Why Are Adirondack Chairs & Adirondack Furniture a Cottage Favorite?

With summer right around the corner, it's time to settle-back and enjoy a cool beverage in an Adirondack chair.

Adirondack chair you say? What's that? The Adirondack chair is an outdoor armchair having a straight back and seat manufactured from wide, usually wooden slats. It's been around since the early 1900's and was originally referred to as the Westport Chair named after a small town in New York near the Adirondack Mountains.

What's made Adirondack chairs so popular for so long is how comfortable and stylish they are. The chair's back provides just the right angle for dozing off, and the wide arms easily accommodate a cool drink or your chosen book. Hours simply pass by when you're kicking back in a comfortable seat.

Adirondack Furniture a Cottage

Originally, Adirondack chairs were painted dark green or brown. Today, you will find an Adirondack chair in a variety of designs, colors, finishes or materials that matches your individual style. A favorite Adirondack chair favorite is made from cedar since it's lightweight and rot resistant. However, today's Adirondack furniture manufacturers have extended beyond the classic using various woods and recycled plastic materials.

Adirondack chairs produced from wood have been tested for durability, warping, rot and insect resistance. Most woods are kiln-dried and pressure-treated so your Adirondack furniture can be utilized for all-season outdoor use. Apart from cedar, many woods utilized in the manufacturing of Adirondack crp furniture include teak, cypress, mahogany, alder, eucalyptus, and southern yellow pine.

With regards to the kind of wood your Adirondack chair is constructed of, you could have various color options to choose. If the natural look isn't everything you had at heart, you can choose painted Adirondack chairs in a variety of colors. Some manufacturers offer around 29 different color choices for their Adirondack furniture. From the classic cottage colors such as, for instance, white, yellow, and barn red to the ultra-sleek flamingo pink, you're guaranteed to discover a color that suits you. And if you're daring to be even more different, you will find hand painted Adirondack chairs with sunflowers, ladybugs and even frogs on the whole back of the chair.

If you wish to add a lot more personality to your Adirondack chair, select from various finish options. The natural look does not have any finish treatment that could compromise the natural aging procedure for the wood. If you intend to put in a little splash of color, your chairs might be finished with a UV protected stain allowing your furniture to age much more slowly. Painted Adirondack chairs are generally finished with a latex enamel that's outdoors, non-toxic and water based. Darker colors are blended with SPF agents to resist fading.

Chairs that are painted may be finished in many ways. One of the ways is really a pristine finish, or solid color, through the entire piece. Other finish option is really a distressed look. If your Adirondack chair has a distressed finish, this means after the color has been applied and dried, the chair's edges and grain are slightly sanded to provide the look of an antique look. A washed finish is sanding through the entire chair simulating an even more weathered and antique appearance.

Whether your Adirondack chair is painted or stained, slight maintenance is likely to be required every 12-18 months. If that's more work than you need, another choice is really a plastic Adirondack chair. Plastic Adirondack chairs are virtually maintenance-free, with the exception of only a little cleaning on occasion. Although you might not have as many styles or color options to choose, plastic Adirondack chairs have been given the nod of approval by many consumers.

Plastic Adirondack chairs are created to absorb no moisture, and therefore won't rot, warp, crack or splinter like Adirondack chairs created from wood. By permeating the material with UV stabilized coloring, the necessity of finishing is eliminated, making the chairs virtually low maintenance. Plastic Adirondack chairs are built to last a lifetime. They are unaffected by sun, rain, snow, even chlorine and saltwater, making this sort of chair the epitome for the low-maintenance consumer.

So take the time to settle-back and relax in this country classic, perennial favorite. Adirondack chairs are handsome and durable and can host an outdoor party or perhaps a crowd of one. In any event, your Adirondack chair is likely to be an always-ready invitation for comfort and relaxation.