Sitting Pretty
Comfort is the key to choosing dining chairs, and an attractive seat is certainly worth a second look.
There are any number of dining-room settings in the stores, and even more chairs that don’t necessarily go with particular tables, with prices as varied as the styles. But before you lose your heart to an attractive charmer give some thought to the practical aspects of choosing seat-pleasing chairs that keep you happily at the table for lengthy lunches and convivial dinners – it will pay off in the long run.
While a chair is really just something to sit on, it has to fit your decorating style and not be out of sync with the rest of the house. Putting a formal setting in a casual area, for instance, won’t help guests relax and enjoy their meal, while a grand room isn’t the place for light-hearted pieces.
Mademoiselle chairs turn dining into an entertaining experience. Designed by Philippe Starck and made by Kartell, they have a polycarbonate structure with a padded seat in fabric-covered expanded polyurethane.
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Who could fail to be charmed by the bright design on the Mono print chair? From Aero.
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With its clean lines and subtle shape, the Tress chair suits the modern mood, and is a perfect companion for the Brera table with its frosted-glass top. From Domo Collections.
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Pi, from Domo Collections.
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The Clio chair is lightly padded and soft to the touch thanks to the Maxim chestnut fabric. From Freedom.
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Explicit, from Domo Collections.
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Moka, from Domo Collections.
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Mademoiselle chairs turn dining into an entertaining experience. Designed by Philippe Starck and made by Kartell, they have a polycarbonate structure with a padded seat in fabric-covered expanded polyurethane.
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La Marie is a brilliant combination of lightness and solidity resulting from meticulous research. It was the first chair in the world made in a single-mould polycarbonate. For use indoors or out. From Space Furniture.
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Maui 3 was designed by Vico Magistretti and made by Kartell.
From Space Furniture.
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Black Betty chair by spHaus.
From Format in black only.
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Mother chair by spHaus. From Format in green only
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When you’ve decided on a style and possibly a colour, look for chairs that are fairly upright rather than tilted back so you can reach the table without straining, but avoid any that are rigidly set at a 90-degree angle as you’ll never feel at ease in them. High backs offer good support but unless you’re prone to dozing off over dessert one that reaches your shoulder blades is probably high enough.
Upholstered backs let visitors know they’re welcome to sit awhile, and, particularly on timber and iron chairs, padded seats are a must, unless you plan to invest in complementary chair pads for the same effect. Some timber and plastic chairs have moulded seats that can be quite comfortable too. Armrests are often associated with outdated notions of the head of the household, but they can be a great help to a frail member of the family.
Chairs are sometimes quite heavy, so make sure you can lift and move them without dragging them along the floor as you push them in and out. Rubber tips or felt pads help protect the floor, but keep in mind how often they need to be picked up to set the table or to clean the floor.
With all these points considered it’s time to pull up a seat and take the ‘sit test’. Do your feet set easily on the floor and your arms rest on the table? Seat edges not pressing into your legs, back relaxed? If the colour’s right and the style matches, you just might have found ‘the one’.
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