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$1750 is the OFFERS OVER price for ONE CHAIR. LOCATION– a private seller in Sylvania, SYDNEY.

SOLD in 2022 for more than the offers over price.

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Description

VINTAGE Tessa Executive / Tessa T21 suite

SOLD (in 2022) UNDER CONSIGNMENT from a private seller in Sylvania, SYDNEY. Delivery Australia-wide is also possible- APPROX $400 to get this full suite to Melbourne (as an example of cost).     

Our listing price was $1750 OFFERS OVER for ONE CHAIR ONLY. Offers over $3500 for BOTH CHAIRS will be considered. Offers over $6350 for the pair of chairs, matching 3-seater sofa and matching coffee table will be considered more favourably than offers that break up this suite.

The investment appeal of this suite is a NO-BRAINER. This FULL suite (PAIR of CHAIRS, 3-SEATER SOFA and matching COFFEE TABLE) retailed new for about $17,500 in 2019 just before Tessa went out of business. iNVISeDGE price- OFFERS over $6,350 for this 4-piece suite. This is the first Tessa T21 suite we’ve ever had in these colours- the leather colour is RARE in Tessa T21 furniture. The colour is best represented in the photos of the PAIR of chairs- this was when we got out a pair of table lamps to help lighten up the pieces better.

Look at the frame here … especially the steel sub-structure underneath (the timber base-pieces are clad onto steel). This suite was built to last GENERATIONS (… forever???). Proof in that comment is in the condition of this suite after about 40 YEARS of family use. Marvel at this craftsmanship. It’s no wonder Tessa T21’s have held up so well to use over the years- these pieces were built to last generations!

Background Info and Provenance

(This section about Tessa T21 chairs was written in 2020 with some adaptions made for these pieces on offer. These chairs are technically called the Tessa Executive Chair (not the T21- the cushions here are more streamlined compared to the Tessa T21. These streamlined cushions are more desirable compared to the standard T21 cushions).

This is arguably the most sought-after chair design to ever come out of Australia. The Contour range by Grant Featherston is probably the most collectable in terms of dollar-value; this one, the T21 / Executive swivel chair, released by Tessa in the early 1970’s, is easily the most asked-for vintage chair through the iNVISeDGE website. When I experienced sitting in a Tessa T21 / Executive swivel chair for the first time, I instantly knew why so many people ask me to buy them. The quality just jumps out at you but OMG it’s the COMFORT that everyone is after! … OMFG … after sitting in a T21, I didn’t want to ever get up! During lock-downs (especially around April 2020) I had phone calls from people almost on a daily basis asking for T21 swivel chairs or lounge suites.

I can picture these swivel chairs in a small library nook (or even in front of a fireplace). The footprint of these chairs is not big but visually they’re stunning- they have a bold, confident look (perhaps a masculine look I suppose; if you’re that way inclined … I’m quite feminine but quite happy with that … finally! lol). This suite is in a very rare colour for these suites- we’ve NEVER had a Tessa T21 suite in these colours. The most accurate depiction of the colours in these photos are the photos of the PAIR together. (I’d describe the leather colour as a dark-cognac colour.) These pieces are all upholstered in 100% FULL-GRAIN BOVINE LEATHER- the real deal. There is now a blog in the iNVISeDGE NEWLY LISTED section describing the differences between Top-Grain and Full-Grain leather (find the image of a vintage Howe Leather leaflet from the late-1970’s in our NEWLY LISTED Section). Be aware that Top-Grain leather is NOT TOP-GRADE leather- it’s the inferior modern-day leather that usually disintegrates within about 20 years of use.

You’ll sometimes see second-hand Tessa suites where the leather has completely ripped at the seams or cracked all the way through after about 10 or 20 years of use- this is always MODERN Top-Grain (shitty!) Leather. The leather on this suite is VINTAGE (from the early 1980’s)- it’s NOT the cheaper leather we see around today. The seat cushions only were re-upholstered about 3 years ago using quality LEATHER ITALIA (by a professional upholsterer here in Oz). Leather Italia is an Australian leather business that has been operating in Australia and New Zealand since 1999. They use Australian raw-leather and send it to Italy to be processed and turned into furniture leather.

