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Nice find.

I was friend's with Robert Propst's daughter in highschool. They had a big blue couch that was similar to this. I'd redo it (spend the bucks) in a blue, maybe more turquoise. I've always had a fond memory of that couch.

In the past I found this "spray paint" that is used to "paint" fabric car seats a different color. I used it on a old 50's sofa that was faded pink and I painted it black. It worked perfectly. I found it at a professional auto body paint store about 5 years ago. You could always google and find something like that.

i was recently doing research on this but haven't tried it yet. sunshine joy sells upholstery fabric spray paint at the link below. has anyone tried fabric spray paint with good results?

http://sunshinejoy.com/Upholstery_Fabric_Spray_Paint_Packs.asp?Folder=177&Name=15_Can_Upholstery_Packs

so far my experience (limited) with black fabric dye is that it's really hard to get true black - they always seem to be blue- or green-dominated and your fabric looks it. i would check into the "spray paint" suggestion, that sounds promising.

Are you planning to bring it to a professional for dyeing? I can't imagine that dye would work well without removing and cleaning the fabric before dye. If you're bringing it somewhere to be dyed properly, you're probably already approaching the cost of a reupholstering job since they have to remove, clean, and dye the fabric before fitting it back onto the chair.

DIY dye sounds like it would be a nightmare. Dye is very tricky and you can't count on the dye being even with most home jobs. Also, I would be really worried about dye transfer onto clothing - especially if you use black.

I would shop around and reupholster. It shouldn't be that expensive - it's not as large as a couch and your chair doesn't have a lot of decorative features or strange shapes. It should be fairly easy to make a pattern and sew a new cover. Your chair is a fabulous find - a small investment to get it into shape will allow you to keep it for many years.

Thanks for posting!

And thanks for the comments so far.

This spray paint thing is new to me. I'd be willing to try it if I knew what the quality was like and how permanent it is.

I was thinking of black because I thought that would definitely hide any fading. I'd love to be able to match the blue but I am afraid some of the fading may show through.

@greenlight
I've always been on the lookout for other chairs like this because I know there must be tons. But the one time I saw one was in an issue of Living Etc. where someone had placed many of these chairs together to form a sofa. But the color was an orange or burgundy.

And on this issue of redoing it. Would I be able to get the same fabric if I wanted to?

@laila,

sounds like if I did it myself I'll just end up with the same problems but in a different color.

any recommendations for someone who could give me an estimate for reupholsetering in Chicago?

I don't know if they have the same fabric available but contacting Herman Miller about it is a good option; maybe they have an archive department?

I attend Kendall college of art and design in grand rapids, we have like 30 of these chairs between the basement and third floor, I don't think they're anything special but they do connect together and they're pretty comfortable. Ours are a nasty washed out red wine color and I think taking yours black would look nice. But I defiantly wouldn't spend to much doing so. Good luck!

As laila said, the shape of the upholstery looks pretty simple...if you know someone with a sewing machine, it'd be worth it to ask if they'd be willing to do it for a bit of cash. I upholstered a chair a couple years ago (that was much more complicated than this). It took a while, but was surprisingly easy and looked great in the end.

Before you make the final decision to paint: this chair is one segment of a Chadwick sectional, produced by Herman Miller for a couple years in the very early 70's. Don Chadwick was/is also the designer of the Aeron chair.

Our household has a five-section piece that came out of a yoga studio in Chicago (bought on ebay and then hauled home to Cedar Rapids). I watch these as they come up for auction, in case more segments of our particular color become available; just a few weeks ago, there was a six-section stretch of Chadwick that went for over $3,500, and a 14-piece section that sold for almost $9,000 ...

If you don't like the color of the chair then sell it and get one that you do like. I would hate to *spray paint* this chair; it's really nice.

If you do hang onto it, why not reupholster it - either professionally or teach yourself how? Either way, you can get period-appropriate reproductions of Herman Miller fabric on the cheap on eBay. You'd really only need a couple of yards.

I guess I'm alone in this, but I think it's a pretty ugly chair design - I think it'd be easy to do your own slipcover or a basic reupholster job by yourself. I don't know what the value of the chair is (I'm guessing by what has been said that it's pretty low), but fabric is cheap and most reupholstering of chairs can be done with a staple gun.

I wouldn't pain or dye it. I think the results of such an effort are likely to force you to put it back out in the trash again.

i've worked in the textile industry for nine years. synthetic fibers are very hard to dye, dye well only at extremely high temperatures, and black is the toughest color of all. most likely you'll end up with a grey/blue color. if you choose the spray paint route, make sure you ask if it's washable, whether or not the color will transfer, if there's a process for "curing" or setting the color properly, and if the color will be soft and flexible when set. upholstery really is the best long term solution; you can save money by getting your own fabric and shopping around for the best quote from different upholsterers. good luck!!

@mycatisfattest,

Good to know!

I just found a red 14 piece on ebay with one of my chairs on each end.

http://cgi.ebay.com/14-Vintage-Herman-Miller-Chadwick-Soft-Seating-Lounge_W0QQitemZ370027995148QQihZ024QQcategoryZ63584QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247#ebayphotohosting

That's got to be one comfy couch!

I used the "spray paint" that noemi23 wrote about on a sofa. It was a cream sofa that I wanted brown. The directions said it may not work well on synthetic fabrics but I tested it and it seemed fine. I now have a great looking dark brown sofa for about $60. It dried fast and the fabric is still soft ~ not stiff at all. There has been no color transfer or fading either and this sofa gets a lot of use between kids & dogs. I don't think you'll have a problem as the material looks like cotton and you're going darker.

This thing would be gorgeous in white. Just sayin'.

If you have not already found out, your "chair" is part of the Herman Miller Chadwick Sectional system, from the mid 1970s. One section in simi decent shape is worth around $400. You should sell it to a collector and not destroy it with shabby chic ideas like spray painting. Then buy something you really like.