Aluminium group chair questions  

I took the arms off four of the chairs. The screws came out bery easily - it was as if they thought it was a good idea to shed their arms. It was a brilliant idea, Mark. My wife, too, thought it was a brilliant idea and of course I took credit for it and spent an hour with a smug look on my face.

Minimoma, what is a 'four square' house? Like tktoo above, I would be keen to see photos of some of your rooms, but understand that not everybody likes to do that sort of thing.

Today we are hanging pictures in the newly finished room and I will get some photos perhaps tomorrow.

Hey ScottB, good to hear that you are making progress with your dining room makeover (can I call it that?) & I am sure it is looking fantastic.

I'll try to answer your inquiry...a four square house is one of the several architectural styles of houses built mainly for the working class here in the USA during the early 20th century (at the same time as the Arts & Crafts Movement/Prairie Style/Secessionist, it varies from place to place). There is probably a style similar from where you are.

Although from the same period as the earliest modern movement of the 20th century like the Arts & Crafts, these houses are actually the opposite of what that movement was all about. It was mass produced, every part of the house was made in a factory somewhere using the power tools of the earlier period, the industrial revolution of the mid to late 19th century, all rejected by the likes of William Morris, Gustav Stickley & others who started & promoted the Arts & Crafts style.

The exterior varies with influences of watered down versions of the real thing or custom made famous houses made for specific clients & designed by the most famous architects during that time, but it had modern amenities like electricity, indoor plumbing & a boiler for heating the size of a VW Beetle in the basement.

Our four square home ( with a square plan) is a look alike of a Stickley house no. 95 similar to this,

I https://goo.gl/images/mFtThm

& as plain Jane as it can be, not designated historic or in such neighborhoods (we are low brow living in the HOOD) so we are turning it into an experiment in living ecologically in the 21st century but furnished with vintage mostly street curb or dumpster dive abandoned & neglected examples of the icons of 20th century designs.

I hope this did not put anyone to sleep but I will share an early version of one of the rooms which had been posted here before. The house is a work in progress continually evolving adding several layers overtime.

We kept one of the 2 the massive brick fireplaces but stopped using it because it is only 30% efficient.

Thanks Minimoma, that was interesting. Our early housing styles were taken from the English model, which was not suited at all to our climate. At the start of the 20th century, a style called Federation came into being. They are very solid brick homes with generous rooms and wide eaves and often verandas. Then came a brief period when Arts and Crafts houses happened. Next was the mid century stuff, but there really isn't much of that in Australia - much smaller population and fewer buildings as a consequence. Then it was into the 70s and disappointing later decades.

My house was built in 1895, but much has changed in it. It was never an interesting house, but the rooms I have renovated look pretty good. It is just the shell that is original.

Here are some photos of the now finished finished dining room. It looks great and has a very warm feel to it. The phone camera doesn't do it justice. The panelled wall and shelves are in blackbean veneer. The blue sliding door leads to the kitchen, bathroom and stairs up to the bedrooms. The red chair is one I restored a couple of years ago. It was made in the 50s by Snelling in a factory not far from where I live - one of the first mass produced chairs in Sydney. Of course, the design is very derivative of Rinsoms, which in turn was similar to some earlier European ones.

It a great looking home ScottB, congratulations. I appreciate your adaptive reuse of older structures to suit how you live in the current century.

I remembered seeing that red webbed chair in your previous post awhile back, first impression it looks like a Risom chair but it looks a lot more similar to another Knoll chair designed Ralph Rapson, except at the seat as it meets the two front legs. It could be inspired by but what matters is that you like it after you fixed & it looks fantastic in your space.

Thanks for sharing.

Yes, it is a lot like that Rapson chair. I wonder if back then there was any animosity between designers who clearly borrowed from eachother? There is certainly a bit these days.

I'm pleased with the room. It was a lot of work. A brick wall came out where the veneer panels are and there is storage on the back of it. All the other walls needed attention, as did the floor. And those shelves and the built in credenza killed. The vertical supports in the bookcase are 5mm steel, which works well and was the only easy bit. I need an animal skin on the floor like in minimoma's room. Time to tidy-up my shed now for the next project.

Very nice Scott!

I so enjoy seeing other posters spaces, and what a nice space you live in.

Best,

Aunt Mark

We tidied up the lounge (sitting?) room adjacent to the dining room yesterday. It's nice looking into that room. Of course, now that both rooms are finished, the doors that separate them look pretty ordinary. There murmurs last night about me making some interesting doors. The murmurs were not coming from me.