It's all in the detail

Photo via Eames Office

This wonderful picture of an aluminum group chair upholstered in Alexander Girard hopsack requires little introduction and no actual words, except perhaps this equally wonderful quote written by Charles and Ray Eames …

"The details are not the details;  they make the product."

An Armchair

This.  An 'armchair' that is currently not on public view at the Los Angles County Museum of Art.  When it first popped up in my Pinterest feed I thought 'no, no, no, it's all wrong' … my default position being strictly DCW.  No deviations please.  And that means no arms.  I wasn't sure if I liked the look of a DCW with arms.  But it's since grown on me.  It's difficult not to fall for all those curves.  Come to think of it, it's difficult not to fall for this one full stop.  Why it never made the cut is worthy of some research … someone?

Found via Obsessilicious on Pinterest … his Eamesilicious board is definitely worth following!

edit #4

EDIT : a place for objects that have caught my eye, ideas I'd like to explore, inspiration I'd like to capture …

I love this look by Studio Nicholson - in fact I've been swotting up on Nick Wakeman and her minimalist womenswear label and I'm sold
PCK wire chairs by Eames, yes please and thank you
Ib Kofod-Larsen's Kandidaten sofa - the craftsmanship, shape and materials … what more can I say
My fascination with peeling paint continues unabated … just look at the wonderful texture it creates
For no other reason than just liking this picture of an arrow
I'm smitten with the cherry wood structure of the Cesta table lamp designed by Miguel Mila in 1964

shell spotting

photos via Fastighetsbyrån | styling by Tina Hellberg

That armshell.  Come on, that colour … which I'm fairly certain is 'Tan Dark' from Herman Miller's contract range, but correct me if I'm wrong.

I need it.  Like, now.

What do you see?

photos by Petra Bindel for Herman Miller | styling by Lotta Agaton

I know, I'm late to the party with this one. A few months ago my PINTEREST feed was awash with these images as was just about every blog I cared to visit. Interestingly - and this is more a reflection of the feeds I follow and the blogs I tend to read - these pictures made the headlines because of the styling, or rather the stylist, and not necessarily because of the chairs.

The interior stylist in question is LOTTA AGATON, and back in February I got wind she was heading over to Michigan to work with none other than HERMAN MILLER.  I couldn't wait to see the results. Why? Because I wouldn't have necessarily put these two names together.

Last year Lotta styled STRING for their stand at DESIGN JUNCTION. I went along for a gander, and standing there surrounded by Lotta's props made me feel like a child in a sweet shop.  There was so much to see. The shelves went up and up and each one was meticulously filled with complementing paper goods interspersed with desk lamps and odd, but always interesting, curios. The palatte was simple. White. With a bit of neutral thrown in for good measure.  It was fascinating.  Did I notice the String? No, not really.  But then I wasn't there for the STRING.

Lotta Agaton working for STRING, or STRING working with Lotta Agaton I get. The shelving system was after all designed by fellow Swede Nils Strinning.  And shelves are supposed to have stuff on them, that's what they're for.  So it makes sense I suppose to show the shelves off with, well, stuff on them.  But chairs?  I mean the most inticing of chairs is an empty chair.  An empty chair is an open invitation, it says what it needs to say, which is nothing more than 'sit here'.  But a HERMAN MILLER chair, an iconic chair, a design classic … no styling required, surely?

I'm happy to see the chairs have been left to speak for themselves. The 'new' fibreglass shells which HERMAN MILLER is once again able to produce thanks to new production methods look as good as the original designs by Eames from way back when.  And while these 'reissues' are a little too new for my vintage tastes, there's no denying that set against these calm yet equally atmospheric backdrops they certainly look the business.

As for the styling, it's as subtle as it is Scandinavian. I adore the use of plywood and the hints of a set design to the left or right of shot. And the moods created by the deep green and that melancholy grey. And the sprinkling of statement accessories such as the 265 wall lamp by FLOS, posters by PLAYTYPE and the BERGMAN LIGHTS as well as the interesting bits and bobs which may up the desk top displays.

So I admit it … I admit to being drawn in by the impeccably styled nature of these images.  But it's the furniture that holds my gaze.

Texture

Photos via Vincenzo De Cotiis Architects

And boom, just like that I return with these breathtaking images of a private residence in Brescia designed by VINCENZO DI COTIIS.  Those walls.  That furniture.  I'm not entirely sure if I could live in this space 24/7 but I'd be willing to give it a go.  And if it didn't work out, I'd tuck a few (read all) of those La Fonda chairs into my suitcase and leave without a trace!

classic cool

photos by Birgitta Wolfgang Drejer for Alt for Damerne

This is the Copenhagen apartment I referred to in a previous POST … you know, the one that had a living room containing not one but two armshells sitting on cats cradle bases.  For me, it was love at first sight.  And I'm not just talking about the chairs.  I find the simplicity of the entire living space and its furnishings so appealing - cool, classic and understated.  

