More chair business

Sheesh, you would think that I have a one track brain and it's all about chairs. Today I was checking in on fabric options for the wonderfully kooky vintage pair below, scored by my client/friend Marija who obviously has a really great eye. Of course we had to buy them, since they were so darned cool (as well as amazingly well-priced), but it's taken us (as in me) a while to get the fabric options together. We'll be simplifying the design a fair bit - no tufting - and I would love to see if the refinisher can hack off that little glued on moulding detail before they're re-sprayed (probably in a cream or soft grey). The first fabric pic shows a few samples from the racks at DFO, the second is a slightly more luxe collection of possibilities found at Kravet in Designer's Walk. Do you have a fave? Currently the random Greek Key-ish pattern in the middle of the first snapshot is the front runner, though that herringbone from Thom Filicia could be very handsome.

Feeling a little rough around the edges

I happened across a totally interesting furniture firm yestreday while researching a Trendwatch feature for House & Home's March 2010 issue. They're called Casamento, they're based in a suburb of Cape Town and well, I think they're all kinds of fabulous. Check them out and you'll see they mix handmade and mid-century with an artist's eye in their vintage and reproduction furniture and upholstery. The folks behind Casamento love the process of stripping down and re-building old pieces, and that's the idea behind their Raw collection, and that sweet re-done vintage chair below. I love its deconstructed look, and almost inside-out construction with the waxed twine stitching proudly on show, and the fact that it's just so relaxed and imperfect. Lovely!