Old Chair, New Chair

Or maybe it's new old chair and old newer chair, I'm not sure.

This is a chair that I've had for a few years. I bought it through the classifieds, along with five other chairs and a table. Earlier this year I sat on this one. It was like Goldilocks meets Baby Bear's chair - it didn't exactly smash to smithereens, but it didn't survive the experience either.

Since that episode, I've been on the lookout for a replacement. I've looked high and low, to no avail. I've even hoped I could find someone to repair the chair, but haven't been able to. I put an oak chair at the kitchen table, knowing that it was temporary. Today the oak chair moved out of the kitchen.

This is the new chair. I found it at Rescued Treasures, the thrift store of the Visalia Rescue Mission. It's almost the right color, and it's sturdy. It looks well made, and when I flipped it over, I saw that it was indeed made in the USA. wow. It must be old.

When I got home, I cleaned it up and put it at the table. It doesn't match-match, but it looks better than the oak did. The chair is labeled "Nichols & Stone Gardner, Mass." When I looked it up online, I found out that they are a long time US furniture maker, and were recently(?) bought out by Stickley. hmmm. Do I have good taste? I think so. I may not know names or values, but I do recognize something with nice lines that is well built.

What do you think? I paid $25... Did I get a deal? I think maybe I did...