dining chairs

Dining Room Decision Made…Oval Saarinen Tulip Table

So I didn’t have a chance to post properly on this before our winter holiday trip but the Saarinen table was delivered just hours before we left for the airport. Yay! You can see that I went off to vacation extremely happy as the table looks even more amazing in the space than I had hoped!

For those of you just tuning in, earlier this fall I posted a three-part series (here, here and here) on trying to decide what to choose for our dining room. Years in small homes in NYC and Tokyo meant that we never really had space for a proper dining room set up. After writing about the Saarinen table as option 2, a dear friend living in Malaysia wrote to say that she had one and didn’t need it anymore as she was moving back to an already furnished home in the US! Since the table is not available here in Doha we looked into shipping and it really wasn’t an unreasonable proposition for a table this fabulous. Six weeks or so later, it arrived.

I always planned to do a mix of chairs as I find a matched set around the oval table to feel very heavy and dull (peek in Google images and you’ll agree). Mid-century chairs are one of my favorite looks but there are none to be had here. On the other hand, a curvy French chair, like this bergère, also sets off the lines of the table perfectly.

French chairs look great mixed with more modern ones too.

Remember those French chairs I got for free? That story still needs to be told but when I got them I knew they would be perfect for the table – it was just a matter of reupholstery. While I am still considering patterned fabrics, the light backgrounds on those seem like they might disappear against all that white and pale gray. I’ve also been weighing up using a solid, in particular a strong clear green to pick up the color from the Japanese screen at the other end of the room.

To balance out the more serious formality of those (and perhaps because I just don’t have many other choices here) we are going with 4 IKEA Tobias Chairs to round out the seating. Using a clear lucite chair with the tulip table is common as it lets the lines of the table shine through with less leg clutter. Typically people use a Louis-style Ghost chair but I have seen only a single one for sale here and I never actually find them that comfortable to sit in. The Tobias is very comfy, simple and so inexpensive that they can serve as placeholders until I find something else.

I’ve been assuming the addition of a Madeline Weinrib dhurrie underneath for some time. I’m thinking Mandala in Platinum or Steel, but more likely the former as I love the striations in the weave.

The fun part is layering in the unusual accessories. The long stored Chinese embroidered bed valence is coming out for the window treatment.

A pair of Italian gilt sconces that I scooped up antiquing in New Jersey this summer will be the new family coat of arms.

A gallery wall of favorite art including this etching by Shinji ANDO as well as my many shrine sale finds will grace the wall above the Empire dresser, which funnily enough is the first real piece of antique furniture I ever bought as a young adult. It has followed us from home to home, country to country and is still one of my favorites.

And a massive gorgeous painting by Doha based artist Pip Hoy will be the centerpiece of the opposite wall.

So not to get ahead of myself, but here’s a sneak peek of progress as I publish…

Not finished with all the art hanging, but as you can see, I’ve been a busy beaver since we got back.

Image credits: All photos via my Instagram feed or as linked with the exception of #2. Lilly Bunn, #3. credit unknown, photo via The Green Room Interiors.

Jan 13, 2014 By tokyojinja in Doha Move, Furniture, Interior Design, Rugs and Carpets Tags: dining chairs, dining room, dining table, Eero Saarinen, IKEA, Madeline Weinrib, Tobias chair, Tulip table

Dining Room Option Three…Inspiration from T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings

Did you like geometry in high school? Algebra was OK and I hated its big brother calculus, but I sure did love geometry. Cue one of my favorite shapes – the octagon. Symmetrical like a square, but with none of its hard-edged pointy-ness, fluid like a circle, but with more structure, it is a dynamic shape for a square dining room. The Coliseum table by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Widdicomb has long been one of my favorite pieces of vintage furniture out there. Robsjohn-Gibbings was one of the foremost mid-century designers and taste makers whose influence is still felt today – klismos chairs anyone? Sightings of this table are rare and it is best known in the blogosphere from Dara Caponigro’s dining room featured in Domino: The Book of Decorating. (It seems very apropos to type that today as the relaunch of Domino Magazine was announced yesterday!)

Another geometric love – the arch! Gracious and welcoming, that half circle is reminiscent of everything I love about ancient architecture. Basically I chose the house here because I loved its arched pass throughs and windows. How ideal would the table be for this space!

Its combination of looks and functionality is ideal. The modern but classic lines make it work in every kind of decor. It seats 4 without being awkward and can seat 8 without even adding a table leaf. But it does have them, allowing for expansion to seat at least 12. Thanksgiving anyone?

It is rare and hard to find, being from Robsjohn-Gibbings’ final Widdicomb collection, and extremely expensive when you do find it. This one below is available on 1stdibs for $18,000. Which brings up the question how would I ever get one? And here to boot? Well, I have heard from numerous sources here that there are some craftsmen here in Doha that make furniture for very reasonable prices. Perhaps this is an opportunity to make my dream table?

Other sources of inspirations confirm my love of these motifs. When I was in England this summer I drooled over this E.W. Godwin Japanese inspired ebonized table at the Victoria & Albert Museum. It’s a circle, but it has those lovely arches in the base.

It reminded me of the other octagonal table I’ve had saved in my inspiration folder – this very precise and also Asian influenced one by Ralph Rucci. Love the brass feet on both tables!

I’m not the only one to love this look. Jenny at LGN created her own version of the Robsjohn-Gibbings table by pushing together two unusually shaped demilunes.

And in another crazy fabulous room from Susan Hable Smith (remember her living room here) she combines an antique table with both a marble top and arches in the base with vivid colors and patterns.

In all three of these last posts I have been neglecting the entire conversation around what chairs as the table, while difficult, seems like the easy part in comparison. My fantasy chairs are painted white-ish, a bit classical, a bit Scandinavian,

…a bit Hollywood Regency with a bold colored seat…

…perhaps even a bit 1930s Francis Elkins. These are sold on 1stdibs but could have been perfect, upholstery color and all.

I’d even be happy with simple oval backed Louis chairs like Dana’s in the top photo. Or maybe the perfect chair would be a klismos? The exact version all depends on the table choice.

So I’d love to hear from all of you. Of the three choices, which do you like best? Why? Should I combine elements of different schemes or have you got other suggestions? The truth is there is much timing, practicality and possibly some impossibility at play here that will require compromise, but let’s see where I can go with this.

Oct 4, 2013 By tokyojinja in Doha Move, Furniture, Interior Design Tags: arches, Dana Caponigro, dining chairs, dining room, dining table, Domino, Domino magazine, E.W. Godwin, Jenny Komenda, octagon, octagonal table, Ralph Rucci, Susan Hable Smith, T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings