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Dining chairs

The designer Mies van der Rohe said it was almost easier to design a skyscraper than a chair. That’s why Chippendale is famous, he added. Browse the collection of dining chairs here from classic to contemporary.

Handpainted school chair Rockett St George

I remember writing about these chairs years ago on the blog and I still love them now. These vintage school chairs have been reconditioned and updated to fit a more modern kitchen (or a traditional one come to that). Various colours available this is the new way to do mismatched – same shape different colours.
Rattan indoor outdoor bistro chair Anthropologie

These chairs are massively fashionable at the moment but they are also a French café classic so don’t worry about them dating – they’re just having their moment in the sun but when at the end of the day (as it were) they will still look good in your kitchen. They’re also a great way to bring a splash of colour into a room and, if you have a wooden floor and a wooden table it’s always good to find a new material to use.
Alix Dining Bench Made

Now this is billed as a dining bench but I would gently suggest that at £379 it’s not going to be the sturdiest and longest lasting piece you will ever buy. However, the shape is great and it’s a good looking thing. If you have room in a bedroom, or even a hall where it will have only occasional sitting I think it’s a great buy. The brass tips on the navy version make it look cheaper so I’d stick to the white but you can now order a free fabric sample so that’s probably worth doing. And you can maybe even paint the legs if you don’t like them.
Bell Stackable Armchair Made In Design

The problem with garden furniture is the space it can take up when you need to store it during the winter. These stackable chairs by Magis solve that problem and, if you don't want to stack them (on a balcony or in a garden) then they work perfectly indoors round the kitchen table. And they're made from recycyled polypropylene, from waste collected at the Magis factory (and local car factories) in Italy which is a brilliant way for a company to use its own waste. It can also be recycled at the end of its life. Winning. Oh and it's £80 a chair, which is a good price.
Bistro Style Dining Chairs La Redoute

I have become mildly obsessed with dark green dining chairs but these also come in a deep burgundy red which would do just as nicely. A painted wooden chair can ring the changes if you have a wooden table and floor and feel it might all be a little too much. These come in sets of two and in natural, black and walnut as well.
Willbrook Chair Blush Cox & Cox

I have to say I'm a sucker for powder coated steel leg that matches the chair. It always looks more expensive and yet this chair is £75 rather than the hundreds you might expect for a more designer version. The curving back and base should hug you just enough if it's doubling up as an office chair (but not all day every day).
Kartell Piuma Chair Heals

Kartell came up with a new technique to create this injection-moulded thermoplastic chair which means it's just 2mm thick but incredibly strong and weighs just over 2kg, so it's easy to move around from dining table to desk or vice versa. Its curved arms will support yours and you can add a lumbar cushion if needed. I like this soft yellow to bring the sunshine into your office but there are six other shades to choose from.
Curved Back Velvet Dining Chair Rockett St George

Not everyone's floors can cope with a desk chair on wheels so you need to look to dining chairs for inspiration. I have this and the curved back is very supportive while the velvet makes it soft enough for hours of sitting. Comes in ochre as well as green and when the day comes when an unexpected guest comes for dinner you'll be ready.
Pill Stool WOODMANCOTE RETRO

This small Gloucestershire-based company makes furniture from tubular steel and uses local sustainable hardwood - often salvaged. There is a huge range of tall and low stools as well as trestle tables with brightly coloured legs which make great desks.
Nord Stool/Side Table M&S

Can’t ever go wrong with a classic wooden stool and it’s nice to see a design that isn’t basically a copy of the Alvar Aalto original. It’s made from sustainable wood and is probably a family heirloom in the making. You will use it as a stool or a bedside table and then a teenager will steal it for the university room and on it goes. The classic oak will gather a lovely patina in time.