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Shortly after getting married in June 1941, Charles and Ray Eames drove across the country to California to begin a decades-long residence in Los Angeles. Upon moving into the newly built Strathmore Apartments—designed by new acquaintance Richard Neutra—they set up the Eames Office, where they would experiment and hone their craft. Quite the honeymoon! Their experiments in this apartment included endless hands-on, trial-and-error tests using a tool they invented, the “Kazam!” machine,” which would be the precursor to their pioneering molded plywood process. 

A partnership with Evans Products, a design produced for wartime efforts, and a move to a new Venice location followed. In 1946, George Nelson and D.J. De Pree visited Charles’ Museum of Modern Art, New York exhibition featuring this molded plywood furniture and a deal was struck for Herman Miller to start selling Eames designs—and a few years later, the rights to the entire line, including a deal with the design duo. The Eameses would go on to design several more iconic products for Herman Miller, with Charles and Ray guiding the approach to design, materials, marketing, manufacturing, and quality control. The popularity of Eames designs around the world pushed Herman Miller to become a global company.