Even if you don’t know it by name, you definitely know the Eames Eiffel DSW Chair, with
its curvy molded-plastic bucket seat, tethered to flared wood dowel legs with a crosshatch of black metal.
The first mass-produced plastic chair to hit the market in the early
1950s, vintage Eiffel originals often go for more than $300 a pop.
But cheaper dupes are so ubiquitous, it’s near impossible to avoid them (here are just a few examples), whether in Airbnb and
Zillow listings, influencers’ Instagram stories, doctor’s office waiting rooms, moving-day trash heaps outside of high rises, or perhaps even your own home.
Sure, they’re cute and lightweight, but knockoff
Eiffels are the fast fashion of furniture.
Sitting in one of these poorly made, wobbly things for more than a couple minutes is
an anxious, butt-numbing experience — never mind trying to work from home in one all day.


If you are in the market for a design-forward
yet affordable chair, what are your options beyond the Eames?
We
asked t