Finding a tasteful mid-century modern chair can elevate your entire living room. You can spruce up one small reading nook, and pick a mid-century modern chair and bookcase, or you can go full 1950s and revamp your entire living space. Whether this piece is a late addition to your nordic-reminiscent décor, or you’re starting with one mid-century modern chair and building around it as a focal point, these chairs are the artistic, meticulously-designed accent you’ve been hoping for.
Article Nord Charme Tan Chair
Sitting at the intersection of Danish and mid-century design, this chair is upholstered in Italian leather with a wooden frame. Simple and neutral-colored, it’s perfect for a pair of chairs in your den or your home office.
Shop: $899
Herman Miller Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman
A classic Eames chair, originally designed by Charles and Ray Eames in the ‘50s, is a mid-century modern classic. This black leather chair and ottoman is immediately recognizable as an authentic Eames chair.
Rove Concepts Easy Chair
You might expect a woven chair to be for summer-only use, but the wood accents and frame make it a more versatile piece. According to Rove, this chair was “a revolutionary contribution to structural design for its use of woven paper cord as a substitution material during the Second World War.”
Summer Modern Chair
If you don’t have mustard yellow upholstering, you can’t call your décor mid-century modern. The frame of these chairs is walnut wood, and they’re at their best around a mid-century dining table.
Davidson Upholstered Accent Chair
As an accent chair, this navy piece can stand alone in any room of the house (with the exception of the kitchen, perhaps). The club chair is soft and super-comfortable, and the nod to mid-century is in the buttons on the seat back and the wooden chair legs.
Arne Jacobsen Egg Chair
Arne Jacobsen first designed the egg chair in 1958 for the Royal Hotel in Copenhagen. This egg chair is made in Denmark, and can be upholstered in fabric or leather, depending on your preference. The shell of the Egg chair “has an adjustable tilt which can be adjusted to the weight of the individual user.”
Pavilion Exposition Chair
This is a Barcelona chair replica, made of Italian aniline leather. The x-frame that supports the cushion is a “single-piece construction for smooth clean lines,” which offers not only superior aesthetics but also guarantees that you won’t have to sweat over assembly.
Arne Jacobsen Swan Chair
Another Arne Jacobsen design, this was also created for the Royal Copenhagen Hotel in 1958. The swivel base makes it the perfect mid-century modern chair for your office.
Peking B-Chair
A nod to the wishbone chair mid-century trend, these dining chairs feature warm, walnut wood and a papercord seat. HD Buttercup recommends pairing them with a “tulip oval shaped marble table.”
Shop: $575
Anthropologie Tulip Chair
Tulip chairs have a Mad Men, mid-century modern feel to them, and the fact that this one has a gold-colored metal brass base further elevates it. It’s really the ideal dry Martini-sipping chair.
Shop: $1,398
Cashmere Womb Chair and Ottoman
This style was designed in Finland, and the chair hugs your body, which is why it’s called a womb chair. “It was designed with the human body form in mind,” according to Houzz.
West Elm Contoured Mid-Century Modern Chair
West Elm says the chair “takes mid-century style and pares it back to the modern swoop of an armchair that follows your body’s form.” You can separately purchase a mid-century ottoman so you’ll still have somewhere to put your feet up if the Eames chair is occupied.
Shop: $489
Crate & Barrel Cavett Wood Frame Chair
This laid-back retro chair is a definite nod to the ‘50s. It’s made with sustainable kiln-dried wood sourced 100% from the U.S.
Shop: $1,099