Search result for: the-last-thing-you-aquired-
| # | Post Title | Result Info | Date | User | Forum |
| Restoring JL Moller 78 chairs | 1 Relevance | 11 years ago | Watsonette | General discussion | |
| Hi all, I was given 4 of these chairs. They're in terrible shape, so they need to be stripped and rewoven. The great thing is that they all have their JL Moller stickers so I'm really keen to get these restored and sold. I have some questions though - I've stripped one of them and while 97% of the old paint came right off, there is some residue that sits in the wood grain and I'm curious if I should strip it again or gently sand the chair to get rid of this? - Would you say that this chair is the regular teak variety? - I live in the Netherlands and I can't find Danish cording over here, unless it is in the UK and it's in GBP so I don't want to go that route. Does anyone know of other European distributors? Seems like it would be easiest to order from Denmark? Thanks in advance, S | |||||
| Art | 1 Relevance | 17 years ago | Gustavo | General discussion | |
| Art Art-Architecture I don't want to let this thread gone without a comment. I have to tell that the detail of Koen saying that seeing architecture as an art/creative/technical was so subtle that deserve some additional comment. And was another of those surprises that Koen gives us from time to time. Dear Koen: You are a designer, and I'm an intruder architect that invaded the design field. And that could give some different perspectives. At a point I could say Saying that architecture is an art, it is widely accepted. You are right, and my definition of architecture is that to be architecture, must reach that level of art. If it's not reached, it will be a building or a construction, as it's 95% of what it's built in most cities. To solve what you said in the PS: " Please do not read it as an disapproval of art and artistic expression. What I am saying is that art is too high on the scale of personal experience to be abused in public spaces. " There is no problem to me, different people would read it in different levels, indeed most people won't see any difference with the other 95% constructed, perhaps some would see it "nicer" than others. Anyway we wouldn't underestimate the people, because some of them could surprise us reacting positively and happily, discovering thing that we didn't saw, while provably some expert critics-curators could demolish it. And in the end to me this art should be like onions with different layers, reading layers, and it depend on the reader to read or not as much layers want / can. Art-Architecture is in the public space, by definition, always it was an will be. Most of the architecture masterpieces are in public spaces. | |||||
| Shelving Unit Suggestions | 1 Relevance | 13 years ago | lucmic | General discussion | |
| Hi everyone, I'm looking to purchase a shelving unit for a home office and was hoping to get some advice/suggestions for available mid-end designs given that I'm not thoroughly attuned to the furniture design world on a regular basis and my research thus far has me getting pulled on too many different directions. I really love the 4x2 Eames Shelving Unit (but then again who doesn't??) not only because it's a great design, but it hits almost all the points I'm looking for: it has a mix of open and enclosed shelves, uses sliding doors, has some drawers, nice blend of materials (not pure wood or metal), some color accents, etc. Plus it happens to be the near perfect width and depth for my particular needs, although I'll admit I wouldn't mind it if it had an extra row of shelves on top. Unfortunately the price for the 4x2 is prohibitive to me at this point. Further, I'm not inclined to buy a replica/knockoff. It'll make the feeling of getting the real thing at some point in the future so much sweeter. Options I've looked at that seem to reflect some (but never all at once) of these "concepts" are Blu Dot's Shilf shelving and modulicious pieces, MFsystem shelves, Fitzhugh Karol's FK series Sapele shelves, and even some crate and barrel chrome shelves meant for kitchen storage. Costwise my goal would be to stay under $1,000. Apologies if this post is vague or out of place here, and thank you in advance for any thoughts. Regards. | |||||
| Dearest Auntie, | 1 Relevance | 13 years ago | Spanky | General discussion | |
| Dearest Auntie, This is such a timely post! You see, I am buying a teeny little condo with a long, very narrow living room (21x11); it has about 7' of sliding glass doors at one end with a view to lovely green trees. The place is a dump at the moment and I got it for cheap so I have some money to make it the way I want it, thank goodness. Anyway, I have been seriously contemplating mirroring the long solid wall in the living room which will reflect the view out the big glass doors from many points in the room, plus will reflect the entire room. I'll be getting a 22x21 living room, but just won't be able to go into one half of it. Some of my friends and family with great taste are urging me to go for it. One of my kids thinks it's tacky. But I dunno...the room is pretty cramped as is and also darkish (NE exposure with shade trees) and I think I'll feel like a hobbit in there without the mirrors. I would be getting non-beveled mirrors. I have photos of another unit in the same complex where they did this and I adore the look of the room. So, I remain-- yours in mirrored solidarity should you choose to re-mirror, Spanky PS OMG NO DO NOT REMOVE THEM YOURSELF!!! YOU'LL BE A BLODDY MESS!!! (seriously, you'd probably have to break them and tiny shards of glass go flying everywhere, even when you put tape all over the thing first, and sheet plastic, and OMG IT IS HORRIBLE. Guess how i know.) | |||||
