What about McCobb?

Because I am forcing Dave to take the Cruella DeVille dining room table and chairs when he moves, I have been on the hunt for a new dining set.

I really have no idea what my budget should be, just that it is necessarily small. I am feeling woefully house-poor these days, so naturally, I turn to ebay.

Somewhere between Sterling Place and Cathedral Ave, I have somehow grown to be rather pickydiscerning about furniture, much to my surprise. This does not jive all that well with the budget issues.

My searches lately are targeted at my favorite (of the moment) mid-century designer, Paul McCobb.


I initially became familiar with his famous Planner Group series, distinguished by the era's slender tapered legs, clean geometric lines, and modular ingenuity.


From Lost City Arts:

McCobb, who never received any formal design training, first established a studio in 1945. He worked primarily as a decorator and retail display designer, eventually turning his attention to furniture: by 1950, B.G. Mosberg was marketing his stylish, affordable Planner Group.

McCobb's pieces were flexible and practical, designed to meet the needs of post World War II middle-class lifestyles. For example, his "living walls", complete with moveable room dividers and storage systems, allowed for maximum efficiency in limited spaces.

He became a household name in the 1950's, earning himself the nickname "America's Decorator". His work was exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Merchandise Mart in Chicago.

Recently I discovered a line he did for Calvin Furniture, which featured brass accents, elegant curves and the same slim profiles that defined his other lines.

I am nuts about these Calvin pieces.





These are the chairs that have captured my heart -- and unfortunately, eluded my budget.



Just gorgeous. But $2650 (obo) is a high price to pay when you don't even get a table to match. In fairness, I hunted around 1stdibs and have seen the same or similar pieces priced much higher, so I think the price is probably about right for the quality. But alas, it's beyond my reach.

But wait, what's this?



Why, that's a very similar McCobb set, and priced at $1800. It's hard to tell from the blurry photos what the condition is, and I don't think it's nearly as elegant as the other set of chairs, but this could work. And it's somewhere in PA, so we might even be able to go check them out, if we feel like a road trip.

All of this is a bit premature, of course, as there is no move-out date determined yet. There is still a chance their deal could blow up, and we'll all be in the same house together, with the same evil dining room table, for some time to come. Plus, I am still grappling with a holistic vision. I don't want to end up with a totally eclectic collection of furnishings that don't make sense together and don't make sense for the period of our house. I'm still learning.

In the meantime, I am holding out for just the right thing, and I know you all appreciate that process. And how sometimes it can take a looooong time.

So I will keep enjoying my McCobb eye-candy, without clicking the "Bid Now" button.

Wow.



I do enjoy good design.