Eames molded chairs are a timeless classic that’s experiencing a full-out renaissance. Find me one respectable startup that doesn’t have them surrounding the perimeter of a walnut conference table. But at $300 and up, it’s hard to resist the temptation of a shoddy, outsourced knockoff. Now, Ikea—the king of cheap furniture—is offering a line of chairs that are clearly deeply inspired Eames and the other mid-century chair design gods. In fact, when you really deconstruct the new line, it’s like a Frankenstein collection of greatest hits, from the curvy seat of the Eames molded chair, to the legs and connective tissue of the Jasper Morrison Hal Tube (which was actually made in 2012), to the high arms of the Vico Magistretti Maui chair, to the cello back of the Arne Jacobson Ant Leg chair (technically 2005), to the wood veneer of Jacobson's Series 7 chair. Ikea is offering the options to mix and match these pieces to create your own hybrid, starting at a mere $34 and peaking out at $60.
Of course, a lot has been lost in translation. While all of the original designs were also the products of mass manufacture, Ikea’s chairs simply look cheap. None has the almost impossible to define visual harmony at play in the original specimens. It’s as if you can see the literal corners that have been cut to shave fractions of pennies off the build to make a few extra bucks at scale. But maybe the worse sting is that dorm rooms everywhere will soon approach the same design sensibility as your carefully manicured apartment. Never miss a story. I'd also like to receive special Fast Company offersAfter seeing the fake Apple Chinese store, I was pretty much prepared to see a knockoff store of anything. Who could they steal from next? Instead, they copied the pride (or bane) of Sweden: Ikea. I don't know how the enterprising Billion do it but they're pretty damn good at replicating every little detail. MIC Gadget has a slew of pictures and you can see the blue tarp Ikea bags, the I'm-so-stylish room setups, the color scheme, heck, even the signage looks the same.
Unlike the fake Apple store though, 11 Furniture (the real name of the fake Ikea) isn't selling real Ikea products. Instead, they're using their own furniture which some say is better quality than Ikea's (hard to believe, I know).What's amazing is that 11 Furniture is in the same city as the fake Apple store (Kunming)! What's next, copying a whole city? For the record, 11 Furniture has taken offense to the claim that they're an Ikea clone. Which is, um, delusional. One thing they didn't steal from Ikea though? 11 Furniture went with Chinese minced pork and eggs instead. Not sure how I feel about that. Check out all the pictures at MIC Gadget. Sectional leather/coated fabric sofas Sectional faux leather sofas Leather & faux leather sofas IKEA FAMILY products & offers Leather armchairs in all styles We have a range of leather armchairs in all IKEA stores, available in a number of shapes, colors and styles designed to add a touch of luxury and comfort to your home.
Whether you prefer soft but hard-wearing leather, or a more textured and robust feel to your home furnishings, we have something that’s just right for you. We also have the ABSORB leather care set to make cleaning and caring for your new leather armchair easy, to keep it looking great for a long, long time. Leather armchairs: your style for your home At IKEA, we understand that furniture is a matter of individual taste, so we’ve provided a varied, high-quality, affordable selection of leather armchairs. If you’re looking for a more professional-looking soft leather chair, check out the MELLBY or KARLSFORS options. Those after a slightly more laid-back design should take a look at the ARVIKA range, combining a swivel armchair with a comfortable matching footstool. Our POÄNG series of swivel chairs gives you a great choice of colors, all easily looked after by our ABSORB cleaning products. Whatever your preference, there’s a leather armchair that’s just right for you.
• — not member yet ? I bought a Siesta chair and ottoman off of craigslist (came from an estate sale apparently). The chair looks great and original to my untrained eye, but it has an odd armrest that I can find no information about. I don't know much about the different variations of the Siesta Chair, but I was only able to find a single image of a similar one online. The canvas and leather look worn out enough for it to be original, but there is no sticker on the bottom. I'm just curious if it's an original chair or a good copy. The picture is the one I found online, but I can take another one of my own chair if there's interest. The RUB Antique Company 3 x Ingmar Relling, Spring... Lounge chair Siesta from...Read more on PRF The price reflects selected options CA, East Palo Alto Go to POÄNG series Confession time: When I wrote the ultimate IKEA shopping list, the POÄNG chair was mysteriously missing from the bunch. Truthfully, I turned my nose up at this chair for way too long.
It was just so quintessentially and so obviously IKEA. But you know what? Every time I see the $100-ish POÄNG in person or in photos, the damn thing always looks amazing. A little history to put everything in perspective: The POÄNG Chair is one of IKEA's longest-running and best-selling designs. It was introduced in 1977 as the POEM (the name changed to POÄNG in 1992) and designed by Noboru Nakamura, a Japanese IKEA designer who was given the task of creating an "armchair for life." Because it has been around such a long while, the iterations you see here (including the matching footstool & of course the rocking chair version) might not be the same exact form you would buy today. But the clean lines, bent frame and gentle rocking motion should all be very familiar as soon as you bring it home and settle in for a sit. Above: An IKEA POÄNG in a new, orange slipcover from Bemz, just one way to elevate the look. Toni and Patrick's Floridian Flat on Pop Sugar (Image credit: Pop Sugar)