As you all know I'm up to my third forehead wrinkle with kitchen renovation plans. Figuring out where stuff goes, when to order things, what day cabinets will or will not arrive.
Plus of course, there's keeping up with the blog, the animals, the house. And I was hired for a rather fun, but time consuming, side job last week (which I'll tell you about later). These are all things I need to do. Not just should do, but need to. Otherwise, you go unentertained, I make no money, the animals die and the house falls in on me, with my little nostrils peeking out of a landslide of garbage for their very last breath.
So it should come as no surprise at all that I am spending 12 - 14 hours hours of the day ... looking for a living room chair. That I don't need.
It all started with a chair from Urban Barn. A very retro looking leather chair. And then the search for the chair I don't need became an ongoing, never ending obsession. I have no idea why.
I'm sure a psychologist well versed in midcenturymodernitus could probably pull it all out of me in less time than it takes to skim an old issue of Dwell magazine.
What I needed was a midcentury modern wingback chair. Not an easy thing to come across. So I widened my horizons and decided I'd accept other offers that beckoned to me as well.
These are some of the wingback chairs I came across in my Internet travels.
Lawrence Peabody on Etsy - moulded plastic midcentury modern chair
Crate & Barrel - gray new traditional chair
Lawson-Fenning - blue/gray velvet chair
Costco - bonded leather chair
Restoration Hardware - curved lines, beige chair
Urban Barn - retro inspired leather chair
Ikea - gray and orange chairs
Etsy - houndstooth chair
Lawson-Fenning - beige chair with sharp lines
West Elm - black leather, button back chair
Made - yellow chair
Some of the chairs I love, some I like and some I'm not sure about. What I am sure of is, I may not need a new chair, but I want one. And that's a dangerous thing.
Once I tried to ignore the fact that I wanted french fries. For 3 days I fought the urge. Then, on the 4th day, my head exploded.
True story.
Which would make an even bigger mess in the house I'd have to clean up. Seems smarter to just buy a chair.
Susan U
Urban Barn chair gets my vote. Classic with mid century flair. Timeless.
Adrienne
That last one is fab.u.lous. But not a fan of the yellow.
Sera
West elm had a grey plaid wingback chair that both my husband and I were coveting and when we finally got up the inclination to do something about it, they had discontinued the grey plaid fabric!! Grr. The chair was even comfortable! We did sit in the ikea one and it isn't very comfy.
I vote for the urban barn chair. It's beautiful and has character that most of the rest don't have.
Further, you've inspired me to hunt for a wingback-esque dining chair. I have now had a third successful thanksgiving dinner where we had to move our couch and chair into our kitchen in order to make room for one long table to seat 19 in our living room. Now we're hungover and lounging in our kitchen "living room" trying to dream up ways to keep this coziness and still have a table in the kitchen.
Karen
LOL! My sister actually has full sized, regular chairs at the heads of her dining room table. They're GREAT. Makes you feel like you're there for a good amount of eating. ~ karen!
Sera
Seriously! You inspired a four hour internet trolling for chairs. Once again, I am faced with the fact that I have very expensive taste and a wallet with flies and dust in it. But, apparently west elm still does make that plaid wing back the guy at the store just didn't know it (I could insult his intelligence, but he's just a poor sap working in retail, no need to be rude). http://www.westelm.com/products/victor-chair-plaid-wool-g792/?pkey=cliving-room-seating&cm_src=living-room-seating||NoFacet-_-NoFacet-_--_-
I still don't have enough for it or the $4800 one I saw at hayneedle. Hopefully, I'll get lucky like some of your other commenters and find a couple on the street. Maybe it won't even be raining that day.
Karen
Sera - I LOVE that chair!!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!! I really, really do! ~ karen
Patty
I'd go with that one posted from west elm. That is a nice chair.
Julia at Home on 129 Acres
Of course I love the Lawson-Fenning chair. Give me a list and I will invariably pick the most expensive option. I got the Standmon for my birthday (see the story here: http://homeon129acres.wordpress.com/2013/09/23/birthday-wish-come-true/), and it is a super comfortable chair. I highly recommend it.
Kate
Wing chairs make me shudder. With that out of the way, the Made chair is the only one that caused me to sit up and consider my wallet. I also quite like the IKEA chairs, though much depends on the quality of the construction. Used to have a house full of leather furniture. And four cats. Not one piece left. One cat had a SERIOUS leather love affair. Nothing could keep her from her leather love. Love hurts. Remembrance of dollars spent still smarts.
For your consideration—Not a wing chair, but a handsome midcentury modern design from CB2: http://www.cb2.com/parlour-atomic-orange-chair/f7238
Chris
I agree with Betty (your mom) that Urban Barn is your style. If you want a comparable style but a bit more expensive and made in Canada, try Montauk. http://www.montauksofa.com
When you scroll through the collection it has modern in top left hand corner. It is beautiful and retro-looking.
victoria
can I just MAKE you look at ONE more chair. ..? The Kai chair (named after my son Mokai!) at http://www.dosgallos.com I think you would like it. .. lamb skin and vintage hand spun linen!
Melissa
That is a mighty fine chair, Victoria.
SarahP
Can't believe I'm going to say this but I like the ones from Ikea better than some of the more expensive ones.
rktrixy
My parents, married in '48, got a pair of wingback chairs as a wedding gift. Brown brocade that survived the raising of 6 kids. In '74, Mom had them re-upholstered. Green brocade. Flash forward to '85. Mom and Dad were downsizing. They said they were going to give away the chairs. I said "Don't you dare!". So their next trip to see me, I received 2 green wingback chairs. 20 years later, give or take, I reupholstered them with an Alexander Girard fabric ("names", black on white) and had everything reconditioned and the woodwork painted black.
