Sandy Chilewich created her New York City based design studio in 1996. RayBowlsâ„¢, the first effort of her new studio, were introduced in November of 1997, and met with instant success. RayBowlsâ„¢ have a simple and inventive mechanism for making fabric concave and have won Chilewich many patents and awards.In keeping with her passion for creating new uses for textiles, Chilewich has reinterpreted a woven vinyl textile for different applications...table mats, floor mats and handbags. The durability of the yarn, its tremendous design versatility and the fact that it is washable, continues to inspire Chilewich. Plynyl, a commercial grade floor surface was developed with her husband Joe Sultan, an architect. Plynyl was created through bonding woven vinyl onto a cushioned polyurethane creating a completely new category in flooring. Chilewich won the ICFF Award for Plynyl at the 2001 International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York.Chilewich began her career as an artist. Recognizing that she loved manufacturing and business as well, she sought a more commercial outlet for her talents and co-founded HUE Legwear. HUE is credited with revolutionizing the legwear industry with their innovations in design and merchandising. Chilewich and her partner ran the company for 14 years before selling it in 1992.
