Hi all, my recent find of an Ingmar Felling Siesta Chair. Have always liked the way it looks, but never sat in it until now. Very comfortable indeed. Although having arm rests would probably make it even more functional, they seem to take the aesthetics away. Are they still in production, anyone knows?
After I took it home, I used some Howards Bee Wax-Restore a Finish to take off some scuff marks and make the wood more vibrant. I was told that it was Rosewood on this chair. Can anyone confirm? The only issue with the chair is the wear on the seat of the leather. I got a quote from a local leather guy for $150 to redye all the cushions. That's just about how much the whole chair cost me, so I just wanted to see if people have other thoughts on the fading of the leather? Thanks! I'm a happy man!
(edited by DA - pictures fixed) 
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for me, so I can't comment on the condition, but just be advised that a some leather "dye" that these places use is a spray coating. I have seen it start to peel off after just a few years of use. I don't know if that's what they all use but I would check into it first before getting it done.
It actually doesn't look too bad.
I have friends who swear by Leather CPR, though I've never used it myself.
I like Pecard's Leather Treatment but have only used it on aniline dyed leather, not the kind of leather that you have there. Might work, though. It's a combination of oils, wax, and I think a solvent of some kind. It's used on riding saddles a lot.
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After checking, I see that the Leather CPR is used on saddles, too. The two products are probably very similar.
http://www.leathercpr.com/leather-care/
http://pecard.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=Pecard&Categor...
Siesta chairs
I have two of these that I'm going to give up to CL to offset the cost of reupholstering two Robsjohn Gibbings chairs. Mine are a sort of salmon colored leather with some wear to the corners and claw marks from some long gone cats. I know that buying new seats is way too expensive as they are imports, but I know that you can remove the wax and redye with ordinary shoe leather dye. After that you treat them like any other pair of shoes and wax. It won't get rid of the cat scratches in my case but it will do away with the salmon color. So.....do ask the leather dye person if this is what they have in mind. I'v dyed many shoes and it's no big deal. $150 sounds like a good deal. The dollar is weak and I'm recalling that it was something like $500 a seat to replace from Westnofa. Yikes!
Thanks for all your input....
Thanks for all your input. It seems like Leather Honey has a great reputation as well. What I especially like about it is it'll somewhat darken the leather because it tends to bring out the original color of the leather. Anyone has experience with it?
Another question I have is when people say dying the leather, I'd assume that means doing it to the whole set of cushions, correct? Otherwise, it'll look uneven? Just wanted to make sure I'm getting the right instructions.
Siesta chair
Yup, if you decide to dye the leather you'll need to buy some wax remover first. The leather won't take then new dye if you don't take off the wax. You can buy it on-line and some shoe repair shops sell it. I use Lincoln Shoe Dressing for dyeing shoes. On-line is probably the way to go or have it done professionally and let them deal with the mess. Sounds like you got a great quote anyway.
Yes, you have to do
all of the cushions, every square inch. Even if they match the color exactly, it will still be obvious that they were recoated if some areas are left as is.
Also, they'll look new if you have this done. If that's the look you want, go for it. But do ask them about the peeling issue.
After hearing everyone's...
After hearing everyone's advice, I think I'll hold off on redying and try out either Leather CPR or Leather Honey. I heard that Honey Leather is super thick but does a very good job restoring the original color. Does Leather CPR have that same function?
Leather CPR
Here's the result after I put on Leather CPR. On the first pix, the right side was conditioned with Leather CPR and the left side was untreated. The second pix is before and third is after. I can't say I'm blown away by the result, but it's certainly added some suppleness and taken away some of the wear. I may purchase Leather Honey just to see how it compares. Stay tuned!
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