d*s reader angela asked if i would round up some great wingback chairs on the market. wingbacks are some of my favorite types of chairs, despite the fact that they don’t exactly encourage napping. i tend to enjoy what i call “stylishly lazy” furniture that lets you lounge and nap while you watch tv without being overstuffed and heavy. but sometimes you need something with a little structure, or a place to sit and read where you won’t fall asleep. so now that i sound like someone who does nothing but fall asleep in furniture, i’ll let the chairs do the talking. some of these models can get pretty pricey so a good thing to remember is that the cheaper models shown here can be reupholstered in a bright, kicky pattern to keep them looking sharp and modern. click here for the full roundup or just click “read more” below. enjoy!
[image above, clockwise from top left: wingback by james design, wing chair by matthew hilton, vintage wing chair $2995, peekaboo wing chair, josef wingback $2498, chelsea wing chair $1200+]
[image above, clockwise from top left: evan chair $1200, keates wing chair $1395, josef wingback $1998, shantal wing chair, daughtry wingback $1498, briar chair $699]
[image above, clockwise from top left: pair of vintage rattan wingback chairs $2999, gracie wing chair $299, leaf linen wingback $1998, petite wingback chairs at 1stdibs.com]
[image above: wingback chair by autoban design]
[image above, left to right: wingback chair at horchow $1615, wingback lounge $649]
[image above, clockwise from top left: bergman his chair $1895, hawthorne wing chair $2295, ashton wing chair, wingchair cover $89.99 (would work well on this chair), vintage wing chair $2195, howell wing chair $895]
[image above, left to right: hudson wingchair cover $139.99 (try on the $299 gracie chair), moroso modern wingback $4601]
22 Comments
I just bought my first wing chairs at Bombay! They are cranberry red dupioni silk. I like to call them my “don’t sit” chairs. They are going to fabulous in my living room.
Great guide, Grace. I love the Autoban chair (they have such great stuff) and I LOVE the two-tone upholstery on the Horchow chair. My favorite wingback, not that I’ll EVER be able to afford it, is a Jens Risom chair that they carry at Pucci. I couldn’t figure out how to paste a direct link. If you go to: http://www.ralphpucci.net/flash.html then click on furniture, Jens Risom, it is the first chair that comes up, upholstered in white. Love it!
yummy. I really wish i had $1998 to spend on a chair, I would totally get the shantal wing chair.
The bergman his chair is perfect. They’re all so good, really.
It is very easy to find this kind of chair at thrift shops because they are so ubiquitous. (I found one for 5 dollars.) And even if you are not handy, you can get a professional to recover one for much less than the cost of most of these (very handsome) chairs.
then I will definitely be looking at thrift stores soon. I am getting ridiculously tired of the free squeaky glider rocker sitting in our living room.
Some of these are pretty cool. They sort of remind me of this great book cover I was checking out today: http://www.randomhouse.com/images/dyn/cover/?source=9780385516839&height=300&maxwidth=170
HELP! i am having a hard time finding chic but cheap upholstery fabric for two wingback chairs. they look exactly like the zebra ones. i want classic but with a kick. i’m afraid of the amazing patterns i am drawn to, because i know i will get sick of such loud patterns. anyone have suggestions?????
oops, you left out the classic Egg Chair by Arne Jacobsen:
http://dwr.com/productdetail.cfm?id=10728
I love wing chairs. But that peekaboo one really takes the cake with it’s shell attachment. Just noticed that the shell has an open and close window in it!
joe to hell:
have you looked at http://www.contemporarycloth.com or http://www.reprodepotfabric.com or http://www.purlsoho.com?
Many nice options in upholstery fabric. You are probably right to mistrust your penchant for loud patterns if you are going to have a matching pair of chairs. But if you break them up, you could get away with something really wild and fun.
$1998 + for 1 chair? As the old saying goes…a fool and his/her money will soon be parted.
salvation army chair – $30
Recovered – $200
result – 100% nicer then any shown
not all your readers make or married tons of money or live in manhattan overpriced boxes.
Are there any decent looking recliners out there at a reasonable price?
lighten up dude. the post is as much about stimulating ideas as it is actually buying these particular chairs.
i for one love shopping for vintage furniture, but i would have not even considered buying a wing chair until i saw that they could look this awesome.
Hey does anyone know of a place where I can get a custom mattress made in L.A.?
I’ve been yearning for this Baker wing chair for years…beautiful for thousands and thousands of dollars
http://www.kohlerinteriors.com/baker/1_1_5_0_coll_prod.jsp?brand=Baker&prod_id=2168050&prod_num=6200
here’s that Baker wing chair
Could you do a guide on best places to buy fabric? I am really looking for where to buy upholstery fabrics to redo a wingback chair I just found.
wonderful wingchairs. Good and anatomic for lazy sitting.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of having either two matching wingbacks on either side of a window or two that have complementary colors? I can’t decide.
Hi Margaret, this would be very late seeing as you posted your question back in March, but I’d say go for the complementary colours rather than having them matchy-matchy, especially as the wingback is such a strong structural shape already, varying colours would not be too jarring and add more interest, don’t you think?
Anyway, I loooove wingbacks, and have to disagree with Amy unfortunately regarding the dosing factor as I thought wingbacks were designed originally with the intent of helping the reader dose by the fire, that’s the whole purpose of the wings — to keep out the drought but also to allow resting place for dozy heads. My own prized wingback is here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/79741326@N00/953675808/in/set-72157601104835851/
Any tips on where to source nice wingbacks in Europe? There don’t seem to be as many options and they tend to be in the higher price range.
Cheers
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