After a 50-year stint in the Australian Marketplace, making virtually ALL their furniture in AUSTRALIA, Tessa Furniture died in 2019. It’s a sad state of affairs when an Australian business can no longer do what they do so well because of cheap imports destined to end up as landfill. And this is the very reason why Tessa eventually died. Their designs are so well-made that vintage second-hand Tessa pieces ended up becoming more sought-after than new Tessa Furniture. And who can blame people going straight to the second-hand market for designs such as this? The QUALITY of this design is so exceptional that second-hand pieces (in quality upholstery / leather) often still look basically new after 10, 20, 30, 40 … and even 50 years of use!

Today in 2020, I believe this design- the T21 swivel chair by Tessa- is THE best investment in the furniture marketplace. Everyone seems to want them, they are NO LONGER in production so more people will hang onto theirs for a lifetime of enjoyment. Therefore, less and less will be coming onto the secondary market. T21 chairs retailed NEW for about $4400 EACH (in FULL-GRAIN leather) just before Tessa went under- at this RESERVE price (not much more than 1/3 retail) it should be obvious to anybody that the only way the value of these chairs can go … is WAY up.

This pair of chairs is about 40 years old and look at them! Just mind-blowing really! No guessing the quality on offer (including the leather). After much of the world’s furniture ends up as landfill, these chairs will be passed onto another user and eventually a new generation. Now that Tessa Furniture is not made anymore, I can’t see any reason why this design (made in AUSTRALIA) won’t slowly increase to the value they were selling for new (ie. $4400 EACH). There’s no better way I can think of to invest in your home, the future of our environment and local community.

2112

These chairs are in excellent condition with only minimal signs of use- certainly nothing that's noticed or spoils them. Each chair is heavy and very solidly built- the T21 design is particularly strong and durable. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The leather on the back cushions is the original FULL-GRAIN VINTAGE leather from the 1980's (these vendors purchased this suite in the 1980's). About 3 years ago, they had the seat cushions re-upholstered by a professional upholsterer. He used quality LEATHER ITALIA for the seat cushions. Leather Italia has been operating in Australia and New Zealand since 1999. They use Australian raw leather and send it to Italy for processing where it's turned into furniture leather. The back cushions have no signs of use that I noticed. The seat cushions also have no signs of use that warrant a mention. All of the leather presents extremely well. From certain angles you may notice that the seat leather is a slightly different colour to the back leather but ONLY if it's pointed out- you'd never notice it otherwise. The leather has NO holes, NO noticeable marks, NO stains, NO rips, NO noticeable scratches. I would describe the leather as a dark cognac colour- the colour is best represented in the photos of the pair of chairs. They were taken after we got out a pair of table lamps to light up the furniture better. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The cushioning is all in excellent condition- Tessa used top-quality cushioning that lasts several generations. The cushioning is plush and comfortable. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ We removed the leather armrest protectors which did show some use- we (and our customers) prefer the look without the armrest covers on. The colour tone of the timber under the armrest covers is basically the same as the timber tone for the rest of the armrests. There is little or no fading of the timber. The timber has a different shine in the areas that were under the armrest protectors. These photos were taken in low lighting conditions so they're not as clear as our normal photos. I've inspected this suite in person and can vouch that there are no condition issues at all that warrant a mention. Overall, BOTH chairs present very well and should last for generations to come. Both chairs swivel nicely. EACH chair has been shown EQUALLY in our selection of photos. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Measurements of the last Tessa swivel chairs we had. (The dimensions here will be very similar.) Across- 79cm. Depth- 79cm. Seat Height- approx 43cm. Total Height- 91cm. Depth of seat- approx 47cm. Comfort is absolutely sensational- you'd be very hard-pressed to find a more comfortable chair. High-back and PERFECT angles for sitting comfort. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Read my 1200+ ebay feedback comments (ALL for furniture and decorative arts SALES) to be assured that the lounges are described as accurately as possible and that I will not purchase items of inferior quality or with significant cosmetic flaws.
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