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I have the plywood lounge chair, and I find it to be very comfortable for sitting and reading. Everybody who's come to my house and sat on the chair is surprised at how comfortable it is, especially given how it looks. However, the sitting position is all wrong for use as a computer/desk chair (unless you use a laptop on your lap). As for regrets, it is hard to regret purchasing such a beautiful piece of sculptural furniture!

RE the office chair ?

exactly which chair's have you tried? A good office chair will run you 500-1000 (and up). Even those utilitarin looking Steelcase Criterion chairs (which i think is the most popular "ergo" chair) is in the 5-600 range.

When i bought my chair I tried the Herman Miller ones (aeron and mirra) the HumanScale as well as the many similiar ones from second tier companies. All of them were much more comfortable then my $100 special from Staples. In the end i bought a Steelcase Leap because i liked the design (modern, but not as modern as the aeron) and the comfort.

As a reference I sit in my chair all day (with the sug. breaks) when working from home. In the office I have the Steelcase Criterion--which is not a bad chair, but it does not have as many adjustments as the Leap, which has about everyone you can imagine.

Buying a desk/office chair is like buying a mattress, many of us spend as much time in it as a mattress so take the effort to find one that works for you!

And RE regretting purchases of 'classic' furniture: well I regret the purchase of my Arco Lamp everytime I have to move the 150lb base or adjust the reach!

I own (2) genuine Eames lounge chairs and have no regrets. I bought them knowing they would be investment pieces that I would have for a long time. My guests are amazed at how comfortable they are. I suppose you could use it to lounge in and work on a laptop, but I don't think that would be the best position to do any serious work. In my opinion they are definate classics and will hold up beyond the waining "retro modern" fad. I think any furniture piece that is made as well as these will stand the test of time.

Neither the wooden Eames chair pictured nor the classic Eames leather lounge chair (with the ottoman) makes a suitable desk chair. Any simple straight-backed kitchen chair would do a better job. Something height-adjustable is recommended as many people's computer desks weren't designed for that purpose and are too high (for the keyboard to be at approximately elbow level, which is where they should be for good ergonomics). As far as "classic" furniture items that I regret buying, I used to own a pair of those 1950s Eames fiberglass shell chairs -- mine were gray -- and they collected dust for nearly ten years. Not only were they uncomfortable to sit on with their curved backs and hard slippery bottoms, but also their four metal legs (slides included) dug into my rugs or scraped the polyurethane off my wooden floors. Sculptural, classic? Absolutely! Comfortable, inviting, good for your back? Not a chance. Finally sold 'em and never looked back.

This isn't really directly responsive to the question, but I had to comment about the Eames chair.

My dad is an architect who is heavily influenced by the Scandinavians. I grew up eating meals every day in Saarinen chairs, which my sister and I used to swing around in and crash into the sides of the table (much to my dad's chagrin). Anyway, in the 1970s, my parents bought a beach house on Fire Island (which came fully furnished). My dad realized that one of the pieces was an original Eames chair that had been covered in horrible green paint. He had it stripped and refinished. We were forbidden to sit in the chair - no one was ever allowed to actually use it. Even though we have had this chair in our family for 30 years, I have never sat in it and I still have no idea whether it is comfortable or not. LOL!

I love the Eames lounge chair. My father had one, it was so comfortable it was almost obscene.

Perhaps we might add, What piece of "classic" furniture lived up to -- or exceeded -- its reputation (or your expectations of it)? My Tizio lamps are the cats pajamas (that means good).

we have two red eames lounge chairs, splurged on one right before the prices went up about 3 years ago, bought another on craigslist because the first was so comfortable we fought over who got to sit in it. there are several "modern" designed things that are beautiful but don't function for crap. the chair isn't one of them, it's almost more comfortable then it is beautiful.

regards,
trillium

DC Dave said "they are definate classics and will hold up beyond the waining "retro modern" fad"
What do others think? Is retro modern "over and out?"

I use an eames fiberglass shell chair as my office chair and I could sit in it forever. I hate hate hate the aeron chair. But that's just me.

i love my:
-eames lounge chair as a reading chair
-my nelson bench, which holds my tv, tivo, etc., and books
-my jacobsen ant chair as a desk chair (i work at home and have used it for over three years -- it's actually really comfortable)

my mother still has a saarinen table that must be over 40 years old.

i think all these things are classics, not part of a fad. i don't regret buying any of them. i do regret all the furniture i've bought or had made, that i no longer have, and that had lousy resale value compared to classic furniture.

Exceeded expectations? My Verner Panton chair (http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?object_id=3333). I wasn't sure when I bought it (as a desk chair, by the way) because I was afraid it would read as pretentious. Guess what? It's profoundly subtle in my home, and amazingly comfortable. We got it to sit at a stainless steel desk, but it always seems to move to where we need an extra seat. It's ergonomic, flexible, and I can sit at it all day and still love it.

me, i think you have the right approach about classic furniture. the important thing is that you like the pieces, and that they serve a useful purpose in your home.

