March 2, 2008 by clander When white people envision their dream home, a key part of the fantasy involves a least one piece of furniture designed by a famous architect from the 1930s. Architects like Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier designed iconic modern furniture that has inspired virtually everything made by Ikea and Design Within Reach, both of which are key suppliers of furniture to white people. But as with all things, white people will do whatever it takes to secure authenticity including paying thousands of dollars for a small piece of furniture. If they are able to acquire this prized furniture, they will forever refer to it only by the designers name. “I spend hours in the van der Rohe, just looking through these beautiful books of his work.” Referring to a white person’s expensive chair as a ‘chair’ is considered poor form and will likely result in a loss of trust and/or respect. The best strategy for avoiding this faux pas is to look for the most uncomfortable chair in a white person’s home and ask “who designed that?”
If they say “Ikea” or “Design within Reach” you can call it a chair, otherwise refer to it only by the name they give you. It should also be noted that many white people are unable to acquire this furniture, but that does not mean you cannot use this information to your advantage. In situations where you need to improve your connection with a white person, just mention how you hope to be successful enough to one day afford an original piece of furniture by . If they have heard of the designer they will nod in agreement, if they have not, they will also nod in agreement and make a note to look it up later. In either case, your status will rise.The Eames model 670 lounge chair and 671 ottoman are undoubtedly the most recognizable pieces of mid century modern furniture and the most copied. The 670 lounge set was designed by Charles and Ray Eames; the famous husband-and-wife team that literally changed the course of commercial design starting in the early 1940s.
The lounge chair was designed in 1956 for the Herman Miller furniture company and was a venture into the high-end home and office market. The lounge set would be the most expensive item produced by the Eameses, and it was an immediate hit with the public thanks to great marketing and an introduction on the Arlene Francis’ “Home Show,” which later became the “Today” show. So, how do you tell real from a knock-off? The easiest way to tell, usually, is if the chair has visible screws in the wood shells. If there are screws, then it is a fake. The real design is free of screws, and this seamless look is what Charles and Ray were striving for. The real chair is held together with rubber shock-mounts glued to the wood under the cushions, and for many companies trying to reproduce the chair, this was just too time consuming of a process to copy, so they opted for visible screws. Not to mention the patent rights Herman Miller had on the mount design. Most real Eames chairs are signed with paper labels, round metal discs or long thin black labels.
The label can also be used to date the chair, but we will get into that later with my next article on this design. These labels can fall off or be removed with ease, so not every Eames lounge will be signed because of this. Another way to tell is looking at the base of the chair. The real lounge has a five-star base of aluminum with black finish and adjustable foot glides marked “domes of silence” on the rubber portion. This base swivels but is in a fixed reclining position. The fakes often have four-star bases with big springs as a rocking mechanism. If the chair has a spring/rocking base, or if the base has wood on it, then it is a fake. Rarely do you see knock-offs with real leather cushions, but they have turned up, especially the newer knock-offs from Italy and Asia. The true chair will have real leather cushions—never vinyl—with either foam or down-fill. Some special-ordered chairs were in fabric, but these are rare examples. Also, the ottoman cushion is the same size as the seat cushion.
Many fake chairs will have smaller ottomans. The arms are another way to tell real from fake. The real chair has large, angled armrests which actually fold over the sitting area thus adding more comfort and hiding the construction of the wood shells. Many times you will see the fakes with simple, elevated oval armrests that are thin and bolted to the wood shells. Once again, if you see visible bolts or screws to the wood shells, then it’s a fake! If you are not a purist, then a knock-off can be quite the value. A vintage Eames lounge by Herman Miller can fetch upwards of $4,000 in excellent condition. New versions are even $3,000, but a copy can be had for anywhere from $200 at your local antique shop, and they turn up on eBay quite often with a price range from $450 to $750, depending on condition. But I can personally say there is nothing like the quality, comfort and investment value of a true vintage Eames lounge chair and ottoman. Charles Eames said his goal for the chair was to have the “warm, receptive look of a well-used first baseman’s mitt.”
If you ever get a chance to own a real Eames lounge, then you will see first hand his goal was met! Other articles about the Eames Lounge Chair by Bradley Downs: • Telling the Age of Your Vintage (or Newer) Eames Lounge • How to Tell if a Eames Lounge Chair Has Been Repaired Join WorthPoint on Twitter and Facebook.19 pics of dads who said they didn't want a dogThis week we had 3 fun projects to work on. They are now all available at Hawthorne Vintage Modern. The first was an Eames style lounge chair and ottoman. The wood and upholstery need a lot of work but the base for each piece was nice and stable. The refinishing process went very well and we chose to upholster it in a popular Pendleton wool pattern. Secondly, I was very lucky to have found this rare Danish chair. It was designed by Tove & Edvard Kindt-Larsen for France & Daverkosen. One of the nice design elements it has is teak armrests inset in the oak frame. Her is a picture of the frame as I found it.
Lastly, we upholstered this American lounge chair and ottoman. I had to wait in an ice storm for two hours to get this chair but it was worth the wait. After: American mid century sofa newly upholstered in Pendleton wool. Reclining lounge chair by Adrian Pearsall for Craft Associates // Sold Lastly we found this Danish solid teak vanity by Kibaek Mobelfabrik. We were fortunate to have found this neat Norwegian sofa & chair. Here they are refinished and reupholstered. Lastly, we also upholstered this 100'' long vintage sofa. Pair of newly upholstered lounge chairs by Milo Baughman for Thayer Coggin. Dux style lounge chair. Eames style lounge chair and ottoman in black vinyl // Sold We are always on the lookout for a gondola sofa but they can be tough to track down. We were lucky to track this one down. It is now reupholstered and available at Hawthorne Vintage Modern Mid century American lounge chair and ottoman // Sold Drexel dining set: 6 Drexel Parallel chairs & Drexel Declaration table // Sold