| A common mistake is still a | 1 Relevance | 11 years ago | SDR | General discussion | |
| Common mistakes are still mistakes ? Eastlake is an architectural term which was subsequently applied to furniture. So was Art Nouveau, Craftsman, Constructivist, etc etc. The problem isn't the migration, it's the misapplication of an accepted term to something only tangentially related, if at all. If the tables in question appear rough or intentionally crude, that doesn't mean they're Brutalist -- which has a distinct meaning in architecture. (By the way, I'd wonder if those green-glass tops are original to the bases. The rounded corners seem inappropriate, somehow -- and the tops are so little wider than the leg spacing that I'd be concerned about an accident . .. ) The thing to do is to look for previous usage, and choose the accepted term wherever possible -- so that our design language doesn't turn into a grab-bag of "Eames era, Frank Lloyd Wright" (or "Andrew Lloyd Wright," from today's Chronicle). I'd look to the museum/auction house sector for accepted terminology -- which I will do right now, for a name for Paul Evan's furniture style. Of course it's fun to be creative. If I had to make up a name for Evans et al, I might try "metal collage." The Internet and social media have made everyone a potential scholar and critic; all the more reason to look for common ground and good communication, rather than chaos ? | |||||
| No offense, Mark | 1 Relevance | 15 years ago | fastfwd | General discussion | |
| No offense, Mark but your photos clearly show every cushion dimension EXCEPT the one that Warrigal seems most interested in. Warrigal, I can't tell from Mark's photos how thick his ottoman cushion is. I also don't know how the age of his chair or whether it's been reupholstered. I do know that your original cushions were 45 years old, though, so I'm not surprised that the replacements are firmer and thicker. Especially for a chair that's still in production, I wouldn't expect your upholstery guy to choose the wrong foam. He doesn't have to make any guesses as to the proper specs; Wombs are common enough that he can just walk to a showroom and touch one to see what it's made of. And in fact, you can do the same thing. Every DWR has a brand-new Womb on display, and Boomerang usually has one or two vintage chairs. Have you visited those stores to see the foam on their chairs? Anyway, here are photos that show the thickness of my (reupholstered, comfortable) vintage Womb cushions: Top photo shows how I'm measuring the ottoman cushion, middle shows the ottoman-cushion thickness (4"), bottom shows the seat-cushion thickness (also 4"). I didn't feel like unclipping the back cushion, but it also appears to be 4" thick. | |||||
| If you study Hans Wegner's | 1 Relevance | 10 years ago | Spanky | General discussion | |
| If you study Hans Wegner's furniture, you will notice that none of it has exposed bolts or screws. You will also notice a certain aesthetic that I can't think how to describe right now, but it has to do with shaping every part of a piece so that it's not just beautiful unto itself but is integral the overall look of the piece. Or something. There's nothing wrong with your chair but it's definitely below the level of Wegner, Juhl, and Vodder. And some others, too. I would guess that it's a shop design. I'd also guess that it's later rather than early---the upholstery is actually something that was popular in the 70s, at least as far as I can tell. Someone may have reupholstered it and left in the hair padding, or it could be original. You can usually tell by noting if there are old staple or tack holes other than the ones from the current upholstery. The groove looks like a recliner detail but I've never seen a recliner with a back that height so that's probably not it. No idea what else it might be. One last thing---are you really set on the crypton (polyester) fabric? Why not a decent Danish wool? Modern-Fabrics.com always has Danish wools listed and for that size chair you only need a few yards. Their prices are less than wholesale and they have a lot of shorter lengths which would suit your needs. (I don't work for them, I'm just a satisfied customer!) Personally, I'd go for Maharam/Kvadrat Tonica or Hallingdal in the charcoal gray color. I did some dining chairs for someone and also a Domino Mobler style lounge chair in these fabrics and they are KILLER with teak. Authentic, too. | |||||
| Thanks everyone, appreciate | 1 Relevance | 10 years ago | mjsoares | General discussion | |
