Sheep Leather Chaise Lounge

The legal name of this week’s acquisition is “the

chaise lounge formerly known as the fainting couch.” Had it been chosen by set designers in Hollywood, it might have starred with Olivia de Havilland in Gone with the Wind, Elizabeth Taylor in A Place in the Sun, or Judy Garland in The Pirate. In each of these movies the star performed a first class faint; throwing her head back and collapsing like a listless doll. Unfortunately for “the Chaise,” the nickname given to this piece by those who felt its legal name too unconventional, they landed somewhere else.

Chaise Lounge (detail)

Why was the chaise passed over in American cinema? Perhaps set designers didn’t find its legal name relevant. Maybe it lent the wrong accent, appearing out of place in distinctly American movies because it was European. Does it matter? Not getting the part did not diminish the chaise’s exceptional character, craftsmanship and comfort. Designed in Holland with a gently curved high back and side, and upholstered in natural sheep leather, over time it developed a one-of-a-kind patina. Finally, critics praised its formal name, for each time it appeared onstage it convinced us to fall for it, not in it!

(Product SOLD)