Amazing Blue Chairs

Photo taken by author.
Laguna Woods, California
November 17, 2018 9:18pm CST
Thirty-four years ago, I purchased two custom-made blue chairs for the formal living room in the new home we purchased in 1984. Our youngest daughter was two years old. After my husband and I used those two chairs in our homes in Texas and California for 23 years, we moved into our current retirement community and gave our formal living room furniture to our daughter and her husband. That was 11 years ago, when they purchased their first home. We kept our leather den furniture which was only a couple of years old at the time. Now, the daughter who was two when we purchased the chairs is 36 years old and the mother of three pre-schoolers. I have often watched her little boys sit on the arms of the chairs or stand on their seats and use them as launching pads to jump to the floor. Occasionally, their cats try to use the chairs as scratching posts. What is amazing about the chairs? After 34 years of wear and tear, including being used by preschoolers as climbing equipment, the chairs still look brand new! The fabric is undamaged. The chairs are still comfortable. The cushions have retained their shape and firmness. You can see for yourself in the photo I took of one of the chairs where it sits in the den of our daughter's home in Delaware. This photo was just taken a week ago. Meanwhile, our leather furniture is getting worn out and we are thinking about replacing it, even though it is less than half as old as those blue chairs. I think we kept the wrong furniture! Our thirty-four year old chairs have stayed in much better shape than our newer leather ones!
19 people like this
21 responses
@LadyDuck (454862)
• Switzerland
18 Nov 18
This is a very nice and comfortable chair. Ikea is selling right now a chair identical to this one, it's part of their "vintage collection", they sell the matching sofa and the stool.
4 people like this
@LadyDuck (454862)
• Switzerland
19 Nov 18
@DeborahDiane I have not tried the chair. We bought our 2 leather sofas at Ikea 20 years ago when we bought this house and they still look like new. We had two leather chairs in Monte-Carlo, made in Sweden, when we moved one of our friends asked if he could have those chairs because he loved. He still has them and they are now 42 years old. I think that Swedish products are very good products.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
20 Nov 18
@LadyDuck - Yes, Swedish products are very good. I need to go check out the IKEA furniture before I buy anything new.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@LadyDuck - I wonder if the IKEA chair is as well made as this one!
3 people like this
@much2say (53650)
• Los Angeles, California
18 Nov 18
My goodness . . . that chair is in excellent condition! I know all about kids using furniture as trampolines - our couch definitely needs replacing.
3 people like this
@much2say (53650)
• Los Angeles, California
19 Nov 18
@DeborahDiane Our couch wasn't particularly expensive - probably not worth reupholstering.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@much2say - The sofa we gave our daughter has not fared as well. It could definitely start to be reupholstered.
2 people like this
@DianneN (246452)
• United States
18 Nov 18
That chair looks amazing! My mother always stated that you get what you pay for. I think you chose the right fabric to withstand the test of time. We have antique furniture hundreds of years old mixed in with custom made furniture here in CT. They will outlive us all.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@DiannaN - Ha ha! You're right! These chairs will probably outlive me! LOL
1 person likes this
@DianneN (246452)
• United States
19 Nov 18
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (323662)
• Rockingham, Australia
18 Nov 18
It's amazing how some furniture retains its good looks for ages and ages.
3 people like this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@JudyEv - Yes, it truly is amazing to me! I thought they would just last our daughter a few years to get her started, yet here they are more than a decade after we gave them to her!
2 people like this
@sunrisefan (28650)
• Philippines
18 Nov 18
Those chairs indeed have many memories seated in them, Ms. Deborah :)
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@sunrisefan - Ah, yes. Many good memories in those chairs!
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@sunrisefan - I took good care of those chairs, but my daughter has not. They have done well anyway!
1 person likes this
@sunrisefan (28650)
• Philippines
18 Nov 18
And you and your daughter took good care of those chairs that they still look good until this day.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129074)
• Israel
9 Dec 18
@DeborahDiane That is very interesting with the kids climbing on it and the cats using it as a scratching post that it remains in good shape. Can you get more of them now for where you live now?
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
10 Dec 18
@Hannihar - I wish I could get more chairs like these, but I don't even remember the name of the company which made those chairs in 1984. I wish I did. I am so amazed by how well they have held up and I don't think I paid all that much for them. I wish I at least knew what the fabric is!
