Why Tony Thonet? Because it is the result of mixing a chair from the beginning of the 20th century (Thonet style) and a bar stool from the 70's (Tony Manero style? haha)...
I really liked the foot of the bar stool when I saw it: underneath the thick layer of greasy dirt was that classic 70's design of curved steel tubes. Then the seat was also very 70's, the disgusting side of that decade design: horrid brown plastic, and torn -so it was clearly going to go. But as I had no nice seat for it, the stool foot sadly sat, waiting, for quite a few months untill I found the chair.
I really liked the old black wooden chair from the first decades of the 20th century (I have a passion for these kind of chairs, in fact. I am begining to accumulate a small collection.. uh oh), but one of its back legs was broken, impossible to mend. So I decided to salvage the top part. And, as both the chair and the bar stool foot had soft curves, I got them together. I think they do match well!
The process of transforming the chair into a bar stool seat went as follows: first, cut the legs. Then, dismantle the back, and cut the side poles. Then, carve their tops so they will adjust to the curved back piece. The bottom of these kind of chairs is quite thin, so I attached a thick piece of wood to it, then secured it to the foot.
When I removed the slats from the back of the chair, an old coat of paint was revealed: the original wood had been covered sometime around the mid or late 40's by the common gray colour of those post-war years, with a pinky-red stripe crossing the seat. I decided to sand it partially, to reveal that 'layer of history'. Then, I protected the whole seat with a water-based varnish, suitable for floors: it is very strong, tremendously resistant to stains and scratches -and gorgeously glossy!
So the seat turns out to be very comfortable, with its low back and because it's bigger than the usual bar stool seat: 38cm in diameter. All together, Tony is 90cm high, weighs 12kg, its base is 30cm in diameter, and the seat is 73cm high -suitable for bars or a high kitchen counter/island.
I really liked the foot of the bar stool when I saw it: underneath the thick layer of greasy dirt was that classic 70's design of curved steel tubes. Then the seat was also very 70's, the disgusting side of that decade design: horrid brown plastic, and torn -so it was clearly going to go. But as I had no nice seat for it, the stool foot sadly sat, waiting, for quite a few months untill I found the chair. 
I really liked the old black wooden chair from the first decades of the 20th century (I have a passion for these kind of chairs, in fact. I am begining to accumulate a small collection.. uh oh), but one of its back legs was broken, impossible to mend. So I decided to salvage the top part. And, as both the chair and the bar stool foot had soft curves, I got them together. I think they do match well!
The process of transforming the chair into a bar stool seat went as follows: first, cut the legs. Then, dismantle the back, and cut the side poles. Then, carve their tops so they will adjust to the curved back piece. The bottom of these kind of chairs is quite thin, so I attached a thick piece of wood to it, then secured it to the foot.
When I removed the slats from the back of the chair, an old coat of paint was revealed: the original wood had been covered sometime around the mid or late 40's by the common gray colour of those post-war years, with a pinky-red stripe crossing the seat. I decided to sand it partially, to reveal that 'layer of history'. Then, I protected the whole seat with a water-based varnish, suitable for floors: it is very strong, tremendously resistant to stains and scratches -and gorgeously glossy!
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