Abril Zepeda designs teak and cord chairs for outdoor living

Designer Abril Zepeda has created two outdoor chairs for furniture brand Masaya that pair solid teak with hand-woven cord made for life outside.

The Arenal Outdoor Rocking Chair and the Masaya Outdoor Lounge Chair were designed by Zepeda for Masaya. Both are handmade in Nicaragua, according to details published on 7 October 2026 Dezeen. As the names suggest, one is a rocker and one is a lounge chair. Both are made for outdoor use.

Each chair is built around a frame in solid teak. The timber is FSC-certified, meaning it is certified as coming from responsibly managed forests. Buyers can choose that frame sealed or unfinished, two different surface finishes offered for the same teak structure.

The seating on both chairs is hand-woven from polyolefin cord, a synthetic fibre. The cord is outdoor-rated and described as resistant to UV light, weather and pests. In plain terms, it is made to stand up to sun, rain and bugs without moving indoors.

Zepeda is an anthropologist and designer, and the woven collection is her design for MasayaCo. Her process is explored in the company’s Sustainable Home Journal, in an article about crafting sustainable furniture with handwoven detail and solid teak MasayaCo. The journal describes a design approach built around purpose, natural materials and woven craft.

Comfort is shaped by height at the back. MasayaCo says its Arenal and Amador rocking and lounge chairs use tall backrests. That gives support behind the shoulders as well as the lower back.

There is also choice within the Arenal family. MasayaCo offers an Arenal Outdoor Rocker variant made with 2-inch Sand Straps. That version has a woven strap seat and backrest, rather than the woven cord seat and back found on the two Zepeda outdoor cord chairs.

Sustainability is part of the company story. MasayaCo reports on its website that it has planted more than one million trees MasayaCo. It also says it makes its furniture pieces using trees from reforestation projects. Those are company statements about its wider production, not measurements of these two chairs alone.

For anyone planning an outdoor corner for reading, chatting or evening films, this means a simple shortlist. Pick the rocker for movement. Pick the lounger for stretching out. Then pick teak finish and weave, knowing both are specified from the start for outdoor conditions.