Outdoor Lounging - A Perfect Pairing

When I came across this image on Desire to Inspire's blog the other day, i just had to re-post it here.  The photo is from the portfolio of New York design firm Meyer Davis Studio it happens to feature the same two chairs I posted about last week, my top picks for outdoor lounging, paired together! And a retro style fireplace,,,has been on my must have list for quite a few years now but after seeing this image, its definitely moving up a few notches.

Outdoor Lounging - The New Muskoka Chairs

The Muskoka Chair,,,,,synonymous with summertime, cottage life, and lakeside lounging. I’m sure you can instantly conjure up an image of the classic muskoka chair, no photo needed. Its iconic to say the least, and its image could be used as an international symbol for Canadian summer vacation.

I love traditional furniture,,,but painted wood and outdoor elements don’t often equate to carefree living. Idle relaxation is what these chairs are all about,,,,so for all the relaxation but non of the work associated with seasonal storage or maintenance, here’s a look at some of my favorite not so traditional looking muskoka chairs as well as some new and improved, eco friendly traditional versions.

For at least 2 years, I’ve had a photo postcard pinned up beside my desk – it’s a photo of this tourquoise, eye popping version of a mukoka chair. I picked it up at the One of a Kind show in Toronto where I’ve seen these chairs more than a few times. The makers of these chairs, Ian and Sandy Mackie share a love of design and the outdoors and offer 3 different chair styles under their company Jardinique. Jardinique builds Canadian climate-tested, classically inspired outdoor furniture that can live outdoors year round. They offer the chairs in any Benjamin Moore colour mixed in an outdoor industrial paint that's sprayed on over a primer. The chairs can be shipped anywhere in the world, each chair is shipped flat and ready to assemble with nothing more than a screwdriver and an hour or two to spare. First time customers report that assembling the chairs is easy.


The roundback lodge chair is based on a design that Ian and Sandy saw in Prince Edward County and reminded Sandy of fishing lodges she had visited in Quebec.

Jardinique's Westport chair - the Westport chair was originally designed by Thomas Lee in 1903. The design was patented in 1905. The brilliance of the design is in the angles of the seat to the back and the legs to the seat. The more the chair is sat on, the tighter and more solid the structure becomes. Also, Ian at Jardinique has ingeniously hidden all screws to prevent water penetration. Because of this, you will find none of the looseness typical of a Muskoka chair after a winter outdoors.

Probably the most remarked upon feature of these chairs are the ample arms! Measuring 8.5" wide.

Jardinique's Garden Chair is a re-design of an iconic Rietveld Chair. Gerhardt Rietveld, a Dutch architect, designed the original chair in 1918. One of these sits on display at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City.
For chair officianados, Jardinique's version is so much more comfortable and more sturdy.  The simple, yet effective alterations have maintained the look and feel of the original Rietveld Chair.










Loll Designs interpretation of this classic muskoka chair is clean, modern and eco friendly. Its durable, sustainable, all-weather - intended for advanced outdoor living. Its made of superior grade recycled polyethylene. Hidden fasteners enhance the clean lines. Below is the 3 slat and 4 slat Adirondak.

CR Plastics Products - Generation Line. Canadian made from recycled plastic. A more traditional looking muskoka chair without the maintenance.

Last month I travelled out to Peterborough for a meeting with a client, a construction detour took me in the opposite direction I was supposed to be headed and along this country road I happen to drive by the most colourful sight. There were thousands of muskoka chairs in every colour you could imagine. I pulled over, grabbed my camera and went to check it out. What I discovered was a company called Taylors Plastic. They manufacture outdoor furniture made from 100% Canadian recylced plastics and supply many retailers and resorts throughout the country. The plastic material is recycled in Ontario from 90% post consumer products, is non toxic and UV resistant. They make a classic muskoka chair, bar stools, tables, rockers and benches. The muskoka chairs weight about 50lbs and they now make a foldable version so they are easier to store away. Since discovering this company, I've come across their product in quite a few upscale garden shops in Toronto, but you can purchase direct from Taylors and they offer country wide delivery.




Although the chairs are available in a range of colours, in this product I prefer the white and the light blues. What you'll notice on the darker colours is a whitish graining in the material which makes it look like plastic even from a short distance. With the white however, its impossible to tell its plastic unless you touch it.

Photos: Loll Designs, Jardinique (10), Loll Designs (7), CR Plastics (3), Carol Reed (3)

Outdoor Lounging - A Modern Classic

When I think of the perfect outdoor lounge chair, two images come to mind. One is the traditional and classic Muskoka Chair (more on that in the next post) and the other, is the iconic modern Butterfly chair, also known as, the BKF Chair, or the Hardoy Chair.

The Butterfly chair is a favorite of mine because of its sculptural lines, its affordability, its flexibility, it can be used both indoors or out,,,,and folds up or stacks for easy storage, and the covers can be easily replaced or changed. With its steel frame and hammock like seat it evokes a relaxed mid-century style - this chair will instantly add a hip modern edge to any setting. I prefer it used in either simple modern, or simple rustic settings.

In 1937, Antonio Bonet, Juan Kurchan and Jorge Ferrari-Hardoy apprenticed under architect/designer Le Corbusier in Paris; the following year they invented the "BKF" or butterfly chair. In 1941, MoMA design director Edgar Kaufmann Jr. brought the first two chairs to the United States. One chair went to the museum, the other to Fallingwater, his home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Most people associate this retro cool looking chair with the 50's when it was being mass produced, its hard to believe it was actually designed in the 30's and first used in North America in a Frank Lloyd Wright house.

The chair was originally mass-produced by Artek-Pascoe. In 1947 Knoll acquired US production rights of the Hardoy butterfly chair, bringing international notice and commercial success to the design. Unlicensed knock-offs and the loss of a Knoll copyright suit have made this one of the most copied chairs of modern design and it became one of the most widely copied chairs in existence. After losing their claim of copyright infringement, Knoll dropped the chair from its line in 1951.

In 1997 Circa50 resumed mass-production of the chair to the exact dimensions of the Knoll version. Their frames are solid steel and do not fold or disassemble. Both black and stainless steel frames are historically correct, while stainless steel offers additional benefits: stacks for easy storage; contains 75% recycled steel and is totally recyclable; does not corrode or rust as easily as ordinary steel. An estimated 5 million of these chairs were produced during the 1950's by numerous manufacturers under various name and all varying in size. Circa50 makes covers for any size. Today, the canvas covers in use at Fallingwater are made by Circa50.

Steel Frame and cowhide cover by Circa50.

Folding frame and leather cover by Urban Outfitters.

Butterfly chair shown both inside Frank Lloyd Wrights Fallingwater house, and outside (below).

The ultra chic Parker Palm Springs hotel.

The Starlux Hotel, NJ.

The butterfly chair in a bamboo garden.

I owned a house last summer that I was renovating, we actually didn't do any new work to the backyard but it had a big huge beautiful tree and large level deck. I brought over a couple of my butterfly chairs and set them up under the tree and we sat and had lunch or coffee there almost every day. We often received comments on how great the backyard looked,,it was quite a mess actually but I think the chairs alone just brought a whole new modern vibe to the setting. (this picture was taken during a freaky summer hail storm)

Used indoors as often as outdoors. This image and more of this home can be seen at Dwell magazine.

The mesh version in all black seen in Elle Decor.

Today the Butterfly chair is part of these permanent collections; MoMA, Fallingwater, Knoll Museum, Vitra Design Museum.

Photos: Canadian House & Home, Knoll, Knoll, Circa50, Urban Outfitters, Flickr, Parker Palm Springs Hotel, Starlux Hotel, Flickr, Carol Reed, Dwell, Elle Decor, Living Etc., Country and Modern by Dinah Hall, Style at Home May 2008