Introducing “Coco”.

Coco is the first in a series of passion projects that I’ll be putting my hand to; an outlet for our pent-up creativity that the COVID lock-down has thrust upon us.

Our passion projects are a mash-up of unique furniture pieces that we have tucked away in our Moorabbin warehouse, matched with some really delectable fabrics that we’ve been simply dying to work with.

We’ve had this desk chair in the warehouse for some time now, languishing patiently. We’ve always affectionately called it the “awesome” mid-century chair for as long as I remember having it; in fact this moniker still remains against this piece in our inventory. I must have walked past it thousands of times, stacked along the wall between my workshop & kitchen, when I catch a glimpse of it, it has always made me smile.

A spontaneous buy, as we were drawn to the simple shape & gorgeous wood grain back in the days when Eclectic Boogaloo was the humble E7 stall at The Vintage Shed in Tyabb. The aged crackly vinyl was well past it’s best-before date, but I have resisted the urge to ready it for sale, as I’ve been waiting for both the perfect time & the perfect fabric.

COVID-lockdown has provided me that pause from client pieces & that inclination to make time for myself; and Coco has offered me the inspiration to be first out of the blocks on The Passion Project.

I have lovingly hand-stripped & sanded Coco to ensure I could bring out the best in the grain of the wood; grit after grit. Working the wood this way ensures a silky smooth touch; so rewarding for the elbow-grease put in. I then finished off the wood with danish oil.

And then along came Pepe.

I’ve had in mind for a while to recreate the mid-century vibe with a modern take on bouclé, and as luck would have it, along came Pepe Peñalver’s amazing Charme collection. And as if by fate, I enquired on one of my client visits to Westbury Textiles after seeing the new collection on instagram, and to my delight the samples had just arrived that very morning. I’ve been looking forward to working with fabrics from the Spanish textile artisan Pepe Peñalver, alas, it was meant to be.

I’ve finished off Coco by restabalising, replacing the foam and finishing off the upholstery with some final-touch hand stitching. We love the chunk & we love the colour-pop, with the subtle gold flecks jumping out to complement the oiled wood grain; we are reminded of a modern take on a Coco Chanel classic. The Coco connection.

Coco is one of a kind.

What can I say, Coco has been worth the wait, fantastic therapy (or as I’m coining from now on - Chairapy - got dibs) & I hope will make a new custodian smile for many years to come.

Although I’ll be sad to see Coco leave the warehouse, she has given me everything I need & The Passion Project inevitably results in another chair leaving the nest.

Coco is looking for a new custodian; available for sale.

Feel free also to contact me if you would like to commission a piece from the warehouse or from your home with Pepe Peñalver Charme Gabrielle, you’ll make a gal very happy indeed to work with this fabric again.

The Passion Project "Coco"