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Aram Store Sale January 2013

Sale January 2013

Up to 20 percent off new orders online from Boxing Day

Up to 70 percent off ex-display items in store

50 percent off the Spun chair when you spend £500 during the sale

The Aram Store Sale will start online on 26th December 2012 with up to 20% off all new orders (excluding delivery). The Store will be closed though until 2nd January so online orders will be processed when we re-open.

Then, on Saturday 5th January 2013 there will be up to 70% off selected ex-display items in Store. Because these are sold as seen on a first-come-first-served basis, they are only available in Store and not online initially. The Store opens its doors at 10am. The new order discount also obviously applies in Store too.

Spend £500 or more during the sale and you can get 50% off the full price of the fabulous Spun chair by Thomas Heatherwick for Magis, making £171 instead of £342. The discount will be automatically applied in the shopping basket for online orders that meet the criteria.

ARAM STORE

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Know Your Classics Winner

Posted by
Aram December 18, 2012

Aram Store Know Your Classics Competition

We are delighted to announce that the winner of our Know Your Classics Competition is Rachel, writer of the wonderful blog ‘Chairsmith’. Rachel certainly knows her chairs and identified correctly all of the eight chairs from our cryptic photos along with the relevant designer. It was fantastic to receive so many entries – from all over the world, as far afield as Canada and Israel – and we love how many people commented on how much they had enjoyed the competition. We threw in a couple of tricky photos though, which meant that not everyone got all the answers right; the winner was drawn at random from all the correct entries received.

So, the answers are:

1. The 214 Bentwood Chair designed by Michael Thonet in 1859 and still made by Thonet today. It is perhaps the very first ‘designer chair’, a fitting choice for our first cryptic photo. We also accepted the 214K Chair, as it utilises the same back, shown in the photo.

2. The Series 7 Chair designed by Arne Jacobsen, made by Fritz Hansen in Denmark. We also accepted, the Ant Chair, the Grand Prix Chair and the Lily Chair as all of these Jacobsen designs utilise the same chromed base shown in the photo.

3. The eponymous Cherner Armchair designed by Norman Cherner, and made today by his sons. A relatively easy one to identify!

4. The Standard Chair designed by Jean Prouvé in 1934. The tapering shape of the back leg is just hinted at by the shadow in the photo, one of the tricky ones. Made by Vitra.

5. The CH24 Wishbone Chair designed by Hans Wegner and made by Carl Hansen and Son, Denmark. Another relatively easy one.

6. The Tulip Chair designed by Eero Saarinen, from Knoll International. We accepted both side chair and arm chair as the base is the same on each.

7. The Bertoia Side Chair designed by Harry Bertoia, from Knoll International. The photo shows the joint at the top of the back leg – we also accepted Bertoia Diamond Chair as the joint is the same on this one too.

8. The Roquebrune Chair designed by Eileen Gray, from Aram Designs. Designed in 1932, the Roquebrune Chair celebrated its 80th anniversary this year.

We’re glad you enjoyed the competition – we will be running more competitions in the new year so make sure you follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

ARAM STORE

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Medici wins an Icon Design Award

Posted by
Aram December 8, 2012

As the UK agents for Mattiazzi, we are immensely proud to announce that the Medici chair – by the eminent designer Konstantin Grcic – has won the inaugural Icon Magazine Furniture Design of the Year Award, presented at Christ Church Spitalfields on Thursday night and collected on behalf of Konstantin and the Mattiazzi brothers by Daniel Aram.

Konstantin Grcic says “designing for Mattiazzi was like a personal time travel. It took me all the way back to my professional roots. At the very beginning of my career, I was trained a cabinet-maker. Working with wood is what I learnt from scratch. It is where it all started for me.”

“Mattiazzi make furniture in wood, using both traditional means of production and the newest digital production technologies. Medici was born on Mattiazzi’s factory floor. The chair was inspired by the material, the machinery and, of course, the skill and craftsmanship of the people we worked with.”

Medici chairs being glued in the Mattiazzi factory

“Right from the beginning, I was looking for a distinct grammar for my design, a language that would express the characteristics of wood. I liked the idea of working with planks. They signify the very beginning of the production process – a tree trunk that is cut into slices. I like the way in which a carpenter joins wood. It is immediate and direct. The construction remains visible and easy to read. Structure turns into form.”