I think your tastes may change, but there will always be room in any interior for "investment" furniture.

I cannot answer your question, but I can state that I truly love this chair and wondered if anyone could let me know where to find a reproduction or an original of this item?

Thank you! :)
holly

holly--
Design Within Reach has this Eames plywood lounge chair, as do several other vendors (Google Eames Plywood Lounge). Check ebay for used/vintage.

I found on the street almost 10 years ago, an aluminum office chair made by the Goodform Chair Company, which I loved so much it wasn't funny -- very comfortable for working at a computer.

They sell that kind at Sonrisa furniture. In fact at a flea market some guy who was refurbishing to resell to them had a booth there, selling them for much less, so I traded him the one I had found on the street, because it needed some refurbishing, and I he gave me $50 trade-in for one of his renovated ones, and I've loved it MUCH more ever since that.

I subsequently decided that I liked it so much that I searched eBay and found a set of dining chairs made by the same company and had them reupholstered them and am thrilled with them. I had their horrible dark blue, green and red vinyl assortment replaced by a metallic gold vinyl which is beautiful with the aluminum frames.

I had a Wassily chair once. It was old, and the leather was stretched out. I loved how it looked, but it wasn't terribly comfortable to sit in long periods. My husband's terrible cousin took it back after she gave it to us. Ah well...

We love our Heywood Wakefield anything. We bought a full dining room set that we were told was in its original condition and later found out had been refinished. We still love it and will eventually restore it. But that purchase led to our discovery of Hey-Wake furniture and we've since added a black leather lounge chair and ottoman and dresser to our budding collection. It's beautiful and so well made. Perfect for our 1950's Tech-built house.

I believe retro modern "theme" rooms are so out- but good quality classic furniture will always be in style.

The chair pictured above is the DCW, or Dining Chair Wood, which might be a good desk chair. As many others have said, the LCW (Lounge Chair Wood) wouldn't be. It is outrageously comfortable.

As far as a regretful purchage goes, I had an alluminum group lounge chair and ottoman that, with my feet propped on the ottoman, was uncomfortable, but just fine with my feet on the floor. I sold it for $500 more than I paid for it (speaking of these pieces as investments), which was lovely.

As a former art student, I filled my original home with a lot of reproduction classics- popular in the 60's --such as thonet bentwood style chairs, flokati rugs, parsons tables, etc.
Much of my furniture then was beautiful, but uncomfortable and non functional ( such as the butterfly canvas chairs and the very low black leather sofa that anyone over 30 years old needed help to get out of).
Furniture for investment didn't work for me either. EX: the prices on real Victorian brass beds dropped when reproductions became available.
Now, older and wiser, I don't buy furniture for prestige or image or investment. Like a good house guest, I have to really like a piece and it has to perform it's function if i'm going to let it hang around.
As for pieces I still like which have stood the test of time (35-40 yrs later),-- I would list my flokati rug, my waxed pine seaman's chest,a hand woven navaho blanket, and a 1760's honey oak butlers chest of drawers - with impecable proportion and attention to detail. I guess the white Flokati rug is the only item from my 60's apartment that qualifies for this question.

Can anyone help me with a value? i have an original Eames leather Lounge Chair with Ottoman - great condition. I have no idea of it's value & can't seem to find it on the web. thanks!

SW? Do you still have it?

Nick - yes I still have the Original eames Lounge chair w/ottoman - how do i get a value? - thanks! Any help appreciated - can write me @ TalkingOne@msn.com

i have furniture from the early 1950's, that my parents bought when they married. i have no idea what it is worth. the bedroom suite is a double with an open type headboard,2 nitestands, dresser with mirror and the color is a washed out gray? also have a coffee table that is a blonde color with black legs, oblong in shape and a trangle shaped end table, same color scheme that would have been at
the end of a sofa. can anyone help me with value of this furniture or is it ready for the garage sale?????????????

I have the Eames Lounge Chair Wood - it is too low for a desk, I use a vintage side shell chair (also eames) its soooo comfortabl. If you really like the look of the LCW you can find a Dining Chair Wood - its the same look as the LCW but higher up. I have one of these as well.. .but it doesnt slide well on the carpet so I use the fiberglass chair.

My mom has several of the Eames plywood lounge chairs...and she says they're circa 1950's. Would they be something we could sell for a good price? Where would we go to do this?
I see that the "new" ones go for between $300 and $500 each. What would an "old" one go for?
(She has one ash, two reds, and one with metal legs that has a brown wood finish.)

There is a $200 repro of the Eames plywood lounge at http://www.whiteonwhite.com.
But they only sell black :(

Anyone know of a red cheap knock-off?
Email me if you do! mammyjam@hotmail.com
Thanks!