Tag: chairs

Pink Skirted Library Chairs
I had thought that the round Dawson table made its way here sometime in the past year, but looking back through my archives I see that it arrived mid-2015. So I’ve been looking for chairs for the library for a year and a half. (I mean, it’s not like I would wake up everyday and search, but on and off for sure.)

Then I came across these Nate Berkus skirted slipper chairs at Target. I had been thinking of going with a skirted chair, but most were a bit more than I was hoping to spend. Restoration Hardware has beautiful options. Ballard Designs offered several, including with an interesting camelback design. Even IKEA’s skirted Parsons chair was a contender, with or without a new slipcover, though the shape wasn’t interesting enough to persuade me.

I Photoshopped the new Target chairs into my mockup file, thought about it for a day or two, then placed my order. (You’ve seen this mockup before, with different options. These lights and sconces, and now chairs, have all been made reality.)

Of course, in between ordering the chairs and waiting for them to arrive, a new contender entered the ring.

SO PRETTY. But really, I’ve gone down the road of those metallic legs before. That was my biggest dislike with these temporary chairs in the space. Still, very tempting, West Elm!

Anyway. I mentioned on Instagram that I chose these chairs for several reasons:
1. the right shade of pink (blush, on the peachy side)
2. skirted, to break up the leggy furniture and all of the wood in the room
3. slipcovered (hello, three messy children)
4. the right size and scale, and the back has an interesting details
5. they fit my budget (I cashed out credit card points to buy them)
I’m always thinking I should sell the striped sofa because it’s too big for the space, but I do love it. There are other changes I’d like to see in the room, but I’m open to serendipity and taking my time.

Done!

The library has come together in stages, with each step moving us further along.
- September, 2013: move in (blank slate!)
- October, 2013: striped vintage sofa
- February, 2014: decide on built-in shelving
- April, 2014: thinking about a round table
- May, 2014: finished shelving and a rolling library ladder
- July, 2014: paint the walls (Pink Ground, Farrow & Ball)
- December, 2014: secretary desk
- June, 2015: finally order that round table when it goes on sale
- October, 2015: so many chairs, none quite right
- December, 2015: new lighting fixtures and sconces
- January, 2017: pink skirted chairs
To Do!

Eventually. The rug and curtains need to work in the larger context of the home, so I’m taking my time there.
- add a large rug (9×12 or 10×14)
- brass curtain rods (custom for the curved windows?)
- add two pairs of pinch-pleat curtains and a roman shade
- sturdier chair with the secretary desk
- custom bench cushion (for below the window, unless we just accept that it will always be covered in books)
p.s. That table was cleared off after photos, and immediately covered in Legos. The books, vase with flowers, and ginger jar are pretty, but the kids love playing in the library and I give them space to spread out with breakables moved elsewhere.
January 9, 2017
9 Modern Wingback Dining Chairs
I keep finding new examples of my favorite upholstered dining chairs. You know, these?

It’s like a traditional wingback chair fell in love with Arne Jacobsen and had beautiful babies. See also: Deeda. (Oh, you pretty thing.)

I’ve rounded up a few more examples of the style below. Oh man, if my kids weren’t so messy, I’d be all over these for my dining room. There’s always the hostess chair route, I suppose. Just a pair, with one at each end of the table? (You know the second you get upholstered dining chairs a kid will drop a plate of spaghetti on them. I think it’s a rule.)

But still. They’re so pretty! And the shape is nice and cozy. Which one’s your favorite?
1. Galloway Wingback Dining Chair, Crate & Barrel
  Choose from several colors or go with a solid fabric instead.
2. Deeda Chair, Jayson Home
  Customize it or pick up this one that’ on sale.
3. 1940s Wingback Side Chair, Restoration Hardware
  Just perfect, from the shape to the nailhead detailing.
4. Sloan Fabric Armchair, Restoration Hardware
  That base!
5. Irvine Button Tufted Back Accent Chair, Overstock
  Button tufting? Where? Surprise — it’s on the back.
6. Portsmouth Upholstered Dining Chair, Arhaus
  Another turn around surprise — the back has exposed wooden support detailing.
7. Bowden Wingback Chair, One Kings Lane
  Great fabric and a lighter frame.
8. Hugh Dining Chair, Arhaus
  Brass nailheads and a lovely aged crackled leather finish.
9. Carmen Tufted Side Chair by Hooker Furniture, Wayfair
  No additional color choices, but the tufting is a nice detail.
Photos: Rangeview Reno by Studio McGee • Deeda Chair, Jayson Home
August 15, 2016
Coulda Woulda Shoulda
Alternate title: Photoshop is Fun!

You saw the library last week, yes? The rug was on loan for a styling competition and it’s already on its way back, but the chairs that were supposed to be temporary are going to stick around for a bit longer. They’ve actually come in handy and the kids really like them! Well, that, and I totally lost the tags and receipt. What’s up, new chairs?

No, I didn’t intend to keep them. I picked them up in the first place because they were:
- the right color
- cute
- in stock
- affordable
- returnable
But also:
- the wrong finish (those silver legs)
- don’t look inviting / right for a library
- too modern / not interesting enough = looks cheap in context
They’re staying, for now, but I wouldn’t hesitate to sell them off at a steep discount. My loss, my mistake.

And here’s the thing. You know how you might kind of suspect something (ooh, those chairs aren’t as good as they could be), and then you have this weird job where your house and everything you do to it and put in it is shown to tens of thousands of people every day?* And then the choice you were least confident is indeed the thing people pick up on and don’t like? Yeah, that.

“They don’t really go with anything in the room and seem like nothing more than a last minute attempt to add a vibrant color to a relatively toned down room as well as looking like they ran out of money right at the end.”

Oof. I know. So here’s a little peek behind the curtain at what I would have really wanted to do for the rug shoot, had time and money not been a factor. (Aren’t those always the deciding factors?)

* Psst: I do love this job. I can take constructive criticism just fine (or worse), so I’m not complaining! Plus there were plenty of lovely, nice, complimentary comments as well. But you have to admit, it is a weird position to be in, right?

First up, the Roadhouse Leather Chair from CB2. I’ve written about these before, and a few other similar options. I would have gone with these, had they been in stock. It’s a lot of brown, but the leather adds a different texture that I like a lot.

Continuing on in that vein, we have another leather option. This time, the Baldwin Armchair from Jayson Home. I wouldn’t have been all that interested, having only seen them on the site, but in person they’re fantastic. Great scale, rich leather, just a nice, versatile chair.

That Eames rocker in the background does not go well with these. Ignore it. (It didn’t make the final shot anyway.)

How about some Wishbone chairs? I’ve always liked the look of them.

Nice, but they’re not really working here. Hoffman Prague chairs instead? Those are great too.

I like those. Definitely more “dining room” than “library” but that’s OK. I was staging it with glasses and plates. Thonet, windsor chairs (and modern interpretations like West Elm’s Scissor Spindle dining chair) — they all have a similar feel, just a tweak to the overall look. We’ve got a lot of mockups happening already here; let’s move on to something different!

Stripes! I may sell the striped sofa at some point (too long for the space). Go with these instead?

I like them, but I don’t love them. Maybe a couple of these hostess wingback chairs from World Market. They’re a little larger, so just a pair instead of four.

The color isn’t really working with that rug. Something darker, but still with some blue to reference the sofa. Like this.

Ah, but that kind of defeats the whole purpose of the shoot then, doesn’t it!

OK, we’re getting closer. I like the wingback and I like the upholstery, but it needs to be a different color. Restoration Hardware offers some nice fabric options, and I’m fond of their 1940s Wingback side chair. In blue? Charcoal? Mustard velvet! (OK, I’m probably the only one that really likes mustard/ochre/shades of brown/tons of wood. But so what? I’ll own it if I love it and nobody else does.)

Except those are all custom orders, and they would take too long. Plus, then they’re ours for keeps and whoa whoa whoa, what’s all this talk about commitment?

What’s that, Target? Your cute chairs are $40, the right color, and you have them all in stock ready to go home with me immediately? All right then, sold. And since I’m a scatterbrain lately, they can stay for now. At least it won’t sting too badly when the kids inevitably drop a marker on one of them while coloring — although that only ever seems to happen with the super nice things you pine and save for.

Now on to the important stuff. Which chairs are your favorite? And did you know that after making a bunch of these and coming across a chair I wanted to mockup that didn’t have the necessary alternate angles, I briefly thought I could turn it around in Photoshop so we could see more of the front?
October 7, 2015
20 Colorful Kids’ Desks and Chairs
The armchair in August’s room will soon be out of there. Nobody is sitting in it much (we read more in bed), and when I asked him if he would rather keep the chair or have a desk instead, he wanted a desk. Eleanor has one in her room, so of course August wants one too.

His bedroom has unpainted wooden trim, a wooden dresser, a black bookshelves. The bed will be upholstered, and the only other soft surface (the armchair) is being removed. I’ll be repainting and I’ve already added a more colorful rug, and I’m looking to bring in more color with the desk and chair. I found twenty options that can mix and match and when I showed them to August, and he said he wanted red. No, light blue. “No, all of them! Stack them up to the roof!”

A lot of help he is!