The Medici is a low chair with a comfortably reclined posture. Its generous dimensions give it an embracing confidence. The chair can be used as a solitary piece of furniture or in small groups, in private or public, both indoors and out. It is produced in three different woods: American walnut, Douglas fir, and thermo-treated ash, a wood that is suitable for outdoors. The Douglas fir version is available in natural as well as in yellow and grey stain.

ARAM STORE

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Know your Classics – Photo Number 8

Posted by
Aram December 7, 2012

Here is the eighth and final cryptic photo in our #KnowYourClassics Competition. Identify the name and the designer correctly of all eight of the designs that we have posted between 19th October and today for a chance to win £500 credit to spend at Aram Store. One lucky winner will be picked at random from all correct entries received.

Catch up with any photos you’ve missed on Facebook, click here.

Entries for our competition have now CLOSED.

All chairs featured can be found on our website, although the photos posted will be different from the ones shown online – otherwise it would be too easy!

All chairs featured are the genuine version authorised by the estate of the original designer.

Nicknames will not be accepted as answers, only the product name for the chair and designer’s name(s) as it appears on our website.

All entries must now be sent to the email address shown above, to be received by the end of Monday 10th December 2012. The winner will be notified by email by Friday 14th December 2012 in time for Christmas. All entries must be a single email containing the details of all eight photos, and your full name. We will only accept entries made by email.

This competition is not open to the employees, or the families of employees, of both Aram Designs Ltd and all suppliers to Aram Designs Ltd.

By submitting an entry to the competition you agree to subscribe to the Aram mailing list (if you are not already a subscriber) but you can of course unsubscribe at any time by following the link on our newsletters.

The £500 credit may be used in Store as payment either in full or in part for any purchase. Aram’s standard terms and conditions of sale will apply. Delivery charges (if delivery is required) will apply and will be quoted for at point of order. The full credit must be used by 31st December 2013. No cash alternative will be offered.

The judge’s decision is final and no disputes will be entered into.

ARAM STORE

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Christmas at Aram

Posted by
Aram November 27, 2012

We have a wonderful selection of items this Christmas that make perfect gifts. All the items in this selection are in stock for despatch straightaway and we aim to ensure delivery is made within a few days.

For example, the Pava Candlestick Vases are available in three luscious colours and can be used as decanters or vases, or as candlesticks with the small aluminium insert – which stops the wax going into the vase.

These Perrette containers are made from blond Limewood which has a silky smooth tactile quality. Each handle is tipped with a dash of colour – turquoise for the tall one, pink for the medium one and yellow for the wide one.

We also have a range of table accessories that use the iconic images from the Charles and Ray Eames ‘House of Cards’. With these, everyday objects are given another dimension – instantly recognisable as the Eames’ style. There are coasters, placemats and mugs.

Plus much more!

ARAM STORE

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Know Your Classics Competition

Posted by
Aram October 19, 2012

Aram Store Know Your Classics Competition

Over the next eight weeks, we will be posting on our blog, on Twitter and on Facebook very cryptic photos – one per week – of eight iconic classic chair designs. Identify the name and the designer correctly of all eight designs for a chance to win £500 credit to spend at Aram Store. One lucky winner will be picked at random from all correct entries received.

One lucky winner will receive £500 credit to spend in store

Each photo will be available for one week only until it is replaced by the next one.

Once the eighth and final photo has been posted we will publish an email address for you to send your entry of all eight answers.

All chairs featured can be found on our website, although the photos posted will be different from the ones shown online – otherwise it would be too easy!

All chairs featured are the genuine version authorised by the estate of the original designer.

Nicknames will not be accepted as answers, only the product name for the chair and designer’s name(s) as it appears on our website.

The final photo will be posted on Friday 7th December 2012. All entries must be sent to the email address which will be posted with the final photo to be received by Monday 10th December 2012. The winner will be notified by email by Friday 14th December 2012 in time for Christmas. All entries must be a single email containing the details of all eight photos, and your full name.

This competition is not open to the employees, or the families of employees, of both Aram Designs Ltd and all suppliers to Aram Designs Ltd.

The judge’s decision is final and no disputes will be entered into.

Good luck and have fun identifying the classics!

ARAM STORE

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Branca Chairs – Something of how they are made

Posted by
Aram October 12, 2012

The branches of a tree that turn, twist, meet and branch off. According to designer Sam Hecht of Industrial Facility, this is the critical analogy for the Branca Chair.

