If you thought that inflatable chair in your home or that outdoor inflatable square ottoman in your home was a new invention, you would be mistaken. Inflatable furniture has been here far longer than you think it has. The idea for inflatable furniture brewed for a long period of time in the minds of many people in history. After a lot of evolution, you got your usual pool-side accessories in the form of inflatable furniture.
US Military Operations With Inflatable Objects
The US military started to experiment with something called a radome. A ‘radome’ was a dome shaped inflatable fibreglass fabric that was used to protect antennae back in the 40s. This was a new idea because, at the time, an inflatable ottoman was not even thought of. It was the very beginning of the inflatable furniture era that had started with just a dome. The same engineer, Walter Bird, who had worked to produce radomes also went on to create pool enclosures that were also inflatable. They were also dome shaped and covered the pool while saving it from outside elements and weather troubles.
Military Uses Of Inflatable Tanks
Inflatable furniture was not a household thing like you see it these days. Back when the world wars took place, it was very important to have an advantage over your enemy. The greatest advantage one could have over their enemy was to weaken them mentally. It was a very well known war tactic to let your enemy think you have more than you actually did. The US military started to do this first of all and soon many other militaries started to follow. They would inflate rubber tanks and bring them to the battlefield. This way the enemy was really intimidated by the number of tanks on the ground whereas actually, that number was far less than what they saw.
Pool Uses
Soon after the dome like pool enclosure, poolside accessories began to pop up all across the world. These accessories used air and were inflatable. This is why they would stay afloat. The pool tyre was one such invention that really revolutionised the way we all saw poolside accessories. There were many different shapes and sizes of pool tyres that were later on introduced. They came in all different types of colours, sizes and shapes. Much like a modern day inflatable ottoman, there started to be an improvement in all aspects of the design.
The 60s Furniture Revolution
The 60s really did bring that much needed revolution in the inflatable furniture industry. The very first mass produced inflatable chair was called “Blow” and it was brought to the masses in 1967. With the onset of this new use of inflatable material, a new age began where companies began to really try their best to compete in the newly flourishing inflatable furniture market.
Home Furniture Intervention
Home furniture was a whole vista that was opened right after inflatable furniture slowly began to make its way to the homes of people. Soon you would see one or two such pieces in people’s houses and living spaces. More and more people were attracted to the idea of the portability and lightness of this furniture Inflatable furniture really won the hearts of people who had to frequently move from one place to another. Moreover, it was kind of easy for the furniture to be managed, maintained and cleaned which made it a good choice in busy households. Kids’ furniture was also seen as a good inflatable furniture option. It would be an interesting colour for the kids to be attracted to as well.
The 80s Inflatable Bed
Then came the 80s. This was the time when inflatable furniture started to go past the usual chair and moved on to a whole new era. People started to think big and soon there were beds being made out of inflatable material that would help the user in so many ways. It was an especially attractive thing for college students who struggled with dorm sized furniture. The heaviness of usual furniture was a big put off for the people of the 80s who wanted a more easy going and relaxed approach to household setups. The inflatable bed was one such thing that really eased the way things worked. From moving houses to living in college dormitories, it was a dream. That is also the same time around which the inflatable ottoman was created because it was just a very convenient piece of furniture that would go on to revolutionise the way we lived our day to day lives.
The 90s Era of Inflatable Furniture
The 90s was when inflatable furniture really hit its peak and just became a whole phenomenon where no one could resist its charms. It was everywhere. You could literally go to any place you wanted and you would find inflatable furniture there. It could be seen in offices as a fun colourful addition to the dry office life. You could see it in all the houses where they needed poolside accessories. It was also a staple for every kids’ room setup that you could find around the country. The 90s were really the time when everyone wanted something to do with inflatable furniture. Be it your everyday outdoor inflatable ottoman or inflatable pouf ottoman, the fire spread hard and wide and hit every trend there was.
The Inflatable Ottoman
The inflatable ottoman really just came and swooped everyone away with its multipurpose usage. It was really one of the greatest things to hit the market in a very long time. It was easy to use and very portable. You could literally carry it around with you around the house, on the deck and on the porch. It was super travel friendly. They started to come in so many shapes and sizes. Everyone began to realise the importance of easy to move and easy to use furniture. Even now, the inflatable ottoman is one of the best things to come out of the inflatable furniture industry.