Faculty of Design

Industrial Design

Cristina Monaco

A Shoulder To Lean On

A Shoulder to Lean On explores how design can support the moments we often overlook. Centered on the first 15 minutes after arriving home, it responds to a time when the body is still carrying the weight of the day. The project introduces a soft, cocoon-like chair that invites users to pause, lean, and be held, encouraging a quiet reconnection with the body through weight, stillness, and presence. Rooted in the idea of rest as a practice, it transforms this in-between moment into a simple, grounding ritual.

“You're home. But some part of you isn't—not yet. Your mind's still replaying the day, turning over conversations, half-finished thoughts. There's this in-between space, those first fifteen minutes after walking through the door, where you're supposed to unwind but somehow never do.Most of us just skip past it. Collapse on the couch, scroll through nothing, eat standing up. Not because we chose to—it's just what happens. The tension doesn't leave. It just hides.A Shoulder to Lean On is a chair for that moment. Not for working. Not for sitting up straight. Just a place to come back to.There's no right way to use it. Lean forward, curl to the side, let yourself sink. The shape holds you however you show up. Soft pillows line the inside—the kind you want to wrap your arms around. The high walls quiet everything else. It feels less like sitting and more like being held.Research says those first fifteen minutes home shape how the whole evening feels. That's all this is—a place that makes pause feel possible. A small ritual that says: you can stop now.After a while, it's not really about the chair. It's the habit. The exhale. The moment you finally arrive.A shoulder to lean on.”