But it also had to embody all the functional attributes we expect of a chair in the modern world – to be comfortable, to have armrests, to fit under a table, to be light enough to carry, and to stack for easy shipping and storage. The ingredients of the chair are a combination of highly complex parts, which are made possible with CNC machinery (most notably Mattiazzi’s eight axis robot), traditional shaping and finishing by hand.

“I observed that the power of the robot, the repetition of the machine and the skills of the craftsmen already have synchronised relationships at Mattiazzi where each process is as carefully selected as the wood blocks that were to be shaped”, says Hecht.

For the past thirty years, Nevio and Fabbiano Mattiazzi’s obsession with wood production has led them to produce furniture for some of the great Italian furniture brands. Over the years they have kept their expertise and quality sharp by continually investing in the latest machinery, in combination with a craftsmanlike attitude. They have now become a company of rarity in being able to shape wood as if it were plastic, and where ever-greater challenges are seen as their own form of research and development.

This beautiful video – made by Industrial Facility and directed by Juriaan Booij – shows you something of how the Branca Chair is made.

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The RAR Rocking Chair Winter Special

Posted by
Aram October 4, 2012

The Plastic Armchairs designed by Charles and Ray Eames were first presented as part of the Low Cost Furniture Design competition sponsored by the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1948. The organically shaped seat shells were later combined with a variety of bases and soon became a furniture classic of the 20th century.

Vitra has now launched a time-limited special edition of the classic rocking chair and present it in a new light. The polypropylene seat shell is made in an earthy, Basalt grey (RAL 7022) and rests on a metal rod base lacquered in a coal black colour (RAL 9004). The maple runners have been treated with a rich dark stain.

The RAR Rocking Chair Winter Special – priced at £424, pre-order now – is available from November 2012 only until March 2013.

ARAM STORE

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Free Dot Stool or Child’s Chair with four Jacobsen Stacking Chairs

Posted by
Aram October 2, 2012

Choose a free Dot Stool or Series 7 Child's Chair with orders for four Jacobsen Stacking Chairs
Receive a complimentary Dot™ stool or a Series 7™ children’s chair when you buy four identical Arne Jacobsen stacking chairs. Choose between Series 7™ in wood veneer, coloured Ash or lacquer, the Ant™ in wood veneer, coloured Ash or lacquer or Grand Prix™ chairs. The Dot and Series 7 children’s chair is available in beech or walnut veneers, or coloured ash in a variety of colours.

UPDATE: Alternatively, get a fifth chair free instead when ordering four identical Jacobsen stacking chairs – contact the Store.

This offer runs until 30 November 2012 and does not apply to Jacobsen stacking chairs with upholstery, armrests or special bases. Please contact the Store to place your order.

ARAM STORE

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6 for the price of 5 Wishbone Chairs

Posted by
Aram September 27, 2012

6 for the price of 5 CH24 Wishbone Chairs by Hans J Wegner

Danish furniture designer Hans J. Wegner designed the world-famous CH24, popularly called the Wishbone chair, in 1949. The people at Carl Hansen and Son soon realised how visionary and trailblazing this young designer’s simple designs were. In return, Wegner admired the skill and dedication of the craftsmen at the factory. This laid the basis for a long, rewarding partnership. Today, Wegner’s family and design firm manage the designer’s legacy but the close stimulating partnership has been carried on and has also made it possible for Carl Hansen & Son in recent years to rediscover and introduce new pieces of furniture designed by Wegner.

Wegner designed the chair to be beautiful and functional but not easy to make. The back legs are steam-bent into a curve that tapers to join a semi-circular steam-bent back rest. The delicate taper of all the legs tested the limits of serial production. The joinery was difficult – even a small mistake would compromise structural integrity – but the 100 seperate manual tasks resulted in a strong, lightweight chair.

To celebrate the Wishbone Chair’s 60th Anniversary, Carl Hansen issued a series of celebratory lacquer colours and paired them with a white papercord seat, alongside the various wood finishes with natural papercord. We are offering 6 of any combination of chairs for the price of 5 until the end of October 2012. The offer will be applied as a discount in the shopping basket when six chairs are chosen.

ARAM STORE

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Recent Articles >

Categories >

Aram Store Sale January 2013

Know Your Classics Winner

Medici wins an Icon Design Award

Know your Classics – Photo Number 8

Christmas at Aram

Know Your Classics Competition

Branca Chairs – Something of how they are made

The RAR Rocking Chair Winter Special

Free Dot Stool or Child’s Chair with four Jacobsen Stacking Chairs

6 for the price of 5 Wishbone Chairs

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