Little Pink Chair

September 9, 2011 8:20 PM

Help me learn a little more about my new cute Pink Chair.

I picked up this awesome piece of furniture advertised on Craigslist as a "1930s Occasional Chair". The upholstery is very faded, the springs are a little wacky (when I sit down in it I sink to one of the corners). I bought it for $40 and there is very little cosmetically wrong with it and I am willing to invest some time and effort into fixing it up but not 'altering' it too much. My question to the MeFites out there, do you have some good video, link, tips for fixing up upholstered antiques like this? Any tips on determining the actual age, model, even the pattern on this chair?

posted by hillabeans to home & garden (5 answers total)

The Hairpin has a fun series going called A Femme's Guide to Improvement. A recent entry on re-tying your own springs seems like it might be helpful.
posted by minervous at 9:37 PM on September 9, 2011 [2 favorites]

Here is another guide to replacing/re-tying springs.
posted by lilnublet at 10:02 PM on September 9, 2011

Very cute chair!

Let me start by saying that I am in no way an expert, just somebody with a bit of an interest in vintage furniture. So take everything I'm about to say with a grain of salt.

1930s looks about right. A lot of art deco furniture has straight lines and a more solid feel, but there were also some French-inspired designs like yours. Here's a 1930s chair that has several similar design elements, including the cabriole leg and the crest along the back. The chair in the photograph was probably originally part of a lounge suite. Yours may have been also, or it may indeed have been an occasional chair, which in this context really just means "odd"; odd as in not matching anything else, not odd as in strange.

I have a 1950s lounge suite myself, and I find the wacky springs part of the charm. If you decide not to fix them, you may find a throw cushion or two can help you stay upright.
posted by Georgina at 11:53 PM on September 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

Nice score - that chair is gorgeous. To fix the spring, the fabric must be removed. It would take serious skill to remove it, fix the springs and replace the same fabric. I would make sure it's clean and live with the wonkiness. Start searching for replacement fabric for its eventual re-upholstering. I've seen pics of similar furniture where the woodwork has been painted a contemporary color, with contemporary fabric. Or you can look for something with a vintage feel. The chair has lasted a long time, and is likely to be well-built, and worth the cost of re-upholstery.
posted by theora55 at 12:45 PM on September 10, 2011

Thank you everyone!
posted by hillabeans at 2:56 PM on September 15, 2011