Description
This beautiful Arts & Crafts oak armchair, by Liberty of London, is a perfect feature-piece for any room. With refined finials, elegant cut-out details and perfectly balanced back straps, this chair is the epitome of fine design. Its fixed seat has been expertly reupholstered in a lustrous, bronze-toned woven horsehair by John Boyd Textiles and hand-finished with studs by Houlès, Paris.
The Arts & Crafts movement, initiated by William Morris and championed by fellow designers, marked a revolt against mass-production during the late Victorian period. This ‘society’ or artists, designers and architects, heralded a return to hand-crafted, well-constructed pieces, with the beauty and importance of natural materials at their heart.
Liberty’s, as it is fondly known, was set up by Arthur Lasenby Liberty in 1875. His dream was to metaphorically dock a ship, laden with luxuries from around the world, in the city streets. Oscar Wilde described Liberty’s as “the chosen resort of the artistic shopper”.
John Boyd Textiles was established in Castle Cary in 1837 and to this day, they are still weaving the finest quality tail hair, from live horses, using the original looms and techniques from 1870.
Furniture designers such as Chippendale, Hepplewhite, Lutyens and Charles Rennie Mackintosh used horsehair for many of their designs. John Boyd Textiles is one of the last companies in the world still weaving hair cloth.
Houlès designs and creates the finest of trimmings and fabrics. This family owned company was formed in Paris, by father and son Félix and André Houlès, in 1928. The company, which began with one store at 18 rue Saint-Nicolas, is now established in over 160 countries.
Presidential residences and castles, such as le Château de Versailles, often select Houlès’ passements for their restoration projects.