I'm obviously working hard to recreate this look in my own home.  I've got the armshells, I just need everything else.  Plus higher ceilings!

A girl can dream

Photos via Circa Modern

Strip, dye or clean and make do?

I have a thing for Eames.  Not expensive, shiny ones in tip-top condition.  I like to leave those to the serious collector, the connoisseur, the money-is-no-object kinda folk.  Instead, I plump for the less expensive option … the DIY project.  And so, prompted entirely from seeing a picture of a living room containing not one, but two black armshells each sitting atop a cats cradle base, I headed over to that well-known auction website … 'cause that's how I get my kicks.  It wasn't long before I spotted a pair of 'vintage armshells (LARs) on low rod lounge black bases … rare examples of black fibreglass featuring snow white fibres swirling through pure black resin …".  Dreamy or what?  I needed them in my life, but they were perfect (read pricey) so I kept looking, and bingo.  A couple of 'Herman Miller made, Eames swivel desk chairs, brown fabric covering - stained,  fiberglass shells, good honest condition, perfect for restoration'.  They had my name written all over them.

I am cheap.  I have no shame.  I'd strip the brown upholstery, loose those bases with their shiny castors - check out those castors if you will - and bag me a couple of cats cradle bases from somewhere.  Life would be sweet, I would feel smug.

In my rush to formulate a bidding strategy which would involve winning both chairs (they were listed separately, and the auction end times were minutes apart … pressure) I overlooked the due diligence.  I'm usually thorough when it comes to the DD, but in all the excitement I made a few rash assumptions.  Like, the bases will be attached to fixed shocks.  And, cats cradle bases are probably fairly easy to come by.

There is good and bad news.  The good being I won both chairs.  The bad being the bases are attached with loose washers and cats cradle bases are about as rare as hen's teeth.  My original plan had been to end up with perfect shells - and by perfect I mean hole-free.  This ain't gonna happen as there are four screw holes lurking beneath that brown hopsack which by my reckoning equals dashed plans.  I could of course cover up the holes in a 'PUT A SHEEPSKIN ON IT' sort of way, but deep down I'd still know those blasted holes were there.

Back to square one?  I'm not so sure.  I don't do brown.  But I do do black.  I could dye the hopsack.  Black.  Yes, that's right.  It's been done BEFORE and the results look pretty good. And I'm tempted to give it a go.  But then I'm tempted to give it a go about as much as I'm tempted not to bother.  It looks messy, not to mention hit and miss.

I'm still in a state of turmoil, as are the chairs.  To strip, dye or clean and make do?

Material needs

from CHAIRSMITH to HAUSSMITH

we now sell mid-twentieth century furniture, lighting, art and objects

come and say hello at HAUSSMITH.COM

photography Anders Hvidd for Vipp and Milk Decoration

I cannot express how much I love this Hamburg apartment.  The dramatic use of black, the concrete detailing, the 'dance floor' parquet, the wood panelling, the uncomplicated styling.  Clean lines and beautiful materials combined with a subtle blend of vintage and contemporary is right up my street.  And move over Eames, I need to get my hands on a Smorkin' Labbit stool designed by Frank Kozik … some might say politically incorrect, I say FUN!  Oh, and that kitchen.  Give it to me.

Found via APRIL AND MAY

it's all about me

Eames LAR, Circa Modern | Artwork, Conrad Jon Godly | Quote via Lotta Agaton | Interior for Elle Decoration - ph. Pia Ulin, stylist Lotta Agaton | Candle, Ontwerpduo

Now I've ditched CHAIRSMITH, I've ditched talking in the first person plural.  And I prefer it this way.  When I first started blogging it was all about the subject matter.  The person behind the words was an irrelevance, and therefore I chose to take a back seat.  Opting to write as if there was more than one person behind CHAIRSMITH also allowed me to be anonymous, to have no identity - and this is something I felt comfortable with at the time.  But a few years down the line things began to get tricky.  At times, I was unable to write the words I wanted to write because sentences become too burdensome to formulate using 'we' or 'us'.  I abandoned tweets I wanted to send or reply to as I'd be unable to make the language work.  But I counterbalanced this with the personal amusement gained from observations and comments other folk continually made about CHAIRSMITH.  Not once was I mistaken for a female.  On the contrary, I lost count of the times I'd receive comments which included the words 'he', him', 'chap/s', 'Mr' and 'guys'.

What? Don't chicks do mid-century modern? They do. I know. But perhaps modern chair design is more synonymous with the male of the species, whereas the fairer sex are typecast as preferring chinz and over-stuffed upholstery.  I don't know, but it's worth dwelling on for a moment.

Moment over.

