dear doris. where did you get that chair from?
issue 12 ♡ the art of of sourcing chairs & selling with heart — with vintage scout
dear doris. where did you get that (insert epic vintage chair) from? love chair-person.
dear chair-person,
higher self doris is sitting this one out on a heavenly cloud lounger this week. this post is one hundred percent earth-bound dee(sign) and an ode to any soul who has ever uttered the words #ilovechair.
the short answer. i found that *insert vintage chair* either on the side of the road, trawling through gumtree, the local flea/swap-meet market, at an op-shop/thrift store or from a pre-loved seller on socials.
the long answer. i felt it would be best to ask the unofficial chairperson of all chair-people — aka emma travaglini from vintage scout. em would kindly shares her stories, knowledge and behind the scenes shenanigans in being a vintage furniture scout. this takes form in an audio interview where we deep dive into the world of vintage furniture from mid-century to italian classics to Y2K ikea.
if you you’re not in the mood for two sand-groper mums banging on about old chairs and frothing on picking up sh** off the side of the road — this is not for you. if you prefer the joy of silent reading — i have made chair cliff-notes which accompany the podcast.
below is a chair reference guide below to the classics uttered by vintage scout in this interview. this includes a drawing, brief description and just for fun ratings out of 10 — for their looks and seat-ability. please feel free to pass your own chair-person judgements in comments.
listen by pressing play ▶️ below. while you listen, scroll through the illustrations to match the name of said iconic piece. enjoy :)
chair cliff-notes. or foot stool notes.
the wassily by marcel breuer. this is the designers most iconic piece. breuer designed this epic chair in 1925 inspired by a bicycle frame. made from curbing tubes of steel and leather slings that create a seat that is ergonomic and legit comfortable. originally known as the pretty boring name model B3 but later named wassily after wassily kandinsky at the bauhaus school of design. this chair stands the test of time with its handsome form and minimal good looks.
i found a wassily via vintage scout on gumtree five years ago. it was formerly her dad’s chair — and i am grateful to her father’s good taste in furniture for this kismet meeting.
10/10 for looks. 9/10 for seat-ability
the z stool by mariani. made from heavy gauge chrome-plated steel tubing with caned rattan seats and signature z shape cantilever base in the 70’s in italy. with a wide base and sturdy design, it serves well as a bar stool however lacks back support for sitters who prefer to lean back.
we have one of these stools originally sourced from vintage scout. initially it was used as a cute make-up chair shoots in the kawa heart studio. it’s now found its home in our lady california kitchen sitting with an island home.
8/10 looks. 7/10 seat-ability
the cesca chair by marcel breuer. the cesca was first manufactured by thonet in 1928 using a design by breuer. similar to the wassily the design was inspired by bicycles and their tubular frame. the design was named in honour of breuer’s daughter francesca — affectionately called cesca.
from styling use, i have found this chair to work in any kind of interior space — its a classic chair for this reason. these have become ubiquitous and pop up often on pre-loved platforms or with the seats damaged on the side of the road. with some patience they can be re-caned and are a great chair to mix into the vintage furniture famiglia. in the podcast, vintage scout shares with us her tale of rescuing and restoring a set of these back to life.
8/10 looks 8/10 seat-ability
a carver chair. a dining or occasional chair with arms is called a carver. this variety over its arm-free brother is often found at the end of a table where the head of the household would sit and traditionally would carve meat. hence — the carver seat. vintage scout em is a carver connoisseur.
9/10 looks. 8/10 seat-ability.
s34 chair designed by mart stam. the evolutionary cantilever s34 was the first of its kind moving away from the traditional four legs. a cantilever chair has seating and framework held up by a single leg and bent in an L shape that serves as the supporting base.
i have found a few stams' sourced second hand from gumtree. they are great for styling as they are extremely photogenic by themselves, with a sitter or product. they are ever so slightly better looking than they are comfortable — just slightly.
9/10 looks seat-ability 8/10
the safari chair by kaare klint. the designer behind this classic chair is considered the father of danish furniture design. the safari was originally conceived for army officers who would be on the move and required a chair that could be assembled quickly and dismantled to throw onto the back of a horse or elephant. it can be assembled in minutes and is extra comfortable considering it’s made from basically a bunch of sticks and canvas ingeniously assembled together (see dismantling video here)
i found one of these chairs after casually trawling gumtree for about five years with saved searches. they do sporadically show up on second-hand marketplaces. the safari is our paint guys chair of choice. i have been given strict instructions to not ever sell it.
9/10 looks 8/10 comfortability.
the pretzel chair is attributed to paul frankl. the designer was born in austria and moved to los angeles in the 30’s and completely vibed with the west coast climate and lifestyle. he was inspired by eastern forms and materials and one of the first to incorporate free-form and biomorphic shapes — which resulted in the cane pretzel lounge.
this is one of my all-time favourite chairs — lightweight, super cute, suits old homes from various eras and looks right at home on a timber deck. i found a 3-piece lounger on eBay almost a decade ago which has stood the test of time.
the tulip chair by eero saarinen. this classic was designed in the 50’s for the furniture house knoll. the retro tulip made history as the first one-legged chairs with its pedestal base inspired by a flower stem.
the tulip is one of the most comfortable dining chairs i have ever had the chance to plant my behind in. i found a second hand set from ebay seven years ago and they have almost perfect seat-ability, swivel-bility and curve neatly under a round table. vintage scout tells us in the podcast that she grew up with a set in her family home.
looks 8/10 seat-ability 10/10
the maralunga designed by vico magistretti for cassini in 1974. the maralunga is renowned for its comfort with an adjustable headrest for a high or low backrest. it was designed with a simple bicycle chain inside the foam of the backrest to allow easy adjustment. we didn’t get a chance to cover the plush leather base on this one in the audio interview however it deserves a mention, as it is vintage scouts’ numero uno chair.
10/10 looks 10/10 seat-ability
if it's beautiful. if it’s practical. it will always stand the test of time. always — vintage scout
for anyone who wants to start collecting classic chairs and you don’t know where to start — second hand is always a good idea. previous issue #6 is all about vintage finds and episode #2 dives into how to start collecting.
love d x x
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I did some recycling and upscaling projects with an art group in Bolton using old chairs. It was an amazing experience.
how did they end up? would love to see. i upcycled a chair once upon a time with green velvet and coined it “library chic”. x