October 23, 2007

Groovy Plastic Toadstool Table & Chairs

modernicus_mushrooms.jpg

We're looking for a new sofa for DC, so I've been surfing the antique and midcentury store sites in DC. One store, Modernicus, has this kind of cool kids table and chair set from the 1970's.

Of course, they describe it as having "an ever stylish Eero Saarinen tulip shape," but it's no more a Saarinen than I am. It looks more like an injection molded plastic version of Nanna Ditzel's Trissen tables, or that Samsonite furniture from a couple of weeks ago.

But if they gave the exact manufacturer name, you might start scouring eBay for it yourself, and then you might not drop $325. It's a tossup.

update: or as Stef points out below, you might find out that it was a mass-produced French classic, the Tam Tam, by Henry Massonnet, which he has put back into production five years ago, using the same molds, and which costs $20. The table's $100.

Orange Plastic Table & Stools, (table: D23 H26, stools D12 H17), $325 [modernicus.com]

4 Comments

Looks a lot like the iconic Tam Tam stool (1968), recently reissued and sold by Habitat in Europe. For 12 euros, mind you.

[that's it, nice matchup. Habitat, which is owned by Ikea, btw. -ed.]

The firestorms here in San Diego have been keeping me otherwise occupied, so I didn't see this post until just now. But Stef beat me to the punch because I was about to mention that we bought two of these Tam Tams from Habitat in Paris a few years ago for 10 euros each. They constantly reissue them in different colors, and a couple of years ago they invited local artists to make their own versions and they displayed them in the Habitat stores. We have two in white - one for outdoors and one we keep as a stool in our shower.

I had this set as a kid and loved it. My one complaint as a four-year-old was that the stool would break into two parts when you set it on its side and tried to ride it.

cg3

[you listening, Massonnet? Fix the kid's stool, why dontcha? -ed.]

I just bought a pair of tables - have a retailers label that reads "made in italy for/pour Action cheswick pa fabrique en italie"

Google DT


Contact DT

Daddy Types is published by Greg Allen with the help of readers like you.
Got tips, advice, questions, and suggestions? Send them to:
greg [at] daddytypes [dot] com

Join the [eventual] Daddy Types mailing list!


Archives

copyright

copyright 2024 daddy types, llc.
no unauthorized commercial reuse.
privacy and terms of use
published using movable type