| Thanks everyone, appreciate the input on this. @cdsilva - thank you for the advice and info regarding prototypes, i will have to research further @mgee76 - the cushions are not attached, though i agree it looks like that in the photo (unfortunately the photo is not such high quality). I'm not 100% sure if it is walnut. I can tell wood pretty well and the grain/color doesn't strike me as real walnut to be honest but that is how it was advertised (though that means nothing really). I am not sure if it is from the 50's though i would say if it is not, then it most definitely is from the 60's. This thing is old - trust me it has the accumulated dirt and wear+tear of 5 decades+. It is in overall god shape but i don't doubt it is many decades old. @spanky - many thanks for all the info, very informative! I don't rule out reupholstery though if that had been done the bottom liner would have been replaced as well and that is definitely not the case as it is covered in dirt and has tears whereas the rest of the sofa is in decent shape. The construction is good but it is not that solid - it has some creaks that could use tightening. The info on the materials is very useful to date this piece - perhaps not the 50s (as the seller stated) but I wouldn't question it being from the 60s.As far as it being unmarked, it only bothers me because i like to be able to trace lineage and am puzzled as to why the maker would leave no mark (unless it is covered in fabric). I think whoever made it was inspired by the likes of Pearsall and Smilow - perhaps it is a custom piece made to order or by one of the many craftsman from PA since furniture making was a large industry in PA back then. | |||||
| the arms | 1 Relevance | 20 years ago | NULL NULL | General discussion | |
| the arms I think I had the same thing with the curved arms of one of my Plycrafts. Three had the platform types and one had curved, which I converted to the Eames style with welt. I didn't trim the wood at all. I think they did kinda squish against the back and seat cucshions but they don't make a loud noise when the chair is sat in. Maybe good leather makes a difference?? Converting these arms to Eames style is not for the faint of heart. I nearly gave up several times and I have done a lot of upholstery over the years---like 10 sofas, 20+ chairs. I did give up trying to piece a bottom onto the sides and top and then fitting it over the base like a slipcover. What I ended up doing was sewing the top, welt, sides and more welt---then put this onto the base. THEN I cut the bottom piece very, very carefully, pressing it into place, marking and cutting the tiniest bits off at a time until it fit neatly right up under the roll of the welt. No edges turned under, just the cut edge. It is hidden both under the welt and under the arm itself. You might figure it out if you lay under the chair with a bright light on the underside of the arm, but so far no one has done that. I glued it down with contact cement and was QUITE glad to be done with it. I would do it again but only because now I know how to do it! and PS? The arms look GREAT. If i do say so myself. I'm so glad I attempted it. It makes a huge difference in the look of the chair. | |||||
| You need to determine the | 1 Relevance | 10 years ago | _ | General discussion | |
| You need to determine the scope of your remodel, full all the way everything new? partial, just the areas that need improvements? or just a paint job over the existing? You also need to determine your budget. Kitchen cabinets alone ranges from IKEA ( not too cheap anymore) to a very high end system like Bulthaup or PoggenPohl which cost more than a house or a new luxury car. The same goes for appliances and kitchen fixtures, you can decide whether you want a look alike or the real thing. Choosing cabinets pulls/ knobs and handles ( if not integrated into the door fronts) if you are not careful can easily go over budget. Determine your skill level when it comes to DIY projects. TV projects get edited in the cutting room narrowed down to a 1 hour show without showing everything involved. If you know what to do in terms of leveling your cabinets when your floor and walls are not, you might be ok. Are you relocating plumbing lines, electrical outlets and other light fixtures? These alone can cost as much as the cabinets or the appliances probably more if it is an older house which requires all new work to comply to current building codes. I am not trying to scare you, it is more involved, expensive than most people imagine and stressful if you also happen to live in the same house you are remodeling. I hope these helps. | |||||
| As much as I respect Aunt Mark's | 1 Relevance | 13 years ago | Spanky | General discussion | |
| As much as I respect Aunt Mark's opinion, I feel obliged to chime in. I reupholstered a pair of this same Flex-Steel chair a couple of years. My customer chose a different Knoll fabric but I've also used a LOT of Knoll Classic Boucle and I love it! I have done four things in the past year in the Aegean color alone. I don't think it'll make your chair look a bit frumpy. The only thing that would give it that look would be if your upholsterer goes overboard on the padding. A lot of upholsterers do that with mid-century modern furniture; they are used to doing more conventional styles that call for a more overstuffed look. You really need to tone it down for MCM furniture. The Knoll boucle has a great look, feels nice, and is easy to work with. I think it's an excellent choice for this chair and it'll work better with green than gray would. Green and teal will be colorful---but I like the combo! As for the fabric on the sofa--it looks like it's probably an early acrylic or nylon. You mentioned that it looks shiny---is it sort of a sparkly shiny? Synthetic fibers have a subtle sparkle to them whereas wool fibers are very matte in appearance. You have to look closely to see the difference. If it's synthetic, Hallingdal will be a big, big step up. Hallingdal is gorgeous stuff. You can't go wrong with it. | |||||
