Results 1 to 2 of 2

Thread: Mid-century furniture - quality

  1. #1
    rosenthalpiano Guest

    Question Mid-century furniture - quality

    I am a huge fan of the aesthetics of mid-century modern furniture and am currently looking for manufacturers that make quality furniture in this style. I am also trying to educate myself on what goes into a quality sofa and what techniques are used (things like eight-way hand-tied spring systems). The problem is, I am having trouble finding where these worlds merge. In other words, it seems that most of the manufacturers that use these high-quality techniques do not create sofas in the style I am looking for.

    I have been to several furniture stores around town but keep getting differing points of view from the salespeople/stylists. One told me that a "webbed spring system" is actually better than eight-way hand-tied because the latter is "known to burst". Well, I found that highly suspicious and hard to believe and wound up walking out of the store. At another store, I was told that I "will not find" non-traditional looking sofas (like in the mid-century style) with the eight-way hand-tied system because "they were never made that way, only with sinuous springs." I'm also suspicious of this comment, but I am beginning to believe it because I cannot find what I am looking for.

    I am hoping someone here can steer me in the right direction and maybe suggest some places to find quality pieces in this style. As an example of what I'm looking for, one sofa that I liked a lot was this piece by Precedent Furniture:

    http://www.precedent-furniture.com/c..._per_page=9999

    The piece was comfortable and reasonably priced ($1600 on sale in the store), but I am suspicious of the quality knowing that it is made with sinuous springs.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Location
    Alexandria VA
    Posts
    15,890

    Default Re: Mid-century furniture - quality

    I find it amusing to hear what some of these know-nothing salespeople at furniture stores come up with. I guess their mantra is "if you don't know the answer, then make something up!" 8-way hand-knotted suspension is not known to burst, in fact the reason it does not is that there are 8 strings that go to each spring and if one should break, there are 7 more holding it in a properly made suspension. The real reason so many makers do not do it is simply because its the most costly suspension system in both materials and labor, simple as that.

    On the other hand, certain designs do not have the space inside the deck for a coil spring suspension and MUST use a sinuous spring. For an 8-way deck to work, it has to have some depth in the chassis in order to accommodate the spring itself, the webbing, and steel banding that support it and the top deck. Your design from Precedent just may not have the room, it looks to be on the cusp of whether that kind would fit in the base. Even Hancock & Moore, who build more true 8-Ways into their designs than any other maker cannot use them on certain styles such as this one:

    http://www.hancockandmoore.com/Produ...e-Quilted-Sofa

    I'd not let a sinuous spring suspension be a deal breaker myself. Look at the rest of the sofa and see how well its made. Solid Hardwood Frame or Plywood (i.e,"Engineered Hardwoods")?. Push outwards on the arms - are they taut? Grab the arm, can you feel the square edge fo the underlying wood or is it amply padded? How are the legs attached? These are all things to look at. Typically a $ 1,600 sofa at retail will not have any of these higher end build specs. Here's a H&M sofa that will have sort-of that period look and has a true 8-way deck and another by Taylor King as well.

    http://www.taylorking.com/product.asp?PID=5290&CID=1

    http://www.hancockandmoore.com/Produ...ns/Smooth-Sofa
    Duane Collie
    Straight answers from thirty-six years in the business.
    My Private Messages are Disabled - Please ask questions here in the forum.

Similar Threads

  1. Century furniture - Dimensions ?
    By habs88 in forum Craigslist Furniture, Found in the Attic, etc.
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 07-26-2012, 08:40 AM
  2. Mid Century Modern [quality] Leather Sofas?
    By myroomisblue in forum The Lobby
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 09-09-2011, 11:06 PM
  3. Mid Century Furniture
    By vickiecr in forum The Lobby
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 02-05-2011, 01:55 AM
  4. Century Furniture
    By organic_smallhome in forum Fabric Upholstery
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 02-11-2010, 01:08 AM
  5. Replies: 1
    Last Post: 07-13-2009, 04:58 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •