Sunday, August 7, 2011

Two's company and three's...even better! Catching some Zs - Danish Modern Selig Z Chairs

Somehow this year I've fallen into a pattern of picking up a cool chair at my favorite monthly flea market about every other month.  Earlier this year it was this bent plywood Danish chair with chrome legs.  I never got around to posting about it.


 And in June, I scored a nice deal on this fiberglass chair.


Yesterday, I did even better!


I was up early and got to the flea a little after 6 am. It's not supposed to start until 7, but even before sunrise there are people at this sale, so even though it was early, I was surprised to see this baby waiting for me.  No one had beaten me to it!!


Over the years, I've gotten pretty good at keeping a poker face when asking the price on something that I'm willing to empty my wallet for.  In this case, the price was really good - I mean REALLY GOOD!!!!!!! So I paid for it and the seller offered to hold it for me until I was ready to load it.


Well, I walked around for a couple of minutes and because I know how desirable these chairs are, I was afraid to leave it out of my sight.  Heck, someone else might tempt the seller with more cash and try to buy it out from under me.  So I headed back and picked it up and locked it in the car. No sense in tempting fate. :-)

So what is it?

I've seen finished versions of these Selig Poul Jensen Danish Z chairs go for ridiculous money on ebay.  Do a quick search and you'll see what I mean. Sometimes one chair will get bid up close to $1000 !  This chair is missing the straps and the cushions, but overall the wood looks good.

Don't hate me, but this is actually the third Z chair I've picked up.

About three years ago I scored a matching pair of these in a darker finish off of craigslist.


The craigslist seller had gotten them from a storage auction, and they had this funky 1970s fabric cushions.


I'm nearly positive they're not original cushions or fabric, but for now they're functional, and they kinda fit in with the other furniture in the basement.

I think I paid around $350 for the pair, and at the time I figured even that was a steal.  When we were in Asheville last spring, I spotted this ottoman and I guessed that it would match the chairs.  The fabric on it also looks non-original.




There's also a sofa  in the same Z design, but those seem to be harder to find.  I've only seen one, at a local store, and that was before I got my chairs. Yes, I wish I had bought that sofa.

Now I have to emphasize that I'm really not a label collector.  I buy things that look good to me if I can afford them. And if I hadn't stumbled across the wild styling of these Z chairs while online a few years ago, I wouldn't even be much into the Danish modern stuff.  But now that I've had these chairs a while, I don't plan to part with them.  They're really comfortable to sit in.  And they look great, don't they?

Take it from the Uncle, keep your eyes out for these chairs and ottomans, and get yourself one if you can afford it. You'll be glad you did!

5 comments:

  1. Great score on the chairs! And I dunno, the cushions on the set look like the right style to me.

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  2. It is like you are reuniting a family of Z chairs! I really like them. Cool styling and they look comfy (i bet they are) I'd like to see the rest of your swanky basement/man cave!

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  3. I would love to run across a photo of another one of these chairs with the same funky velour fabric as are on mine. Everything I've read and seen online suggests these chairs typically had a solid tweed style fabric. For now this pair is serviceable so they stay as they are.

    As for the basement/man cave, I suppose I should do an overall tour of the finished part of the basement. Stay tuned!

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  4. Great score on the chair(s)!! Mine weren't that cheap but were still cheaper than I've ever seen them go for on ebay. Love that turquoise stove you found too (a different post)-
    Diane

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  5. Thanks Diane, i enjoy your blog too, and again, congrats on finding those Z chairs

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