Eames Favorites

An early Zenith-produced Eames armchair in Elephant Hide Gray with its original rope edge intact. The gray has softened and mellowed over the years, while the fiberglass remains highly visible beneath the surface. Dense strands create depth and variation throughout the shell, giving the color a warmth not often associated with gray. Examples like this are a reminder that fiberglass continues to change long after it leaves the factory.

An early Herman Miller Eames armchair in Elephant Hide Gray with its original rod base intact. The shell has aged beautifully. Layers of gray, silver, and charcoal move across the surface, while visible fiberglass creates texture beneath the color.

A Herman Miller parchment DAX with the soft, creamy tone that made this one of the most versatile shell colors. The fiberglass is densely layered yet restrained, with fine fibers visible beneath a surface that has mellowed evenly over time. Under bright light it reads almost ivory. In shadow, the color shifts toward warm beige. That subtle movement is easy to miss in photographs, but it becomes one of the most noticeable qualities when living with the chair.

An early LAR featuring the Cats Cradle base, a design that never achieved the widespread production of other Eames shell chair variants. The low profile and intricate wire structure give the chair a distinctly different character from its dining-height counterparts. Today, the base is appreciated as one of the more unusual chapters in the fiberglass chair story.

A first-generation Eames fiberglass armchair produced by Zenith Plastics in parchment yellow. The shell is unusually active, with dense fiberglass strands visible across every surface and enough translucency to give the color real depth. Light catches the fibers differently from angle to angle, making the shell feel less like a uniform color and more like a layered material. This is the quality that tends to disappear in later production, where the fiberglass became increasingly refined and consistent.

An early first-generation Eames side shell on the original X-base. The shell feels noticeably lighter and more delicate than later examples, with fine fiberglass visible beneath a warm parchment surface. Paired with the sculptural X-base and unusual black glides, the chair has an especially airy quality.

The appeal begins with the color. Six matching Kelly green fiberglass shells create a level of saturation rarely encountered as a complete set. Original wire bases anchor the group, while restored Girard check seat pads by Maharam introduce the warmth and visual playfulness that Alexander Girard brought to the Eames industrial forms.

Eames wire chairs with original leather bikini covers and swivel maple bases. Original leather bikini covers bring an unusual sense of richness to one of the Eameses' most minimal designs. The design relies as much on negative space as material. The wire construction remains visible, while the leather panels provide color and texture. The leather has acquired a rich surface over time. No two covers have aged in exactly the same way.

A matching set of three Eames Time Life Stools from the same period, each displaying its own distinct grain pattern and coloration. Viewed together, the sculptural forms take on a playful quality, inviting different arrangements throughout the home. More than a collection of stools, the set reads as a group of related forms that can be moved, combined, and reconfigured over time.

Special-order finishes survive in small numbers, particularly when paired with less common upholstery choices. This custom 1950s LCW combines an ebonized plywood frame with its original red upholstered seat and back, giving the chair a markedly different character from standard production examples. The rich crimson leather and dark frame make the form feel graphic and expressive.

A pair of early Evans LCWs finished in red aniline dye and preserved together since the early 1950s. The matching, dramatic veneer is seen on the seats, suggesting the careful material selection that originally paired the chairs at the factory. Pairs are considerably more difficult to find than individual examples, particularly when they have remained together for decades.

The visual appeal of this 1950s LCW comes from the interaction between grain and shape. On this ash example, the veneer is unusually expressive. Broad, flowing grain moves across the seat, back, and legs, following the molded curves of the chair. As the original finish has softened over time, the wood has taken on a warmer tone that brings even more attention to the material.

An ebonized finish gives the LCW a graphic presence. The dark surface shifts attention toward the chair's shape and construction, highlighting the relationship between the seat, back, and legs. The result feels crisp, graphic, and surprisingly contemporary.

An early ebonized Eames DCW with decades of wear worked into the surface. The matte black finish has thinned across the edges and high points, revealing warm brown wood beneath and creating a striking contrast with the darker areas that remain. Grain stays visible throughout, giving the surface a soft, velvety quality.

An early red aniline-dyed DCW by Charles and Ray Eames. The color does most of the work here. Deep reds shift toward orange at the edges and curves, while the grain remains fully visible beneath the dye. Years of use have softened the surface without dulling it. Few finishes change this much over time, and fewer still remain this vivid.

A pair of early Eames DCWs in ash with unusually bold veneer selection. Dark cathedral grain runs across the seats, backs, and legs, following the molded curves of the plywood. Decades of age have warmed the ash to a rich honey tone, creating a strong contrast that gives the pair much of its character.

An early Evans-produced DCW in walnut with its original Evans label still intact. The veneer has taken on a rich, even tone, interrupted only by wear along the edges and high points. Most of it appears exactly as it left the factory.

Years of use have transformed the surface of this ebonized DCM. The dark finish has gradually worn at the edges and high points, exposing the wood beneath and creating a record of use that follows the chair's form. The contrast between the two surfaces gives the chair a richness that a newly finished example could never possess.

An early Evans-produced DCM finished in red aniline dye. The translucent finish reveals the character of the veneer beneath while highlighting the molded plywood forms that defined the Eameses' early experiments with the material. Remarkably well preserved, the chair retains a crispness and depth of color rarely seen on examples of this age.