| Here's a link to an article that explains | 1 Relevance | 14 years ago | Spanky | General discussion | |
| Here's a link to an article that explains the differences between finishes and brands, including Watch Danish oil and Watco Teak oil. It doesn't say whether they're better or worse for the wood than other finishes, and it doesn't say anything about straight up teak oil (if there is such a thing). I use Star-Brite brand teak oil, which in my area is sold at Ace Hardware stores and marine supply stores. It doesn't seem to have much, if any, solvent in it. It smells like oil, not mineral spirits. I have used wiping varnish on teak when I want a certain look but most of the time I just use teak oil. Cheesedanish, I don't know about a more impervious finish---I guess the wiping varnishes afford more protection but they're still not like polyurethane where you pretty much don't have to worry about anything at all. I would just be vigilant about coasters and placemats. If you have big dinners with kids and/or drunks and you just want to enjoy yourselves and not worry about the table, you can get protective boards made and then use a tablecloth liner and a beautiful tablecloth. Leave the table bare the rest of the time. I love my teak dining table but I really don't enjoy having to keep an eye peeled for drips and blops when we're eating good food and having great conversation. http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/finishing/oil-finishes-thei... | |||||
| And because I find few things | 1 Relevance | 11 years ago | Spanky | General discussion | |
| And because I find few things as much fun as finding photos of knockoffs to the real thing taken at as identical an angle as possible and then comparing them point by point, here are some more! (The real one is a downloadable photo from P.P. Mobler's site---which, by the way, also has some photos of areas of the bare frame.) | |||||
| Saarinen/Knoll tulip table...again. | 1 Relevance | 14 years ago | aarnesin | General discussion | |
| I found a tulip table for sale by a private, and of course I am wondering if it is the real thing. First, the table is new, not vintage. The base has the metal plate with the Knoll mark and the signature. The portion where it attaches to the base of the table is round, and fastened with three bolts placed to form a triangle. The base rings authentic to me. The table top is marble. The owner advertises it as the 'new' satin finish. I have checked on the Knoll website and indeed there is such a finish. However, I am less sure that the marble top is also original. It appears to be Carrara marble, not Arabescato or Calacatta. The edge is nicely beveled, but I have not measured its thickness. The bottom has three stickers ( a green dot, a "Made in Italy" sticker, and a sticker with "MC283" written on it. I have checked on the Knoll website, and MC is the code for Calacatta coated marble top finishes. Again, the marble looks like Carrara, and is not shiny at all. I have not been able to find out what 283 stands for. Also, the bottom of the marble top has a square stamp (black, about 3" by 3) but I could not make out what it said. Lastly, I have noticed that the Knoll tables sold, say, at DWR, have the imprint of tight net on the bottom ( you can see it and feel it too), while this table top did not have it. Any advice? Sorry I have no pictures to post. | |||||
| Thanks guys. He had a 98.5%... | 1 Relevance | 18 years ago | rockybird | General discussion | |
| Thanks guys. He had a 98.5%... Thanks guys. He had a 98.5% feedback and hundreds of items he had sold. This is only the second time I have bought something on ebay and both times have involved criminals. The other time I bought a sony vaio TZ laptop for $3100. I received the laptop but not the extended warranty or the software that I also purchased. I was apparently the last person to receive a computer from the seller. So many people lost money that they started a website to keep track of the activity. Some people bought several laptops that were never received. This guy also had a high feedback rating at the time. I told ebay on the phone that paypal needs to keep the money in an act. until the buyer checks off that the item is received as described. They said they are actually working on implementing this for items over 1k. I think there is a lot of fraud out there. I dont know how to tell who is legit. and who isnt. I think maybe I am too trusting. The seller of the Baughman desk told me he had been in the hospital, that he HAD shipped the desk, but it came back, etc. I should have not bought into his stories and just demanded my money back. 🙁 I do hope I get the money back. I am mad also that I missed out on the baughman floating desk. It was cheaper and beautiful. (I have a thing for desks!) | |||||
If you need any help, please contact us at – info@designaddict.com