Each handmade Vitra miniature is a classic in the history of furniture design reduced in size at a scale of 1:6. True to the original pieces in structure and materials, the miniatures are precision-crafted, making them a thoughtful gift for a furniture lover or design professional. If only all design "failures" were so successful. The inspiration for the Nelson Marshmallow Sofa (1956) was launched when an inventor approached George Nelson and Irving Harper with a planned "self-skinned" injection plastic disc that would be inexpensive to produce and unerringly durable. As the proposed cushions had a maximum diameter of 12 inches, the designers perched 18 of them atop a steel frame. Sadly, the inventor's vision for high-resiliency, low-cost cushions never came to fruition, but the design was so compelling that Herman Miller chose to produce it anyway. The atom-like appearance of the Marshmallow Sofa is a precursor to the aesthetic style of the pop art of the 1960s. Each Vitra miniature comes handsomely packaged in a wood box with an informational booklet.