Reading corner
Buy the leather chair used
New leather looks new for about a decade. The patina you actually want takes twenty years, and someone else has already done it.
Aniline leather is the only upholstery that improves with damage. Every other material you buy at its best and manage the decline. This is the argument for buying it second-hand, and it is a strong one.
What is in this corner
A tan leather club chair with a rolled back and low arms, softened at the seat and darker at the contact points. A brass swing-arm floor lamp reaching over the left shoulder. A dark wood side table at seat height. A muted green rug underneath, and a window to the left throwing daylight across the seat.
The chair is the only strong colour in the frame. Everything else recedes.
What to check before buying used
- Frame first. Sit down hard. Any creak or lateral movement means a loose joint —
repairable, but negotiate on it.
- Look at the seat deck, not the arms. Arms wear attractively. A collapsed seat means
the webbing or springs have gone, which is a re-upholstery job and costs more than the chair.
- Cracking versus creasing. Creases are patina. Cracks that show a paler layer beneath
are the finish failing, and they will spread.
- Smell it. Smoke does not come out of leather.
Pigmented versus aniline
Most affordable "leather" furniture is pigmented — a plastic coat over the hide. It resists staining and it will never develop patina, because the surface you touch is not leather. Aniline and semi-aniline are dyed through. They mark, they darken, and in ten years they look better than the day they arrived.
If a used chair still looks factory-new, it is probably pigmented. That is not a reason not to buy it, but it is a reason not to pay a premium for "vintage".
Positioning
The lamp reaches over the left shoulder here, which suits a right-handed reader holding a book to the right. Swing-arm lamps exist precisely so this is adjustable; a fixed floor lamp behind the chair will put your own head in the light.
Getting the look
Look for tan or cognac rather than dark brown — the lighter hides show patina, dark ones just look worn. A brass swing-arm lamp and a small dark side table are the only other pieces the corner needs.
The photograph above is a rendered concept image, not a photograph of a real room. See our affiliate disclosure.
