Egyptian studio designs contemporary furniture from handmade, recycled material

With a belief that design can solve problems, Reform Studio developed a material from reused plastic bags, which now forms the basis of its designs.

Reform Studio is an award-winning, Cairo-based design firm applauded for its sustainably designed products that validate the possibilities of sophisticated, recycled design. Designers at reform use the studio’s in-house recycled material to produce a range of furniture and fabrics that “aesthetically fit in our daily life and innovatively preserve our resources.”

Inspired by design that has a positive impact on the environment, the studio created Plastex to “raise awareness about how we define waste and the possibilities behind reusing what was once destined to be trash”. Plastex forms the basis of the studio’s designs and has influenced the general style of its product line, which is characterised by the brightly coloured, woven material.
The handmade material is made from reused plastic bags, reduced down to a thread-like form and interwoven on a traditional Egyptian handloom, resulting in a durable and washable fabric.
Due to the varying dyes of the collected and donated plastic bags, the material is multi-coloured and comes in four different types of patterns: Plain, Stripes, Zebra and Plaid.
Reform Studio’s eclectic range of furniture includes retro stools, Arabic coffee shop-inspired chairs, Scandinavian-style wooden benches, beautiful recycling bins and various textiles for the home.