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Our favourite wooden armchairs and accent chairs to buy now
Investing in a charming accent chair might be just the refresh your living room or bedroom needs. A wonderful vehicle for punchy textiles, accent chairs or wooden armchairs are a great addition to spaces where you also have soft sofas and upholstered armchairs, as some people might well prefer a more straight-backed and upright occasional chair. As interior designer Rita Konig explains, "you will find that different people want to sit at different heights, so it is jolly handy to have some more upright chairs that can be pulled up when one’s more senior friends and relatives visit." Wooden armchairs or accent chairs are also a handy way to break up what Rita refers to as the 'pudding-ness' of upholstered furniture, or the sense that everything in a room is rounded or squashy.
What's the best wooden armchair to buy?
If you don't have time to read our full guide, we've compiled an ‘at a glance’ edit of our favourites:
- Best accent chair for bedrooms: Indigo Cane Chair, £678.30 from Anthropologie
- Best accent chair for sitting rooms: Karine Armchair, £995 from Soho Home
- Best upholstered wooden armchair: Fauteuil Luna, POA from Popus Editions
- Best painted wooden armchair: Armchair P4, £945 from Svenskt Tenn
- Best rattan wooden armchair: Loha Faux Sheepskin Boucle & Rattan Armchair, £595 from Oliver Bonas
Can I buy an antique accent armchair?
Some of the most charming examples of accent chairs and wooden armchairs are antiques. They can often be reupholstered for less than the price of a new chair and bring a sense of gravitas that brand new furnishings often don’t have. For some beautiful antique options, try 1stdibs, Etsy or Vinterior or scroll down for our pick of options, which range from affordable options from our favourite furniture shops, to stylish chairs by our best-loved designers.
What is an accent armchair?
An accent armchair often acts as the focal point in a room, or presents itself as an opportunity for a bold fabric that ties a scheme together. The phrase itself comes from the meaning of the word ‘accent’: to highlight, emphasise or stress.
Best accent chairs and wooden armchairs to buy now
The simple sling-like nature of this chair make it feel incredibly stylish. Made from solid oak and leather, it will patina beautifully with age and the natural characteristics of the fabric mean that no two chairs are the same.
Such a joyful spin on the typical wooden armchair. Eye-catching without being over the top, smart but casual, and has a Scandi touch with its clean lines and blue and white fabric. Simply put, it would be at home in a range of interiors. It's also currently on sale with over £100 off the full price.
Revolutionary when it was designed in 1950 by Hans J. Wegner, this refined chair has lost none of its appeal 70 years on. The intricate paper-cord seat and back is made by hand, and takes one craftsman around ten hours to construct. It's available in three wood finishes: black, oiled oak or walnut.
The solid wood frame of this design by interior designer Beata Heuman is ingeniously wrapped with fabric, to allow for an endlessly customisable piece, where any fabric can be selected for both the frame and upholstered cushions. Stylish solid brass feet finish the classy Frame armchair off. The price of £6300 is excluding the fabrics.
This sleek, modern armchair would be great in an awkward corner, in a dining room or pulled up at a desk. It's made in Spain, and available in a brown leather and oak colourway, or black leather with ash.
Spindles are a surprisingly uncommon feature on wooden armchairs, so this one is certainly bringing something different to the table. Howe's handcrafted furniture remains unbeaten for quality too.
This rattan lounge chair features a deep seat, armrests and floral fabric cushions. There is a Californian air about this chair that speaks to lazy, sunny days and is just delightful.
With its high back and deep seats, the Wycombe Armchair is a masterclass in clean lined simplicity. The frame is solid oak, with seat crafted from woven rush seat that is coated in water-resistant wax for durability.
The sculptural curved lines of this armchair make it stand out from the mid-century crowd; keep it free from cushions for maximum impact.
The AD11 lounge armchair might be intended for outdoor use, but we don't see why you couldn't add a cushion and have it inside. It's deep enough to be considered a ‘recliner’ seat, so it's as stylish as it is comfortable. All you need now is a footstool!
With its unusual rounded frame, this chair has a soft, organic feel which would stand out in a room if contrasted with other geometric furniture full of angles and straight lines.
