with Ottoman and 2 Swan Chairs? I own 3 chairs by Arne Jacobsen -- 1 Egg Chair (unfortunately, no tilt control) in black with a matching ottoman and 2 Swan chairs (with tilt control) in white mix. I purchased them from Fritz Hansen in 1966. The Egg chair remains in my home, however, the foam (or whatever it is made of) has dried out after all these years. If you press the chair, you can leave your fingerprints in it. However, as it is covered in black, it looks perfect. The Swan chairs, which were originally white, are in my basement, as they are too filthy to display. Can anyone recommend if I should have them recovered or if I should just try to sell them? If recovered, will they lose their value? And what are my chances of selling them in the condition they are in? Thanks for your help.
Dont do them up unless you...
Dont do them up unless you intend to keep them and dont worry about condition when you sell them as they will sell regardless providing your reserve is reasonable. Talk to the nearest auction house to you that has a history of selling items like these.
Many variables
They can certainly be sold as-is. They can be sold for more if properly restored. You can sell them to a dealer, sell them through an auction house, sell them on line via eBay or craigslist... You have several options. It all depends on if you are interested in investing more in them and how much effort you want to put into selling them. Where are you located? That can make a difference as to your options and the associated costs.
My 3 Arne Jacobsen chairs............
Thanks for your thoughts about my chairs. I think I'd really like to keep them and use them. Would you know where I could have them properly restored? I live in New Jersey..............can you recommend a place that would do that? Thanks again.
Merle,
I cannot recommend...
Merle,
I cannot recommend a specific upholster, but for anyone you choose: be sure to ask if they have done these specific chairs before and ask for photos. I have seen some upholsterers who say they are great at modern furniture, but their results with Papa Bear or Swan chairs look horrible! Be careful!
If you are willing to ship, I can say I have had good success with Alfie Hume. I am not affiliated with him at all, but he did great work for me.
I do have one comment about one shop in NJ, but I'd prefer not to post it publicly. If you can give me your email address, I can contact you off the board.
Mike
As posted in the recent...
As posted in the recent acquisitions thread, I recently acquired an egg and ottoman that I now have a moral obligation to have them re-done. Its not going to be an inexpensive proposition, so I'm thinking I'm going to bite the bullet and do it in leather. I'm hoping to have something that looks like the image below 10-15 years from now. So, a few questions:
1. Anyone done one of these recently in brown/caramel/camel leather? If so, what type/color of leather did you use? I've been looking at Spinneybeck and Edelman and am a bit overwhelmed by all of the options.
2. I'm leaning towards BK upholstery in PA. They are relatively close by, competitively priced, and undoubtedly have experience with theses chairs. Anyone used them? Happy/Unhappy?
Hoping to get this project rolling after the new year-so any help/guidance is greatly appreciated.
Oh I almost forgot. I have this sideboard with a Mahogany Association sticker # 834.........
Leather choice
I recently had my egg chair re-upholstered in leather too! I chose the Arne Sorensen leather for the obvious reason (it is the leather that is used for the original egg chairs) I went with the "walnut" in the elegance serie and it looks great. The plus side to that is, it works out to be just a little bit cheaper than going with Spineybecks' aneline dyed leather even after shipping and customs from Denmark (I live in Canada).
Good luck with your project!
This one on ebay now was...
This one on ebay now was recently reupholstered. Looks good, I think -but hard to really tell 100% from photos. I found out the type of leather used and am getting a sample. Also getting samples from Sorensen, Spinneybeck, Edelman and a couple others.....not an easy decision.
jesgord
I believe that egg chair was reupholstered here in Chicago. If you are considering shipping your chair to PA to be redone, it would most likely not cost any more to send it to the shop in Chicago.
I recently got this egg chair which needs to be reupholstered. I'm thinking black leather.
Dark chocolate brown also looks nice.
It's the original magenta
... but it has issues and I don't think it can be saved. Even if it could, it's a pretty difficult color to work into your interior. Pretty high-key. That is why I was thinking black. It goes with everything, never goes out of style, and looks great atop the silver base.
The cognac color is nice also, and very popular.
If you need any help, please contact us at – info@designaddict.com