After taking my laptop in for repairs, I assumed that it would be a while until I got it back.
In the meantime, I’ve set up posts for some vintage stuff from The Big Piece of Cake: a little weekly feature called “Materialistic Monday” about stuff I was currently into (or just wishing I could afford to officially be into). Hopefully I’ll get my computer back and today will be the last day of flashbacks…
And if you’re wondering what I’ll do about my Fifi Flowers givewaway, I think I’ll just keep it open until I can spring my laptop from the Geek Squad jail. So ENTER HERE!
November 14, 2008
*This is a little different. It was a “Friday Confession” – but since it’s style related – I thought I’d include it here. I wrote a “Materialistic Monday” follow up which will follow this one.
I hate this chair.
And apparently – I’m one of the few people willing to admit it. You see – it’s expensive. And important designers like it. And people don’t like to admit that they don’t like expensive things that “the experts” admire.
Until now. Until me. Until I just couldn’t take one more sighting of this chair without coming clean. This chair is EVERYWHERE. Every time I open a catalog or peruse a magazine spread on a celebrity home, this chair is in the background. I think it’s ugly, and I can honestly say that I wouldn’t even want it if you paid me to take it off your hands. Actually, that’s not true. I would take the chair and your money and then make even more money selling it on Ebay. Because people are willing to pay up to $500 for this chair (more if it’s one of the original fiberglass ones).
“But it’s an Eames Molded Plastic Armchair Rocker from Herman Miller!” you exclaim. Yes – I am aware of this. I don’t like it. I have limited funds to spend on luxuries, and I’d like to think that I spend them wisely. At least 75% of the time. Okay 50%. But wise investment or not, I do actually like everything I buy. And I’m willing to spend more on something that I deem to be worth the sacrifice. I’ve always believed that for the most part, “you get what you pay for.” But for $500, I would think that I’d be getting something better than a plastic chair.
Do you think I’m provincial? Do you suspect that I wouldn’t recognize style if it bit me on the ass? Do you wonder if I’ve ever even seen Domino Magazine? I don’t blame you for these questions, because it’s obvious that I’m just not seeing what the rest of the world sees in this chair.
Is it me, or does this chair look startlingly similar to plastic high school cafeteria chairs? A cafeteria rocking chair if you will… Personally – I don’t care to own a chair that even looks plastic (or brings back memories of suspicious chicken and overcooked pasta). I don’t care if it is an Eames. In my book, an expensive chair should crafted from wood and/or beautiful upholstery textiles. And yes, I am aware that I’m now channeling Joan Cusack’s character in Working Girl – the part when she looks at a simple, black couture cocktail dress and says, “Six thousand dollahs!? It’s not even leathah!” Remember – this is a confession. And I’m admitting to not liking something that has been celebrated by great designers for 70 years.
But that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. History making or not – I hate that hideous chair. Comments are now open for my public stoning.
Have a great weekend!