Garden Furniture Care

I found a unique chair and ottoman set at a Balinese import store that really struck my fancy recently. The chair and ottoman both have wooden frames with a very dark stain. Both have padded leather cushions, also in a very dark mahogany color and have little criss-cross leather stitching as an accent in two lines down the chair back and across the ottoman cushion. The chairs wooden arms have a graceful scroll at the connection point and the leather is hob-nailed down all the way around. The set has such colonial charm, that it looks like it could have come straight from the parlor of a British East India Company executive, or maybe from the main house at a coffee plantation in Java. The lines of the chair have an elegant sweep and the legs of the chair and the ottoman have are wide set and sturdy. The quality of the leather and the wood itself leave a little to be desired, but the overall appeal of the set is so strong that these factors can be overlooked.

I did something really rash a year ago, which is that I bought dining room furniture, eight chairs and a table, for a house that has not yet been built. In truth, the house has not even been designed yet. However, my love for this dining room set was so overpowering, that I bought it anyway, knowing that I had no where to store it in the interim. So here it sits, a set of dining room furniture in the middle of my living room covered in plasitc, for the last year. Let me describe its charms: the table is square, allowing for 2 seats on each side. This is an unusual seat arrangement, and I like it. It means the hosts are not 10 feet apart with the guests lined up like bowling pins on each side. The table has a wooden base, with a cut-out carved top, covered by a large piece of glass. The combined practicality and elegance of this arrangement was compelling. I can keep the table clean without having to do extensive polishing. The seats have the same cut-out carving on the backs, and a simple dark apricot nubby fabric cushion. The carved backs don’t end at the seat, but continue down to the floor. Now I just need to build a dining room to fit my table.

I am going to build a media loft area in a new house we are building and I am looking to furnish the area with a large leather couch, with a minimum of three seats. I might consider an L-shaped piece as well, or a sectional. The problem is that I am really picky about the leather itself. I don’t want leather that looks shiny, or thin. I am looking for a really nice thick leather that has a weathered or brushed appearance, but not suede. Also the color is really important, I am looking for something in a nice deep brown, no hints of red, taupe, orange or other colors. I prefer rich colors, but that have tonality and depth. I don’t like things that look fussy. I am in favor or a more rustic, durable style. I also like turned wooden feet which I feel give an cool antique look. Sometimes the Sundance Catalog carries items of this type. This is the type of couch I am looking for, but without the heavy price tag.