THIS POST IS A LESSON TO EVERYONE!
BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO THROW SOMETHING AWAY, DO SOME RESEARCH TO SEE IF IT IS WORTH SOMETHING! SELLING OR EVEN DONATING SOMETHING IS A MUCH BETTER SOLUTION THAN FILLING LANDFILLS WITH
HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS!!!!
I really don't pick up stuff from the curb that often. I'm more into thrifting, refinishing my own stuff, or stuff that has been given to me; but when I was on my way home from dropping my son at pre-school at our church, I saw a group of chairs on the side of the road. To my good fortune, this person had not told the garbage man ahead of time that they were throwing out larger items, so he didn't take them (THANK GOD!).
This first chair is what caught my eye because I was planning on getting some
adirondack chairs for our back yard. I stopped & loaded all of them up
because they were all so chic, mid-century modern.
When I got home, I almost set about painting this chair to go with my spray paint until I saw the intricate burn marking that said, 'Furniture by Baumritter.'
Before I went about refinishing it, I googled the phrase & found out that Baumritter turned into Ethan Allen in 1962 & that these chairs go for $400-$800!
I wasn't about to touch this thing until I learned more & could refinish it properly!
It's amazing that someone threw this out without researching it first,
especially because it is in such great condition (not the cushions, but the chair itself)!
Then there were these beauties right along side the Baumritter chair:
I can't wait to rip the seats off, reupholster them, & paint the frames!
THEN, next to those were these three vintage vinyl tulip chairs. I need to learn a
little more about their manufacturer & where they may have come from
before I repurpose them myself.
I don't have ANY experience with these,
but what better way to learn than on a set of free ones?
4/16/12
UPDATE! UPDATE! UPDATE!
I will NOT... be TOUCHING... these CHAIRS!
These are THONET chairs!
Vintage... Mid-century Modern... Eames Era Thonet...
Tulip Chairs!
That is a big, BIG deal!
Vintage... Mid-century Modern... Eames Era Thonet...
Tulip Chairs!
That is a big, BIG deal!
...apparently...
Ok, ok, ok... you caught me... so I didn't know anything about these chairs until tonight, haha. What a fun journey it was learning, though! I'll scan in the tag & explain more soon, but let's just say these puppies ain't cheap!
Like over-$800-not-cheap; so
HOORAY for trash day! HOORAY for trash day!
Like over-$800-not-cheap; so
HOORAY for trash day! HOORAY for trash day!
(I'm not gonna end up on A&E... I'm not gonna end up on A&E... I'm not gonna end up on A&E...)
Hahahaha...
"It was more than discovering something that I loved to do -
It was discovering someone I had always been."
~ Natalie ;-*
Wow! What a find! Love those tulip chairs. I'd use one as a chair at my desk and sell the other two. Wish our trash day would net me an awesome find like that.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Amanda!
DeleteThere are some surprisingly awesome things set out on the curb around here. I NEVER look for this stuff - I'm always just driving to church or the grocery store & this stuff is set out to take up space in a landfill. I'm not really an environmentalist... I just LOVE old things with history & the beauty of REAL material like actual solid wood instead of the fiberboard that everything is made of these days -- not to mention that a new fiberboard vanity is $150, when you can find & refinish one made of REAL, solid materials for $15 or less (or even free)! I don't understand why people don't take these items to the Goodwill (there are at LEAST 7 of them, that I KNOW of, within a 5-mile radius), call the Salvation Army for pick-up, or donate to ANY of the many shelters, foundations, churches, & on & on & on... Even if the items were not made of solid materials, it just seems to be such a waste in general.
ANYway (now that I've gotten that out of my system), I really didn't know when I picked up the Thonet chairs what they were worth; & it turns out that they may be harder to unload than I initially thought. After my research, I asked an "expert" at AllExperts.com & he said not to touch them; but to instead find a dealer or designer on a site like '1stDibs.com' who would know how to preserve them. He also said that they would probably go for somewhere between $40-$150 a chair.
I still haven't sold them, but I only asked non-local (& REALLY non-local, like Californian!) distributors on 1stDibs & made a listing on Craig's List. I haven't asked the local antique dealers yet. I've decided to set a time-frame, ask the local dealers, & list them as they are now in my Etsy shop, TheVintageMagi.Etsy.com. If I don't find a buyer in that time-frame, they will be MY projects after all! I'll try my best to preserve their history, attempting to stay true to their style by using mid-century materials, & then try to find them homes again. Just as these things have a way of finding me, so do they usually get their happy endings.
Please stop by from time-to-time or follow my blog. I'm trying to become more involved & post more often, but I HAVE to finish the overhaul of my garage & workshop first. Once everything has a place & I can work in an organized space, I'll be better able to tackle the MANY projects I already have lined up. Wish me luck! -Natalie
Love the thonet chairs, I have so many. Read my latest post i posted today and you will what i mean! thsnks for sharing. Nicole
ReplyDeleteI just found a Baumritter chair set out for trash day yesterday! Had no idea what it was until i looked it up either, lol! No cushions and one of the poles in the back is cracked, but otherwise in pretty good shape. I was wondering if you had any words of wisdom as far as what you did with yours? Any input would be awesome, thanks!
ReplyDelete