Umm... TRON Licensed Designer Chairs?

TRON: Legacy hits theaters next week and the Disney marketing execs have kicked the production of the officially licensed movie tie-ins into high gear.  The latest addition to this arsenal of TRON inspired baubles employs the stylings of NY designer Dror Benshetrit for a high end chair targeted at those of us who still fondly recall the 80s computerized cult sensation and the subsequent TRON arcade games. 

Unfortunately the $15,000 price tag wasn't enough to justify including that awesome digital glow effect.  Still, even without the phosphorescent detailing the TRON Armchair looks considerably more sculptural than functional (and about as tough on the posterior as the virtual world's landscape that inspired the design was on one of those cool computerized light-cycles). I wonder if there's a red leather recliner option.  

Would You Like a Booth?

Recently the Dusty Hammer’s team of pariah bloggers were given a rare moment of respite to give our overtaxed minds a break from trying to come up with clever anecdotes for construction projects – plus we had used up all the cereal bowls and were resorting to pots and pans to eat our fruit loops out of.

 

Our brief taste of freedom took us to a local eatery where a pleasant young waitress asked the question that those who frequent restaurants have often pondered, “Would you like to wait for a booth?”  As if the fate of the world hinged upon our decision, we deliberated (already knowing what our answer would be). Our heads lifted from our makeshift huddle as we answered “Of course,” in techie geek unison!

What makes these upholstered nooks so desirable that many of us are, in fact, willing to wait for the coveted booth?  And how is it able to be both a great location for casual meals as well as the perfect setting for intimate dining?  Besides often being much easier on the posterior than the typical bistro chairs, a booth provides privacy (even in a crowded restaurant) and, more importantly, a feeling of closeness that’s hard to beat.  Wanna bring that cozy feeling home - what better way to fill the awkward narrow spot at the end of a room than to install your very own banquette? 

Brief History

The beginnings of banquettes can be traced back to early 17^th century French royalty where the well-to-do could park their imperial keisters on the plushly upholstered window seats in their formal sitting rooms.  By the 1900s the derriere friendly benches had made their way to the homes of “the common man” who used them for a comfortable, space saving seating solution for their small dining rooms.  With such a diverse heritage it’s little wonder that we are so enamored by them. 

Select Your Seating Option

For a truly custom look it's hard to beat the quality you can get from a built in.  The beauty of going with a fully custom settee is that you are not limited in your choices of finishes or designs.  Hiring a professional to install your cool new privacy booth will cost you somewhere between $2,000 - $4,000.  But the envious looks you get from all your friends will be well worth the clams you shell out.  Think of how cool it would be to relax with your feet propped up on the bench in your very own booth as you peruse the "www" - perhaps the Dusty Hammer for example ;o). 

Of course the other option is to build it yourself.  Building a booth will require some planning and elbow grease but doing it yourself can save you a significant amount - plus you get to brag about how clever you are.  

Depending on your level of comfort with building projects and the amount of tools you have at your disposal you can choose to either “A” build a booth entirely from scratch or "B" build a booth from stock cabinetry from the hardware supply store.  


Build-it-from-scratch option


There aren't a lot of free plans floating around on the internet for banquettes, primarily because they are fairly easy to build and honestly construction workers don't often think to document their progress.  But with enough digging you can find a few that may help you in your quest for dining booth bliss.  Take, for instance, Dianne's - offering close ups of design elements and material used on her corner banquette or This one from the DIY Network - (we've imbedded the video instructions below to help get you going in the right direction). 

Stock-cabinet-option
You can also build a banquette using cabinetry purchased "off the shelf" at your local hardware store in about a weekend with much less required tooling.  Mark Powers from thisoldhouse.com put together a nice one using 4 standard refrigerator cabinets, a little trim, and few cushions, and on another site Kyle Freeman briefly describes how he built one using IKEA cabinets here.  


***Note*** We've had the opportunity to do several built in banquettes over the years but haven't thus far built one with stock "off the shelf" cabinetry.   Since I can rarely back down from a challenge - especially when goaded by the rest of the office staff (double dog dares get me every time) - I have decided to build one from stuff we can pick up in a single trip to Home Depot.   Give us a couple of weeks and we'll post a walk through.   


