Some of the most traditional types of English dress have been turned into a range of extraordinary, but rather beautiful armchairs.
When you call your budding furniture company ‘RhubarbLondon’, you’re already making a statement. But not as much of a statement as these rather extraordinary chairs do.
They are the brainchild of Shaun Brownell, who has been making these sorts of pieces for the last three years.
The Dapper Tweed Armchair (£6,290)
Each one is individually hand-made – indeed, Shaun even claims that while he will take commissions, he won’t reproduce any chair that he’s already created.
In most cases, that wouldn’t be an option anyway: Shaun reclaims beautiful old suits and coats to create his furniture. While the examples pictured on this page are all traditional country dress, he has also used things such as barrister’s robes and military uniforms.
The result is something that is highly ingenious, barking mad, absolutely unforgettable and unmistakably English.
(Except when he’s making coats from Russian military uniforms, that is.)
Prices vary from under £2,000 to over £6,000 – the three shown below are the Country Tweed Armchair (£4,395), Vintage Harris Tweed Overcoat Chair (£2,800) and the Aquascutum Game Bird Wing Chair (£4,640), though many others are available.
You can buy online via an auction hub, there is also a showroom in Marylebone at 187a Gloucester Street.
The fact that the address it’s just around the corner from 221b Baker Street, fictional home of another unforgettable British eccentric, is presumably not lost on anyone…