With the exception of one desk (#3, which is over by ten dollars), everything here is under $200. Much of it is under $100.
1. Commune Chair
  Bent plywood in red, green, blue, or black.
2. Tobias Clear Chair
  This is also available in a clear version, but that lilac is unexpected in a wonderful way.
3. Safavieh Bentley Writing Desk
  Industrial inspiration plus poppy color.
4. Janinge Chair
  Comes in white too, but the yellow is much more fun.
5. Pagoda Blue Evie Molded Dining Chair
  Knock-off Eames shell chairs. There are a million out there, or go for the licensed version in plastic or fiberglass.
6. Homeroom Metal Desk Chair
  Teal, lime, pink, red, or white. The rolled front edge makes the chair more comfortable for longer periods of time.
7. Student Desk with Open Front Metal Book Box
  A primary school classic that also comes in blue, but you have to order at least two.
8. Expound Desk
  That modern trestle base is a fun detail on a well-priced desk. Available in several colors.
9. Public Chair
  Just adorable. Eight wood and accent color combinations.
10. Ideal II Chair
  Bent plywood chairs are always a nice go-to.
11. Lucinda Stacking Chair
  Orange powdercoated iron. Super colorful and sturdy! Also comes in grey.
12. Domino Desk Chair
  Such a great price for a design like this! Similar styles often go for much more from pricier stores. Choose green, gold, navy, or pink.
13. Vilmar Melamine Chair
  These are usually bent wood, but the melamine makes this easier to wipe down and keep clean. Comes in several colors and patterns.
14. Go Cart Mint Rolling Desk
  Similar to the other on this list, but less expensive and in a lovely mint color.
15. Reidar Outdoor Aluminum Chair
  Metal chairs are wonderfully sturdy and indestructible. Choose from black, white, and yellow.
16. Pony Peacock Chair
  I didn’t include a lot of fabric choices here on purpose, but I liked this one too much to pass up. Comes in a gray tweed too if you’re looking for something less colorful.
17. IKEA PS 2014 Secretary Desk
  Toys and display space up top, hide everything else below! The zingy orange and modern design is great, too.
18. Marais A Side Chair
  16 colors! We have these in our dining room, in gunmetal gray.
19. Umbra OH! Arm Chair
  You know where the name comes from? You sit down and exclaim “OH!” when you realize how comfy it is.
20. Red Josephine Desk
  X-bases for the win. Plus a fold-down drawer!
August 12, 2015
So You Need a Leather Dining Chair
There’s a leather chair, with a certain shape and metal legs, that has been popping up here and there lately. Have you noticed it, too? Sort of a cushier version of Charlotte Perriand’s les arc chairs. After coming across one for the fourth time, I took it as a sign to round them up and present them to you, for you may have need of a good looking leather dining chair. I try to be helpful like that.
1. Roadhouse Leather Chair, CB2, $249 (also shown in the first photo)
2. Leather Schoolhouse Chair, Rejuvenation, $219
3. Fernando Chair, Jayson Home, ~~$695~~ $566
4. Giron Brown Leather Chair, ABC Carpet & Home, $745
May 6, 2015
Making it Yours 12A: Lincoln and Dhurrie Armchairs
We have the first two of our designs up from this edition of Making it Yours today! I’m decorating around both the Lincoln and Dhurrie chairs, showing how each can be used throughout a person’s life, seeing them through different stages and different styles. Let’s meet our fictional friend, Marie.

Marie likes to sing. Loudly. She’s shy about it though, at first limiting her performances to coincide with her morning shower, and later when her roommate moved out, she’d perform encores throughout the day while doing chores or cooking dinner. She won’t get on stage for karaoke and isn’t into the whole bar scene, but she throws parties on a whim just about every month. She knows everything about astrology but doesn’t believe in it, loves big, goofy dogs, and always wears a crazy hat. She’s about to turn thirty, and has been working a lot of late nights but is starting to make decent money. She’s fun, happy, and bright, and wants her apartment to be too.
1. Dhurrie Chair, Anthropologie • Lincoln Chair, Pottery Barn
2. Block Print Ikat Lumbar Pillow, Furbish
3. Seachange Print, Jenny Vorwaller
4. Yes, Please Print: Martha Rich, 20×200
5. Paint: Flush Pink, Behr
6. Wood Pole Scholar Floor Lamp: Avalon Sea, Target
7. Perfect Throw: Mandarin, West Elm
8. Laguna Seagrass Baskets: Juice, Serena & Lily
9. Upton Faceted Leg Buffet, West Elm
10. Frosted Blue Vase Collection, Terrain
11. Rosie Table Lamp, CB2
12. Balloon Animal Bookend, The Land of Nod
13. Stockholm Nesting Tables, IKEA
14. Avec Apartment Sofa: Sea Salt, CB2 • Avec Apartment Sofa: Peacock, CB2
15. Colorblock Linen Pillow,: Emerald & Pool, Society Social • Magical Thinking Neon Rag Pillow, Urban Outfitters
16. Ojo de Dios Rug, Arro Home
For this first post, I kept the looks fairly similar, swapping out only a few things to achieve the same overall look. I’ll be taking a different approach next time though, which I’ll be sharing next week!
August 14, 2014