I have found an eames lounge chair at a local auction viewing and I am interested in it. My question is, is there any way to spot a fake? It has the Herman Miller tags on the bottom, but you never know. It is a beige color and all I have ever seen are the black ones. I googled and apparently they have a beige leather color “camel”. I am just trying to figure out a bid amount and whether it is real or not would really effect my bid. Any help you could give would be appreciated. Thanks
Hi Psyc-
I have a good friend who used to sell Eames chairs for several years. I asked him, and he said that camel is an authentic color (there’s also a lighter “beigy” color called “greige”, along with about 9 other colors), and he suggested that you check out the reputation of the auction house, more than the chair. A high quality auction house with a great reputation will not sell you a reproduction. So get to googlin’ that AH, and check ’em out! You can also check them with your local BBB or State AG to see if any complaints have been filed.
Good Luck & Happy Bidding! I hope you get it. New they are worth around $3250, and they are really comfy!!
~DD
The knockoffs usually have screws and bolts showing on the outside. The armrests are either a single horizontal platform or they have the curved shape of the Eames armrests but are upholstered by just wrapping the leather around to the underside (no welt and no separate piece around the edge).
But, to be sure, before I bid too high I’d want to see a provenance of the chairs chain of ownership.