THE MAKING OF AN ARMCHAIR

THE MAKING OF AN ARMCHAIR

I never thought I would be able to say that I´d made my very own armchair… But that´s just what I was fortunate enough to do a few weeks back, when British sofa retailer, DFS, invited me to their design headquarters in Derbyshire to showcase Britannia: The Great British Sofa Collection, in connection with DFS’ Team GB sponsorship at Rio 2016. So, not just any regular old armchair then… 

dfs-25

After going behind the scenes at the DFS factory in the morning, seeing all the craftsmanship first hand – we headed over to the design studio, where all the magic happens. Here we met up with the designers, who talked us through the inspiration behind the limited-edition Britannia collection. The range consists of a sofa, a couple of armchairs and footstools – all in the style of the iconic British-crafted chesterfield design (what better suited to represent Team GB?) – with a modern twist.

But first, I popped by their dreamy showroom…

dfs

Soft hues of blues and minimal, with Scandinavian inspired lines…

dfs-1

Mixed with pops of colour and rustic elements, contrasted with the traditional Britannia chesterfield sofa.

dfs-3

Great idea for wall art!

dfs-4dfs-6I loved the contrast of the more relaxed and organic style – with the brick wall, bright colours and natural materials – mixed with the traditional and classic design elements of the Britannia collection.

dfs-8

 The designers talked us through the design process step-by-step. The idea of re-creating something classic and traditional was clear from the start, but it was important to design something unique, with that added extra for this very special range and occasion. In contrast to the classic chesterfield design, they added some modern elements with gold details (very aptly), in the shape of studs, buttons and wheels.

dfs-9

As well as the sofa, chairs and stools, the range also has several cushion designs, in various red, white and blue prints and styles.

dfs-11 dfs-12

After learning about the design process first hand, it was time to get started with our own! But first, the bases for the chairs got prepared (this part I did not get involved in…!).

dfs-13

Then it was time to select the fabric… Within the range, one can choose from a dusky light pink, a light denim blue, a pale oatmeal colour or a darker flax grey. Not surprisingly, I chose the latter, which I knew would look perfect in our home.

dfs-15

Ok, so I didn´t actually make the entire chair from scratch; to help me out, I was given a little head start with this covered base. Still pretty exciting though!

dfs-16

Time to get cracking! With the help from this very nice chap, who was supervising all the upholstery, stapling and studding…

dfs-19

So much satisfaction using this staple gun… And surprisingly easy!

dfs-21

After all the remaining bases were covered, I started on the gold studs. This part was a bit more tricky, where precision was key.

dfs-22

But I quickly got the hang of it, and things started to speed up!

dfs-20

The gold studs were such a nice touch to the chair design. I couldn’t wait to see the end result!

dfs-28

…and I didn´t have to wait long. A few weeks later, the chair was delivered. I love it. 

dfs-31

The colour was a great match as expected, and fitted perfectly into the house. There´s a couple of design options you can choose from with the design, such as gold buttons (instead of fabric) and wheeled legs in various colours and metals. I personally preferred the chair more plain without the gold buttons (just having the studs) and opting for the dark wood with the brass wheels; leaving me with this timeless, yet modern, statement piece.

dfs-30

The combination of the firm look, smooth fabric and super soft seating… Spot on. 

dfs-27

The chair went in the only room we´ve still not fully decorated with furniture, so it was perfect timing to get this armchair for it! It´s one of the lightest bedrooms in our house, with two large windows overlooking the garden. We´ve still not decided what we want to do with the room and have considered both a study or a reading room. The latter would be pretty perfect now that we have this chair.

dfs-29

GO TEAM GB!

dfs

Happy as larry (and so proud of being part of it).


M&S Top (similar here and here)
Only Jeans
ASOS Flats
Weekday Earrings


Shop the limited-edition DFS Britannia range here.
Created in collaboration with DFS. All words, opinions, styling & creative direction are, of course, my own.

 

Share:

8 Comments

  1. Sophia
    May 19, 2016 / 13:58

    What a great collaboration! Love the chair X

    • Anneli Bush
      Author
      May 26, 2016 / 22:35

      Thanks Sophia! x

  2. Hannah
    May 19, 2016 / 21:48

    Great post! Really like the chair :)

    • Anneli Bush
      Author
      May 26, 2016 / 22:35

      Thanks Hannah!

    • Anneli Bush
      Author
      May 26, 2016 / 22:35

      :)

    • Anneli Bush
      Author
      May 26, 2016 / 22:35

      Thank you Tatjana! x

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *