Chairs For Tailors and the People Who Love Them

Hans Wegner (1914-2007) was one of the great Danes of mid-20th-century design, a clear-eyed Scandinavian cabinetmaker who reduced furniture to its basic, most comfortable elements. He was rigorous, but playful, too: his Valet chair (1953), wittily capitalizes on the tendency people have to drape jackets over chair backs. And it doesn't stop there–the seat folds forward on hidden hinges, creating an upright trouser bar, and reveals a secret compartment for stashing cuff links, clothing brushes and other wardrobe necessities.

PP Møbler of Copenhagen (with whom Wegner often partnered) still makes the Valet chair, and original versions are available through vintage dealers or auctions. Whatever the source, it's a handsome addition to the dressing room of anyone who appreciates tailored clothing. FA2L particularly likes the piece's message of solidarity: with so much emphasis on its elegant, hanger-like back, Wegner's chair suggests that tailors, like cabinetmakers, offer skills and products worth preserving. Sometimes, even the furniture speaks fluent fashion.