Once you've built your seating, all you have to do is add some comfy padding then plan your next get together, cuz you've got yourself an awesome spot for chewing some grub or just "chewing the fat." 

One more option...


We almost forgot to mention the pre-made option.  Here's a list of a few vendor's that offer options that requiring little more than signing for delivery:


affordableseating.net - Competitively priced restaurant quality booths.  Has an interactive portal to help choose design style, fabric and color


dinerbooths.com - Commercial restaurant booths at fair prices.


seatingexpert.com - Yet another company in a similar price point vending their wares







For a more upscale look consider Ballard Design's Hampton 3 piece - you may want to steer clear of the stark white cushions however. 




For additional ideas or questions drop us a line, we'd love to hear your thoughts.  

DIY Project: Dress Boy in a Weekend

Ikeahackers.net recently posted this very cool Dress Boy Project.... 


Okay, by a show of hands… who knows what “dress boys” are?  Anyone?


Admittedly no one here knew what they were before either... and it took the office about 15 minutes before we finally stopped sniggering about the images the name conjured up.  Actually a "dress boy" is a pretty ingenious way to reclaim some old furniture and a cool way to de-clutter the bedroom floor. 


The basic concept is: cut the back portion off of a dining room chair, hang it on the wall and presto an artistic place to drape a few items of clothing - a “dress boy.”   After all, who doesn't like draping their coat (or other items of clothing) over the back of a chair, there’s something strangely satisfying about it… like staking claim on your domain, announcing you've returned to the castle, sort of symbolically peeing on the tree – perhaps just a wee bit much (no pun intended), but you get the drift. 

And the best part is, this impressive functional wall art is an inexpensive project that can be finished in a weekend -which means by Monday you could have some really cool clothing racks and no longer have to make excuses about why you left your shirt on the floor.  Here’s how to install this handy hanger in your own bedroom space:

Materials: Two second-hand Ikea Bertil chairs (but most any dining room type chair will do), cleat, glue, screws, drill, circular saw, piece of fine grit sand paper, brad nails (finishing nails), paint(optional).

Step 1:  Using a circular saw, cut the back end of the dining room chair off leaving 3-4” of seat remaining.   You can either draw a straight line to follow or use a fence for the cut.  For simplicity we prefer making a fence from a 2x4 clamped to the seat and resting against the back.   This ensures that even with the bow in the back of the chair the line will be the straight across.  The 2x4 should extend past either side of the seat by about 9” to give the circular saw something to ride against as it starts and finishes the cut.   

Step 2:  Measure the inside of the chair from apron to apron (side to side) and cut the French cleat (a 2x4 that has been cut at a 45 deg angle lengthwise) to length.  Install one half of the French cleat using some glue and nails. Fill the nail holes with spackle or wood filler.  Lightly sand and paint chairs to desired color - these were painted the same color as the wall for some additional contemporary flair - paint your's according to your decor.   

***Note*** The French cleat is a good way to “lock” the chair into place on the wall.  It is capable of holding an impressive bundle of clothes, doesn't take up much room and allows the chair to be removed for easy clean up.  Please DO NOT attempt to make the French cleat with you circular saw – the cleat should be cut on a table saw for safety.  We want you to keep all your fingers and avoid nicknames like stubby.

Step 3:  Hold the chair up to the wall so the back feet are on the ground (unless you want your dress boy to be floating), position the other half of the cleat under the half attached to the chair (should look like a complete 2x4), using a pencil, mark a line under the second half of the cleat on the wall.  Use this line as a guide to screw the second half of the French cleat to the wall (note the direction of the angle), preferably through a stud or two.
  
***Hint***  Cut the cleat on the wall about ½” shorter (in width) than the half that was installed on the chair.  It also helps to shim the cleat off the wallboard a little bit - a few thin strips of cardboard from a cereal box works pretty good.    

Step 4:  Slide the chair over the mounted cleat and walla… you’re done.  Dress it up with a shirt or two and some slacks.  For some added detail you can even label the back like “His” and “Her” (to ensure you get one for your stuff as well). 

***Word of caution***  Be careful who you announce you have a "dress boy" in your bedroom to – and be sure to follow it up with a detailed description. 

Happy Remodeling.