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Best of Three: Classic Plywood Dining Chairs

2008-03-04-plywood.jpg
Which of these three classic dining chairs do you think is the best bet for longevity and value? Eames, Cherner or Jacobsen? Jump below for prices and to weigh in...

Shown above (left to right):

DCW by Charles and Ray Eames (1946) $599.
Cherner Side Chair by Norman Cherner (1957) $629.Series 7 by Arne Jacobsen (1952) $414


More Best of Three:
2008-03-04-lamps.jpg

2008-03-04-wegner.jpg

Comments (18)

Eames.

posted by JonathanB on 2008-03-04 19:52:03
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The Eames seems to be the friendliest to the human hindquarters.

posted by JennyPeep on 2008-03-04 20:14:02
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I love all three, but I own a set of the Series 7. They're beautiful and comfortable, so I voted for Jacobsen, even though one of my chairs recently cracked.

posted by visualingual on 2008-03-04 20:22:37
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I am a fan of the 1950's Thonet bent ply chairs...Eames-like, but still affordable!

posted by jen64 on 2008-03-04 20:36:40
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The Eames is my least favorite, but it's so popular right now. I feel like I've seen it way too much.

I vote for the Cherner. They were out of production for a while, but his grandsons recently started reproducing them. The chairs are so delicate, with perfect lines. I especially admire the arm chair version.

My second favorite is the Series 7. It's awesome. I really love Fritz Hansen's Ant. It's a lot like the Series 7, but just a tad bit different.

posted by DesignHole on 2008-03-04 21:32:04
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I'm bored to numb, dumb tears by all three. I'd rather sit in Pee Wee's Chairy and suck down my spaghetti carbonara than any of these uninspired choices.

posted by binxie on 2008-03-04 21:34:17
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if the carbonara's any good, it deserves proper flatware

posted by JonathanB on 2008-03-04 21:50:17
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Unfortunately, the revival of all three will probably do them in. That said, if only one could "win," I'd vote for the Jacobsen.

posted by dcaries on 2008-03-04 22:17:39
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they are all great but who can afford them??!!

posted by kellybeegee on 2008-03-04 23:08:39
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the DCW is lovely, but so wide that it is not practical unless you have a huge space. i don't like the Cherner, so i would vote for the Jacobsen, beautiful and practical.

posted by mrs yow on 2008-03-04 23:13:41
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I do like the Jacobsen, but wish the details were more thought out...not a fan of exposed joint hardware. The DCW gets my vote.

posted by estydotca on 2008-03-04 23:36:02
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I love the Jacobsen and the Eames... although, as binxie pointed out, they're like songs you used to love until they got so popular that you couldn't stand them anymore.

I've never been crazy about the Cherner because I can't avoid anthropomorphizing the proportions -- reminds me of those freakishly tight Victorian corsets...

http://www.castlekeys.com/Pages/pics/corsetted.jpg

posted by lightspeed on 2008-03-05 00:15:28
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Cherner, but with arms.

posted by patrick (the other one) on 2008-03-05 03:06:09
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of the three, I like the Eames dining chair metal, as opposed to the dining chair wood.

I found the jacobsen and the cherner chairs not sufficiently comfortable for lengthy casual dining. With regard to the jacobsen, I kept sliding forward.

posted by david on 2008-03-05 09:49:31
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i got a model 7 a few weeks ago for 48 buckaroos.
i own a lcm too, that is my "cool chair, wanna be friends?" collection.

posted by andrasklang on 2008-03-05 09:54:25
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I like all three for different purposes. I love the Eames DCM (have it as my desk chair at home). The Cherner is a little too formal for my purposes. I voted for the Series 7 because I think it's the best all-around choice. I could easily have some as a dining set (in fun colors) as I could have some around a conference table.

posted by Modfan on 2008-03-05 11:17:42
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I vote Cherner with arms - I love how delicate they look but they are very comfortable. I hope they hold value as I just bought two.

posted by Gallivant on 2008-03-05 12:13:10
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DCW all the way...

and believe me... I have some chairs! ;)

see them here:

http://blueantstudio.blogspot.com/2007/04/my-obsession-with-chairs.html#links

and here at the table:

http://blueantstudio.blogspot.com/2007/05/house-tour.html#links

posted by joel maria pirela on 2008-03-07 21:28:39
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