When it comes to outdoor furniture, there are few pieces more popular than a classic Adirondack Chair. Though it was first designed over a hundred years ago, the Adirondack Chair has never gone out of style and has continued to be a best-seller year after year. These days, there are countless innovative and contemporary takes on the Adirondack style, making it an ideal choice to suit any outdoor space.
The History of the Adirondack Chair:
First things first, you may be wondering, how is Adirondack actually pronounced? At first glance, it seems like a rather tricky word, but it’s really quite simple: ad-uh-ron-dak. The chair design was named after the Adirondack region in Northeastern New York State; however, the very first iteration of an Adirondack Chair was actually called a Westport Chair, named after the town of Westport where it was conceived.
In the early 1900s, Thomas Lee supposedly set out to design a chair that would be perfectly suited to all of the environmental conditions in the Adirondack region, wanting it to be comfortable, functional, and durable. His original design, refined through a series of prototypes, featured all of the hallmarks of what we now consider a traditional Adirondack Chair–the low-slung, slanted seat, the wide armrests, and the high, arched seatback–but he constructed his seat and seatback with single, solid pieces of wood. Once he had perfected his chair, he took the design to a friend who owned a carpentry shop, and that friend began selling these Westport Chairs in the local area with tremendous success.
As the Westport Chair gained popularity, though, other manufacturers who adopted the design struggled when it came to obtaining the unblemished, solid wood planks needed to produce large numbers of the chairs. Their workaround was to create a chair with all the same key features as a Westport Chair but with a seat and seatback made from wood slats instead. This crafty modification has come to define the distinctive look of the Adirondack Chairs we know today.
The Adirondack Chair in the Present Day:
Over the years, builders have continued to improve the design of the Adirondack Chair and put their own stamp on it. With the introduction of poly lumber, a wide variety of chairs has become available, granting buyers plenty of options to choose the chair that will pair best with their style and situation. Of course, the tried-and-true classic design with the gothic arched seatback is still going strong, along with other interpretations that follow the traditional pattern but offer unique features, like the Backyard Adirondack Chair which has a smoother, “fanback” design.
Some builders have sought to update the design for the twenty-first century with bold, contemporary designs that feature cropped or straight seatbacks, as can be seen in the Luxcraft Urban Adirondack Chair and the Daybreak Parc Adirondack Chair. There are even some designs with improved accessibility; since the classic Adirondack low-slung, slanted seat can be difficult for the elderly or those with knee or hip problems, options like the Luxcraft Royal Adirondack Chair are a good alternative as they have a higher seat and a closer seat back, making them much easier to get out of.
The typical Adirondack Chair sits far too low to be used at a dining table, but many builders have also created raised versions of the design, such as the Luxcraft Adirondack Dining Arm Chair and the Leisure Adirondack Dining Arm Chair, so you can bring that classic style to your dining experience. Luxcraft even offers an Adirondack Side Chair, sans the iconic wide armrests, allowing you to squeeze in more seats at the table!
If you don’t have a ton of space or are looking for something more portable, there are options for that as well! The Luxcraft Lakeside Adirondack Chair, for example, is a great, compact version of the Adirondack Chair that is light, well suited to smaller areas, and could be ideal for shorter adults and children. Though, if you’re looking for an Adirondack specifically for your child, several designs come in a pint-sized version and boast an array of bright colors to choose from!
For true portability, many builders offer a folding version of their Adirondack Chair. By design, these chairs will be a little more flexible in the back, but the folding mechanism makes it much easier to move your Adirondack Chair around your property, from the deck to the dock, and it saves space whenever you need to store your chair.
If you want to go bold and unique, there are even novelty Adirondack Chairs, like the Hillside Fish Adirondack Chair. As you might have guessed from the name, this chair features a fish-shaped seatback, complete with a pullout tail footrest, wheels, and a folding mechanism! Fun and functional! And if you like the sound of those features but would prefer something less novel, there’s a standard version available too.
Lastly, though they were first constructed from solid wood planks and then from wood slats, modern Adirondack Chairs also have the advantage of being constructed from poly lumber. Poly lumber is a malleable, plastic material, fabricated from recycled milk bottles, which allows for builders to create designs that would be infeasible with wood. Similarly, poly lumber does not deteriorate over time and requires none of the upkeep required by wood products, making every chair a durable, easy to maintain, and sustainable investment.
At the start of the twentieth century, Thomas Lee set out to create the perfect chair for the Adirondacks, and his design has since become one of the most popular staples of outdoor furniture. Decades of innovation have led to dozens of new takes on the old classic, meaning there is an ideal Adirondack Chair for every need and taste. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about the Adirondack Chairs offered here at Geitgey’s Amish Country Furnishings, feel free to call, email, or visit. Our sales team will be happy to help you find the chair that is right for you!
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