These are now my chairs. I adore them. They are easy to get in and out of. They support our heads when we nod off. The top of the back serves as a monorail for my cat. I can see that I might have to clean the upholstery more often - the husband I never envisioned having works around cars and trucks... that white is not so white anymore. What the heck. They are not just parts of a space, but they are parts of our home. I hope when I have to "downsize" I can find someone who will love them for the next 100 years.
Stephanie Hobson
Love this story.
Nancy Blue Moon
I pick the Ikea..but then I am very cheap..uh frugal..
Nancy Blue Moon
Oh-My-Gosh..Hi Betty!!!!
Betty
My choice urban barn. Mother knows best.lol.
Karen
OMG!!!!!! When in GOD'S name did you learn how to comment on my website???!!!!! ~ karen
Laura
Hi Betty!!!
Jeannie B
Karen , I'm sorry that you're still suffering. i always thought that migraines were caused by the arteries in your neck, spasming. Anyhow, i hope you'll feel better soon. As for wingback chairs, I love them. Sometimes they're comfortable, sometimes not. My first wingback was a beautiful, rich red which looked wonderful in my white living room. But it wasn't all that comfortable. I now have two and both are wingback recliners. In separate rooms. My favourite is the dark green leather one. Came from Stoney Creek furniture a couple of decades ago.
sandra kleinfeld
I vote for the Urban Barn or the Etsy Lawrence Peabody chair. They seem the most modern and interesting. The Urban Barn chair might be easier to live with for a longer period of time,i.e., that you might not get tired of looking at. But why a wingback chair in the first place?
Rondina
My son loves the wing-back living room chair, so I began looking for one for the guest bedroom. I have found that most wing-back chairs are terribly uncomfortable, so you might want to actually sit in the one you buy if it is actually going to be used. I found one at Pottery Barn that's comfy. They can cover it in a neat burlap colored material with red pin-stripping. I bought a cheap little ottoman that I will recover with matching material that they sell. Happy T-Day to your US readers.
Julie
So, now I'm worried about you! Very unusual to show no comments, which can only mean you haven't been able to approve them. So, now I'm worried that something is wrong. With either you, your computer, or your internet service. Any of which would be sad.
Julie
Or all your commenters are from the US, and they are busy with turkey!
Karen
I'm fine Julie. :) I'm still not feeling great (had a bad migraine the past 2 days) and actually didn't get out of bed until half an hour ago! Thanks for checking up on me though! ~ karen
Marti
I can see why you like that Urban Barn retro chair.
The Restoration Hardware chair seems… odd.
The Costco one reads like a bite of zucchini squash… halfway through the season.
I'm glad your head didn't explode yesterday… which seemed rather possible.
Programming note: don't ever post a migraine on a Friday, huh? You might make the heads of the rest of us explode with concern. :) Happy American Thanksgiving!
Lynne
Funny, isn't it, how you get obsessed with things? Those are some nice chairs, by the way.
My most recent obsession was for a pair of chairs for my living room. I've had various chairs over the years but none have made me truly happy. I'd been searching for the last couple of years - I pine for the basket weave wing chairs from Pottery Barn but with cats there is just no way. They would see them as giant scratching posts. I'd been watching the site of one of the local liquidators for a bit and had spotted a chair I thought I wanted - but when I enquired about it they were no longer available.
Then - serendipity - I was heading out to the grocery store and spotted a wing chair on the side of the road. One of my neighbours was getting ready to move and they were in the process of divesting themselves of some excess furniture. The upholstery was butt ugly but it was in awesome shape. I dashed up to the house, knocked on the door and confirmed that yes, it was FREE!!!! I asked if they could kindly put it on the porch for an hour or so until I'd done my shopping and unloaded the back of my Jeep (which usually looks like I'm ready to leave town on a moment's notice - but that's the way of things for those of us with big vehicles and a tendency to pick up things on the side of the road LOL).
Anyway - long story short - I grabbed another wing chair from the aforementioned liquidators, ordered some nifty fabric on line and got the local upholstery shop to recover both pieces. (I've done my couch a couple of times but I just wasn't up to tackling two wing chairs.) I now have two gorgeous wing chairs in my living room.
Next up, repainting the living room - because changing one major thing is like tipping over the first domino.
Oh, and these guys have a yellow wing chair on the list right now - with the clean lines you seem to be after. Butt ugly upholstery - but at $185 bucks…
http://www.movelineliquidations.com/soft-seating-upholstered-pieces.php
kelli
Well, here's my 2 cents: I hate wingback chairs with the passion of a thous--ok, maybe not that much, but I just think they are "futt bugly." Never understood the how/why or wherefores of a wingback chair ("Wingback?" Where are the wings? I don't see no wings. Is it supposed to fly?")
That being said, and the fact that I too suffer from a *chronic* case of midcenturymodernitis, the only ones that jumped out at me were the Peabody and the last one by Made. The Peabody for obvious reasons and the Made chair because from what I've seen of your place, it would fit in very well IMHO. The IKEA ones, while priced right, may not look that good in a year. Sometimes you get what you pay for.
Secondly, I hope your migraine has gone bye bye and you are able to enjoy some of your yummy chicken without feeling like you have to stay close to bed. Or the porcelain goddess. :( HAPPY THANKSGIVING. Ish. :)
Call Me Patty
Love the Urban Barn chair, and love the Made chair. Those two are MY vote. Need, schmeed......how dull would life be if we only got what we "needed".
Shel
I want a chair or two...but I am inclined toward comfort more than style...and thus have focused on the wingback recliner. Or, I'd have to cough up about half the cost of the chair for an ottoman...which would be a constant invitation for tripping over ala Dick Van Dyke style. I have 3 such recliners in various states of upholstery disrepair that would cost nearly as much to recover as it would to buy new ones. Aack.