Monday, August 20, 2007

VINTAGE LEATHER ARMCHAIR: one of the "musts"

Trendy as they may be, vintage leather armchairs need to be comfortable. Open the debate: do we sacrifice looks in the name of comfort (i.e. go for a reproduction) or do we make no concession to our nether regions and stick with the weathered and sleek look of an original early 20th cent. specimen (ideally a vintage Vanity Fair armchair by Potrona Frau)?

As always, there are added complications: repro is not only a concept to be avoided at all costs but it often fails to guarantee the very comfort in the name of which we sacrificed our design integrity!
Lets look at some figures to better understand the options available. At the time of writing the cheapest repro (top picture) could be bought for approx. £300 on the internet. Poltrona Frau were selling their Vanity Fair (new, as shown above in red) for ten times as much. I doubt a good vintage specimen of the Vanity Fair would cost any less. Time seems to have failed to alter the design as well as the price tag of this classic.
On that basis the sensible solution seems to be, as always, the most time consuming: finding an importer of French originals who is willing to work with you on therestoration process. Hopefully this will ensure the chair is re-sprung and restored where necessary and a gorgeous leather can be chosen if complete re-upholstery is required. Interior design: the art of seemless compromise...
Note: if money and time are no object you know what to do.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi! Great Review!

Thought you might like to know about this used set of Poltrona Frau, Vanity Fair Club Chair & Love Seat we have for sale.

We're selling the set for US $4,200. I know that you're in London... and it is pretty expensive to ship from the US to England.

We're in Venice CA... perhaps one of your readers on this side of the pond would like a used set!

Please follow the link to read all about it!

http://www.surfingcowboys.com/redleloseclc.html

All the best, Love your blog.
Donna & The Surfing Cowboys Team

R. Schwendeman said...

Nice. Thanks for including the photo as well, which really shows what vintage leather armchairs look like in their original form before they have been cleaned up. Where did you get that particular shot? Would love to use it on our own furniture blog....

Pia Paleologo INTERIORS said...

Brownrigg Interiors is an antique shop in Petworth. I drop in every time I am in West Sussex as they always have wonderful stock. If you want to have a look at their website (and the vintage armchairs in particular) the address is http://www.brownrigg-interiors.com
That's where I must have got the picture.
Thanks for posting!