Description
SOLD in 2025. Follow us on Instagram …
www.instagram.com/invisedge
Price is an OFFERS OVER price PER CHAIR- ONE vintage original. Sold as multiples of 2 only.
Price depends on how many you want to buy and what we’d be left with. IMPORTANT NOTE- there are various display photos included in this listing. The chairs on offer have tan and off-white straps.
It’s SUPER-RARE to get 8 original Snelling chairs by Functional Products as one group. (Even if you only want 6 chairs, I’d personally buy all 8 as they are more valuable per chair as a set of 8 (compared to a set of 4 or 6). ALL are vintage originals- most have date stamps on them- DECEMBER 1952! We would be prepared to break up this set. If you want all EIGHT, come forward quickly BEFORE we consider breaking them up. These chairs would benefit from renovation but are all completely functional as they are.
These chairs are being stored in LIDCOMBE, Sydney but delivery can be arranged anywhere in Australia. For all 8 of these chairs to get to Melbourne freight would be ABOUT $300.
Provenance and Background Info
(Written in 2025)
The Douglas Snelling webbed chair is a design icon- chairs like this have been a favourite since the early 1950’s (over 70 years now- 2025). Designed after World War II, by Australian designer Douglas Snelling, the webbed chair was conceived to make use of the abundance of parachutes left over after the war. The Great Depression forced people to become very resourceful- due to the economic collapse after WWII people re-used everything. These chairs are a great reminder of the mindset that the Great Depression prompted (this suite has significant historical importance and an interesting back-story).
This is the second set of EIGHT of these chairs I’ve ever come across in 24 years of trading. Sets of 6 come up very occasionally- I don’t think I’ve seen 8 Snelling chairs as a group only once before. If you want more than 6 this is a very rare opportunity. I’ve had these for some time agonising over whether I should get them re-webbed or not. I’ve finally decided not to have them re-done. In the end I couldn’t decide on colour/s! I initially decided on doing all 10 in the beige / off-white colour (the standard “colour” this webbing comes in today). Then I decided I’d like to do all ten in the eucalyptus colour that 2 of these chairs are currently in- I like the faded red as well- freshly dyed red straps are a bit bold for my liking. It puts all the focus on the straps and away from the elegant shape.
The shape and style of the iconic Snelling webbed dining chair certainly grows on you over time. Various design elements of the era are showcased, there’s the graceful curve in the profile contrasted with the jagged angles of the splayed chair legs, giving them this distinct 1950’s look. (I love 1950’s stuff- very cool stylistically- fun but also elegant. I also prefer the lighter timber tones as well that were predominantly used in the 50’s. The teak furniture of the 60’s is too dark in my opinion. Lighter timber tones have a “fresher” look).
These vintage Snelling chairs are an ideal example of investment furniture- Snelling pieces have been a perennial favourite and more recently I’ve noticed sets of 6 vintage originals being snapped up very quickly for increasing prices. This set should continue to increase in value into the future. Sets of 6 Parker chairs from the early-1960’s are getting $700 EACH these days. Today in 2022, this set re-webbed would fetch about $750 PER CHAIR in the upmarket vintage shops in Melbourne and Sydney. Most of these chairs have INK STAMPS (from 1952!) which guarantees the investment appeal here- Snelling chairs have enjoyed a prominent spot in Australian furniture history. Jens Risom did webbed chairs overseas first but Snelling’s design is MUCH nicer- Snelling’s design is more fluid and pleasing to the eye- Risom’s design is boxier.
These chairs are a true, dinky-di VINTAGE suite and will become more collectable in coming years as this design is included in several museum collections. Why buy furniture when you can invest in it? Plus by investing in vintage items you’re reducing landfill, your carbon footprint AND you’re supporting local small businesses.
AN EXTRA HISTORICAL NOTE ABOUT SNELLING CHAIRS FOR THOSE INTERESTED
Three or four of these chairs have VERY CLEAR (ink) date stamps on them 30 DECEMBER 1952 (another has 31 DECEMBER 1952). Fascinating! Nearly ALL businesses these days close between Christmas and New Year- not the Snelling factory back in 1952! PLUS most of these chairs have the 474 design number ink stamp AND the S1 furniture standards stamp from the 1950’s. I remember a very toxic exchange with some guy about 16 years ago who swore to me that if Snelling chairs don’t have the plastic label they are not Snelling pieces. This is simply not true and to be blunt a stupid thing to even proposition (if you have had any experience with Snelling’s furniture). I tried to tell him there was a additional mark Snelling used (the ink stamps shown on this set)- but he seemed intent on attacking me only. Unfortunately 16 years ago I had less “emotional intelligence” than I have today and kept up my “exhausting” defence. (I should have just ignored the wanker!) There are a few Instagram users these days who are just as toxic- @modernaust is one example- simply ignore them and tell them to go away if they seem intent on attacking you. (They’re the equivalent of schoolyard bullies- but middle-aged men. They must lead boring- and very sad- lives)
There is also ONE CHAIR that has the later sticker label on it. (These chairs were in production- being HAND-MADE in Australia for about 10 years). This chair has BOTH the Functional Products decal and the 474 ink stamp which PROVES UNDISPUTEDLY that Snelling used (at least) two labels and stamps. The other thing it proves is that these stamps have become very feint after about 70 years so they can be easy to miss. After 24 years coming across these chairs I know now that about 60% of Snelling vintage chairs have NO identifying marks at all. The Functional Products factory often labelled 2 or 3 chairs per set PLUS some labels have simply come off over the years (I sometimes see the sticky residue only where the label would have been). The other interesting thing about this set is that the chair with the sticker label obviously was added to the set later. As I said before, getting 8 of these chairs is rare and this set proves it. Interestingly as well, the chair with the sticker label also has a date stamp! And to my eyes, it looks like 25 APR 1963. Interesting- one- because if it does read 1963, it proves the popularity of these chairs and that they were being hand-produced in Australia for about 10 years. Interesting- secondly- 25th April- they were working on a Public Holiday! Times were different back then- people just don’t work these days (and demand to get paid to do nothing). Public holiday, weekends or not, if the phone rings and I can get to it, I will always answer the phone- that’s how I get paid!
If you want to get even more “scientific”, look more closely at the underside of one chair. The original plastic parachute webbing is stuck in one joint area! (Stuck in there forever!) This proves the quality of the build here. These chairs are 73 years old and ready for their THIRD lot of webbing. And while I’m at it, the webbing is not hard to do (you need something to stretch out the straps whilst they’re being applied. Back in 2006, I sold a set to a customer who commissioned us to get a set completely renovated. It takes 3 hours to COMPLETELY renovate the timber using an orbital sander (and then hand-polish them). Back in 2006, a professional restorer in Sydney who had a massive following of customers back then charged me $100 PER chair to get them re-webbed in red straps. (He dyed the beige canvas straps red.) I have a listing on my website that shows the red set we sold back in 2006- use the SEARCH box to find that listing and get more information about this design.
This set has an interesting story- if you decide to invest in them and re-web them, this listing will stay online for years to come. Keep your iNVISeDGE invoice as well as it will prove in the future you purchased this VINTAGE (original) set. Although these ink stamps have not faded much over the last 70 years- they were applied well.
Read the Condition and Dimensions paragraph as it has more information about the condition and suggestions about how this set could be restored, improved or renovated.
2205, 1907, ad 1910, 1902, 2102, 2507
