Diamonds are a guy's best friend

You know, I've never been a real believer in luck, karma, Juju, divine intervention, or whatever you may call it.  I'm hard-core skeptic who's natural tendency is to attribute everything to the luck of the draw.

However, the world sometimes has an unmistakeable pattern to it.  Take, for example, the rather unbelievable string of home-related travesties that has befallen me since my move last year.  Surely there's no way that these events could have all occurred within this short timeframe without some kind of supernatural intervention.

Well, I must have done something right lately (a rare occasion, I assure you), because the Mid-Mod gods have chosen to smile upon me....

... and bequeath unto me this set of gorgeous Bertoia Diamond Chairs!

OK, so maybe that's a smidge dramatic, but I'm really excited.  I've been searching high and low for a pair of Bertoia's for quite some time.  In fact, I'd say that I'm completely enamored with their airy, sculptural look.  Just ask Mr. Modtomic.  He's probably sick to death of me oohing and aahing every time he brings his out.  Now I've got my very own to admire.

And the Mid-Mod gods may have played a part, but one of my readers actually delivered the goods (THANKS!).  It's such a cool experience running into readers and it's been happening more and more frequently lately, though they usually first ask if I'm Mr. Mod.  A shared interest in Mid-century Modern makes striking up a conversation easy and I've made some great friends and acquaintances over the last few months.  Anyway, she was making a trip to St. Louis to pick up a few things and decided to put some of her own items, including the chairs, up on Craigslist.  I was ALL OVER IT.

As is the case with most Bertoia's, these guys obviously spent their days out on the patio and the Rislan finish is rusted-through and flaking.  Something will need to be done, but what?  More on that in a second.

These have the original glides, for which I've already ordered replacements... 

... and the original Knoll covers.  Yep, that is a HOT pink, and that's the (very) faded side.  Wanna see a REAL hot pink?  

Daaaaaaaaang that's hot!  I didn't even know Knoll made this shade.  Obviously, being a red-blooded American male, I'll be putting the covers in storage.

So, here it is.   The breakfast nook is finally complete.  Well, almost complete.  See, I've gotta decide what to do about the finish on the chairs.  Should I go over them with a wire brush and paint them with Rustoleum?  Would it be better to take them to get sandblasted and powder coated?  How much would a job like this cost?  Should I do them in white, black, or a white/black combo like Hannah's?  Is just leaving them in their current rustic state for the best?

Oh, the questions.  The nagging, nagging questions.

Alton, IL

Man, I've got a lot of catching up to do.  I keep coming up with ideas for posts, but trying to spread them out so I don't run out of content.  Then I end up forgetting about them.

So here's the belated pictures from my trip to Alton, IL.  Mr. Modtomic, Dave, and I all decided to meet up and have a look through Alton's renowned antique malls a couple weeks back.

I arrived first, so I spent a few minutes wandering the side streets and looking at the gorgeous victorian homes.  Like many old, rural river towns, Alton has gotten a little rough around the edges.  White flight, the loss of industrial jobs, and the migration of young people to the suburbs of larger cities have all taken their toll.  However, it still maintains that small-town charm.

Once everyone pulled up, we stopped off a Fast Eddies Bon Air, which is famous for it's cheap eats, cold beer, and huge patio.  99 cent 1/2 pound burgers?  Yeah, that's my kind of place.
 

 Now stuffed to the gills, we headed to the antique shops.

 Something makes me think that those doll heads aren't original.

This set of "Bertoia Wire Chairs" are knockoffs, but I really want them for my kitchen.  Unfortunately they weren't priced accordingly ($200 each!).

I've been looking for some mid-century art, so it's always good to learn new artist names.  Now I can keep my eye out for similar pieces.

It was love at first sight between me and this kilim rug, but the price tag drove us apart.  I still find myself pining for it.

At that point, the clouds started looking ominous, so we made our way down towards East St. Louis and stopped at an antique mall/classic car showroom.

There was a "no photography" sign in the car showroom, which the proprietors graciously let us see free of charge.  However, you can check out Dave's blog for a few surreptitious snaps.  They had some real beauties there.

I don't think that anyone picked up anything that day, but a good time was had by all.  I know that my calves certainly got a good workout too.

Bertoia Dilemma

I've searched high, low, far, and wide, but can't dig up any info on how to construct a home-made Bertoia Diamond Chair cover or find a cheap replacement.  Surely some enterprising individual has taken it upon themselves to recover these Knoll lovelies.  I mean, it looks fairly simple, doesn't it?

"Intellectual property... blah blah... Harry Bertoia rolling over in his grave... blah blah... Supporting good designers... blah blah..."

Yes, I know.  I know.

source: Zeitlos Berlin

I'm a bad person.  There, I admit it.  The simple truth is that I'm a cheap S.O.B., and I'll be damned if I'm going to fork over $600 to cover a chair that cost 1/6th of that.

So, anybody out there got the deets?

If not, I might be taking a crash course in upholstery.  If it goes through, I promise to share the results, however terrifying they may be.