Two things happened towards towards the end of my career at CHAIRSMITH (and please feel free to laugh at the 'career' reference) which culminated in my name - my actual, real name - being published alongside the name of my former blog.  This was weird.  It looked weird.  It felt weird.  But it turned out to be the moment I'd been waiting for - an opportunity to come clean about the real me.  And now I like being me, and having a name and communicating using words like 'I' and 'me'.  And I quite like having an about page, about me.

Hey, it's all about me!

moving on

The clue's in the title, right?  I've decided it's time to move on and bid farewell to this old blog of mine.  You may recall I toyed with the idea of putting the brakes on CHAIRSMITH sometime ago, but I carried on for the sake of .... well, that's just the point, for the sake of what?  Bogged down with chairs, chairs, chairs, I felt tied to the bloody things.  Don't get me wrong, I like chairs* ... but I like other stuff too.

I turned my back on this place and started afresh elsewhere.  I joined the good ship Instagram using a different nom de plume and have enjoyed the experience thus far.  And Instagram doesn't involve writing too many words ... brilliant!  Over there I've not strayed too far from what I know and have widened my subject area only slightly - from chair-related nonsense to home-related nonsense - but change is as good as a rest, or so they say, and the rest has been a welcome one.  And change is good.  But.  And there is a but.  I've missed blogging.  I've missed words!

So let's cut to the chase.  I've recently been working on a new format - new blog, new name, blah, blah.  I'll reveal all once this new venture goes live, but before I sign off here for good, I wanted to take the time to say a big thank you to each and every one of you for keeping this CHAIRSMITH thing afloat. I've enjoyed the ride, and it's bought opportunities I could never have imagined when I set-off on my chair-documenting journey. Healthy readership coupled with reader engagement is what it's all about, and I'm so happy I've been able to experience both.  From regular readers to those that dip their toes in to research particular designs or designers, I'm truly grateful you took the time to stop by.

Stay tuned ... and get ready to redirect your browsers!

* Not all chairs

mix

Here's one we made a while ago and looking over the images again we've realised how top-heavy we are on lighting. There are some really beautiful pieces here - the Tab T lamp designed by Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby for FLOS is a classic in the making and the large Spica Light from IACOLI & MCALLISTER is simply breath-taking. But our favourite has to be the WALL LIGHT designed in the 1950s that sits on a teak and metal arm ... that one's right up our street.

Images:
Brutalist wall relief, Art of Vintage | Armshell, Modern Love via Design Addict | Interior, Marjon Hoogervorst | Wall Light, City-Furniture | Spica Light, Iacoli & McAllister | Interior, Dwell | Tab T Light, Yvonne Koné and Line Klein | Staircase via Emmas DesignBlogg

restoration

Remember THIS?  Well remember away, 'cause that baby is yesterday's news.

So, how do you restore an Eames shell?  Easy.  First you read (and re-read) the ins and outs of restoring an Eames shell on CHAIRFAG, and for the sake of completeness head over to see how PLASTOLUX tackled a similar job  All good, except we were dealing with something a little different - a shell which, in a previous life, had been upholstered with naugahyde or fabric ... whichever, whatever.  What next?  Thankfully we were au fait with the goings on at MANHATTAN NEST, and it just so happened that Daniel had already undertaken a comparable RESTORATION with quite spectacular results.

We didn't deviate that much from the tried-and-tested way of doing things, but here's a few out-of-the-ordinaries we came up against:

Foam remnants: This was fairly dried out. Not flaky dry you understand - no, that would have been too easy. To remove this, our tool of choice was a bog standard kitchen knife. Using the tip of the non-serrated edge at just the right angle we scraped back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth ... like, forever.

Adhesive:  We managed to get rid of all but the most stubborn smears of adhesive using a fine sanding sponge lightly soaked in water.  Daniel at MANHATTAN NEST had left us a helpful COMMENT regarding a product he'd heard great things about called 'SOY-IT' to strip the adhesive off.  Upon further investigation, it turns out that here in the UK you can only buy vat loads of this stuff at a time. Great.  What next?  Oh yeah, that trusty workshop staple - nail polish remover.  Ah-huh.  Yeap.  It worked.

Discolouration:  We now had the beginnings of a great looking shell, but there was discolouration in the fibreglass between the area we'd worked on compared to the fibreglass which had been foam/adhesive free for some time.  Not to worry ... electric sander time.

Penetrol:  Except Penetrol over here is called Owatrol, and Owatrol sell about ten thousand different products ... it's this OWATROL OIL you'll need.

We covered the SHOCKS in a previous post and found ourselves a H-base courtesy of that well-known auction website ... everything fitted nicely, thank you very much.  It ain't perfect - it has three holes in the seat and the shock mount adhesive has bleed through the fibreglass.  Do we care?  No, no we don't.

♡