved frequently.
The sofa system can also be reconfigured without tools. Two single chairs become an armchair, and two armchairs plus an ottoman make a full sofa. Photo courtesy of Nicholas Baker
Nicholas says it took over two years to develop the concept for the Hay Bale into a finished piece, working with Moooi to refine the strap tension, cushion density, and modular connection points. He envisions the sofa fitting cozy casual spaces like dens or studies, though it works equally well in commercial settings like hotel lobbies.
“I don’t particularly follow trends, but of course I hope it lasts for a long time,” he says.
The Hay Bale Sofa features a steel frame, webbing, and foam cushioning with choice of upholstery. Available for $6,573 through Moooi in Boucle, Spectrum Leather, and Signature Wabi Sabi fabric.
