Ian Birchall’s English Country Chair has a sophistication and style that draws on design influence of Sheraton period chairs and Regency period chairs.
Details such as the tightly woven rush seating and crisp hand turnings of fine Hitchcock chairs give the English country dining chairs a lasting quality of construction. The lining taken from Sheraton period chairs and curve of the arm taken from Regency period chairs give this chair timeless elegance. Unlike some French country chairs it has comfort on a par with some Windsor chairs.
The chair is built using the greenwood technique, an old method of chair construction and used in hand crafted chairs of colonial furniture design such as Windsor style. The individual wood parts of the chair can be bent and formed using this method, and the joints tighten as the wood dries. This allows for light construction like some French country chairs and Provence style chairs but with English country roots.
The design of the English Country Chair evokes a period in furniture attributed to Thomas Sheraton, an 18th century cabinetmaker. It also features elements of colonial furniture design and Regency period chairs. The result is an elegant but comfortable chair.