A whimsical and playful design, this Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler piece would look wonderful facing a sofa, or in the corner of a bedroom. It would also work well in an orangery, among artfully displayed greenery. The chair is based on a 1950s Colefax & Fowler design.
A perfectly simple wooden chair that is well suited to a home office.
Soho Home invariably make a comfy armchair. With a chunky frame and classic deep velvet upholstery, this new design by Soho Home has a touch of real sophistication–and what a statement piece it would be in an airy white interior. We particularly like the dramatic sweeping angle of the arms of the chair. It's available in a range of different colours and fabrics, from terracotta linen to cream boucle.
A very attractive and bold chair that would hold its own in just about any space. The cushions do come separately, and in a range of fabrics, so you can customise it however you please. We love the zesty orange colourway, perhaps for a pop of colour in a neutral scheme.
Designed by Gerrit Rietveld for Danish design company HAY, this unusual chair that would provide a perfect contemporary counterpoint to soft furnishings for an industrial-chic look. It's available in a range of colours, including black and red.
This stylish chair makes the most of its delicate frame, and would be very sweet in a bedroom or nursery. The chair is made from natural mango wood, the seat cushion is upholstered in linen, and the back rest is rattan. It has very positive reviews on the Dunelm website, which is always a good sign.
These smartly rounded legs are such fun and add a little contemporary freshness to an otherwise quite classic chair. Oliver Bonas make this high back armchair in a few colours, including green and blue.
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This cosy little armchair looks much more high end than the price would suggest and would be lovely in a bedroom. Though not the most attention-grabbing chair on our list, its neutral look and simple profile means it will neatly fit in to existing decor schemes and could be moved from room to room seamlessly.
A simple and pleasingly proportioned option, the Persbol from Scandinavian stalwart Ikea has a whiff of retro Ercol about it with its spindle back and wooden arms. It's a total bargain at £150, has a comfy foam-filled grey cushion and comes in three colours, natural birch, black or brown-red.
The sling-style upholstery of this contemporary armchair is inspired by mid-century safari chairs (like the iconic version by Kaare Klint). It's a sleek take on a design classic.
John Lewis' Hendricks chair is available in an enormous range of fabrics and it's fascinating to see how much the different upholstery options change its appearance. Here, we've opted for a speckled weave in auburn which gives this retro feeling chair some texture and a warm, autumnal vibe. Do bear in mind that the price fluctuates depending on your fabric choice. There are also two wood options, light and dark.
Originally designed by Finn Juhl in 1956, this light, graceful chair also contrives to be incredibly comfortable, and we love the warm cognac colour of its leather upholstery.
This design has a particularly light frame and wooden legs, so can be relied on to provide an airy counterpoint to any heavier furniture in your living room. Made to order by Julian Chichester, you can have it covered in a fabric of your choice.
Masculine lines, a chunkier frame and supple leather padded give this chair a strong presence. This would be a great counterpoint to bouclé pieces or light linen upholstery.
What material is best for accent armchairs?
An accent chair can be just the thing to fill a seating gap, adding style to a space and eliminating the claustrophobia that too many soft seats can create. They work beautifully in all sorts of spaces, fitting in perfectly in a modern interior, but, upholstered in a stylish fabric, they can also add a jolt of contemporary style to more traditional rooms.
Wooden armchairs have a serious design pedigree. Although they are perhaps most often associated with mid-century design, with styles by Hans J. Wegner, Josef Frank and Jindrich Halabala still coveted today, we also love the solid straight lines of Arts & Crafts chairs and the the avant-garde modernist forms of the 1920s and 30s. Wooden armchairs will work well in kitchens, blending in nicely with the rest of the wooden surfaces in such a space, but they're also great options in bedrooms and nurseries, where their firmer backs make them ideal for sitting up with a baby.
A velvet accent chair or other fabric armchair can be a lovely choice in a bedroom, where you might want to take a seat and put on the finishing touches to your outfit. They can sit neatly in a corner, or lie in wait for use at a dressing table.
Leather (or faux leather) mid-century style iterations often come with wooden frames, though leather tub chairs can be found too.
