All Mix Blog

A nice little piece by Kate Watson-Smyth in The Independent today on the Ercol Butterfly chair. Here's the pick of the quotes: 'Ercolani had perfected the technique of steam-bending wood into curves as well as drying elm with steam so that it wouldn't warp. These methods allowed him to produce both the classic Windsor and curvy Butterfly .' 'Lucian was always fiddling with the designs and the boardroom is full of prototypes that didn't quite work or didn't last very long.' (Edward Tadros, Ercolani's grandson) Interesting to note that the Butterfly went out of production in the 1980s and it was not until, in 2000, Margaret Howell spurred the resurgence in popularity of the design by stocking it in her shops. 'Thanks to her, sales of the Butterfly went up again and so we put it back into production.' (Tadros) Image from eBay

We visited the Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green today and thoroughly enjoyed the current exhibition, 'Sit Down: Seating for Kids', sponsored by Ercol. Designs by Charles and Ray Eames, Robin Day and Thomas Chippendale are amongst those featured. The main hall also plays host to the Ercol chair arch (pictured), commissioned by Wallpaper* magazine and previously exhibited at the V&A in South Kensington. Curators Catherine Bornet and Noreen Marshall have created a show that brings a potentially dull subject to life, helped greatly by playful illustrations by Emma Houlston and 3D design from Wells Mackereth . The show deserves extra praise for its efforts to engage children (and adults, of course) in the chair manufacturing process: 'The earliest of these seats (1680) look back to a tradition where designer and maker were the same craft worker. Even when individual furniture designers became fashionable and well known, like Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779), they usuall...

We are glad to see Ercol putting some effort in to its public relations through its blog. Other manufacturers looking to do the same should take note of Ercol's mix of new product features alongside more in-depth, historically noteworthy items . Above, the company's founder, Lucian R Ercolani OBE and his son, Lucian B Ercolani, DSO DFC are shown giving an interview to the BBC on 25th April 1966, demonstrating the bending of Windsor chair backs - the same equipment is still in use today.