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Dec 18
@Hannihar - I'm sure I could show a photo to a furniture store, but I do not think I will ever find chairs again that have this much quality. I think they were exceptional. I think we are lucky today if we find a chair which still looks this good after five years of use.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (129074)
• Israel
11 Dec 18
@DeborahDiane If you cannot find those then maybe you can find some close to them.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157027)
• United States
18 Nov 18
Amazing that they have held up so well. I like them.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@GardenGerty - I'm pretty amazed by these chairs, too!
@jstory07 (133739)
• Roseburg, Oregon
18 Nov 18
That chair still looks news after all those years. You did take the wrong furniture.
1 person likes this
@jstory07 (133739)
• Roseburg, Oregon
18 Nov 18
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@jstory07 - I think I chose the wrong furniture, too, but I don't think my daughter would want to trade at this point! I have been amazed at how hard those chairs are treated and how good they look! LOL
1 person likes this
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
24 Nov 18
It is good that some things do last for many years. We have a few pieces of furniture that began life before we did and these are still in fine shape. Guessing the few things we have were made by hand, but we don't know the history of everything we have.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
25 Nov 18
@PatZAnthony - It amazes me that some things can last so long and others, often comparably priced, do not last long at all. You have to be psychic to know what to buy! You're from North Carolina where a lot of excellent furniture is made!
• Eugene, Oregon
19 Nov 18
That was some quality, well built furniture.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Nov 18
@JamesHxstatic - Every time I visit that daughter and see her sons jumping from the chairs, with no visible damage, it utterly amazes me!
1 person likes this
@noni1959 (9842)
• United States
18 Nov 18
They made furniture so much sturdier back then. Nice chairs.
1 person likes this
@noni1959 (9842)
• United States
19 Nov 18
@DeborahDiane My girlfriend went looking for vintage chairs and found two wingback and snatched them up. They still look perfect and never been recovered. I'm going to go looking myself.
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Nov 18
@noni1959 - I agree that they made much sturdier furniture a few decades ago.
1 person likes this
@thelme55 (76342)
• Germany
19 Nov 18
I think old furnitures are more durable compared to today's furnitures. That chair has many stories to tell, if it could talk.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Nov 18
@theme55 - Yes, a lot of older furniture is more durable.
1 person likes this
@Moon24 (22396)
• Serbia
18 Nov 18
Very nice chair. Blue colour is nice.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Nov 18
@Moon24 - I always liked those blue chairs. Now I think I should have kept them!
1 person likes this
@leny34 (8506)
• Sidoarjo, Indonesia
18 Nov 18
nice chair and looks classic, i like that
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@leny34 - I always liked those chairs, too. Thank you!
1 person likes this
@leny34 (8506)
• Sidoarjo, Indonesia
18 Nov 18
@DeborahDiane yes it's natural you like it, because it's really good
1 person likes this
• China
18 Nov 18
I am amazed that the two chairs used by three generations are still in good condition after 34 years.I can't help thinking that today's furniture isn't as sturdy as before.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Nov 18
I completely agree. Today's furniture is not as sturdy as what we bought back then. It amazes me.
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (93502)
• Marion, Ohio
18 Nov 18
The newer something is the shorter its life span is any more.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@wolfgirl569 - I agree. Things are not made to last anymore.
@TheHorse (203666)
• Walnut Creek, California
18 Nov 18
What was their secret? Do you know where they were made?
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@TheHorse - I had a custom furniture designer make them when we lived in Dallas. I just picked the fabric because I liked the color and texture. I remember that I thought they were reasonably priced at the time, about the same as similar chairs in the stores. I don't know if the designer is still in business. I no longer have the receipts. I wish I knew their secret, because I would certainly have them make me another pair. They would last the rest of my life!!
@sol_cee (38224)
• Philippines
18 Nov 18
That doesn’t look old! And I like that shade of blue.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Nov 18
@sol_cee - I like this shade of blue, too. I never dreamed the chairs would last this long and still look good!
@HazySue (39269)
• Gouverneur, New York
18 Nov 18
They do loo like new. They don't make things the way they used to do they?
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Nov 18
@HazySue - You are so right. They don't make things the way they used to!
1 person likes this
@Icydoll (36725)
• India
18 Nov 18
This chair looks very nice.
1 person likes this
• Laguna Woods, California
19 Nov 18
@Icydoll - Thank you. I always liked those chairs, too.