The Chairs Nobody Thinks About Until They Sit Down

Bought last, regretted first

Seating is the thing people leave until the end, having spent the budget on the table. Which is unfortunate, because the table is the thing you look at and the chairs are the thing you are in for two hours on a Sunday. A good chair is the difference between people staying at the table and people drifting off to the sofa.

Get the height right and everything else follows

This is where most stools go wrong, and it is entirely avoidable. Measure from the floor to the underside of the worktop, then allow roughly 25 to 30cm of clearance for legs. A standard kitchen worktop wants a counter stool of around 65cm. A raised breakfast bar or island wants a bar stool nearer 75cm. A dining table wants a chair seat around 45cm. Nothing looks quite as forlorn as a bar stool bought for the wrong counter.

What is here

Dining chairs in solid wood, rattan, cane, upholstery and moulded shapes. Counter and bar stools, with backs and without, some that swivel and some that very deliberately do not. Independent brands throughout, a good number working in the UK, several making to order, which is why some of these take a few weeks and arrive rather better than the alternative.

An honest word about sets

Four matching chairs is one approach. Four chairs that agree with each other without matching is another, and usually the more interesting room. If you are mixing, keep the seat height and the leg colour consistent and let everything else vary.

Where to go next

Have a browse through Furniture, Kitchen + Dining, Dining + Tableware for what goes on the table, Living Room, or the wider Home + Decor collection.