Bookcases : Thos. Moser

The new Hawthorne Chair is a wooden-seat chair that incorporates the best of the Windsor form and box-frame architecture. There are no side rails as with a box-frame chair. The back legs are square and run all the way from the floor to the top crest. The front legs are also square as in a box-frame chair, but terminate in the seat with a tenon, in true Windsor fashion.

The top crest is unique in our experience. Square spindles are connected using individual blocks of cherry along the top, rather than a single piece of wood. This is done in such a way that obviates the need for a solid top rail. Patterned like the teeth of a comb, the fan of the spindles lends the sitter truly comfortable and hardy support, be it for a long dinner conversation or a day at the desk.

Twelve solid cherry spindles cut from one board are molded to form a splayed back terminating in a unique upper crest, allowing the natural contrasting hues of the wood to show through, much like piano keys. The wide seat is carved to cradle the sitter and is attached to the tapered front legs using curved braces we call “knees.” Unique half-lap joints attach the back spindles to the seat and provide both visual interest and enduring strength. The Arm Chair has hand-polished cherry arms and struts that curve in to provide arm support.