Chairs seem to be high on the list of current activities for the middle Atkins boy these days. It seems that upholstery needs come in cycles for this family and, as the resident upholsterer, he always gets pressed into service by his mother who would always rather keep what she has than buy something new.
Some chairs come in pairs, like the wingback beauty you see above. These chairs were purchased from Ethan Allen in 1982 when the older Atkins family moved to Raleigh, North Carolina. They were so beautiful in the eyes of their purchaser that she resisted every impulse to change them until the oldest Atkins male chose one of them as his favorite daytime reading chair and wore out its arms all the way through to the stuffing. Even then, she made arm covers in order to avoid giving up that fabric she loved so much.
After the holidays, though, she could not avoid the fact that shabby truly is shabby at some point so she bit the bullet and went on a quest for fabric she could love as much as the old stuff. She enlisted Scott's help and they finally found an acceptable substitute. Even so, she insisted on salvaging the velvet backs that so perfectly complement the rug in the living room. Above you see one of the pair, now restored to its former beauty.
One project begets another so the antique chair in the bedroom was next on the list. Why? Because the senior Atkins boy who wore out the downstairs chair also wore out the favorite upstairs chair by reading in it every night before going to bed. Fabric can last only so long, you know, and that fabric was approaching 40 years old.
Chair #2 was already an antique in the 1970s when the Atkins family moved to Marengo, Ohio. When first spotted, it was already threadbare with it's stuffing hanging out. It belonged to a lovely little widow lady named Merle Ribov. The lone female of the family sat in it one evening during a meeting at Merle's house and pronounced it the most comfortable chair she had ever occupied. Stuffed with real goose down, it was a chair that reached out and begged you to nestle into it, put your feet up on the ottoman and spend time there.
Then a blizzard struck Ohio, causing death and destruction and leaving thousands of people marooned in their homes for days. When it was all over, Merle decided she needed a space heater more than she needed the chair. The Atkins phone rang: Merle: Do you remember that chair you liked so much? Sallie: I certainly do. Merle: Would you like to have it? Sallie: I certainly would. How much do you want for it? Merle: Oh, my dear, I'm going to give it to you. I don't have room for it any longer. It has been in my family for a long time and I want someone who appreciates it to have it.
Well, the Atkins males promptly took the family van and retrieved it. Scott recovered it and preserved all that lovely goose down and it has provided comfort to the family ever since. Now resplendent in yet another new cover, but still retaining that treasured goose down, it brings back memories of Merle and her generosity and that special time in our lives. What was a Ribov family heirloom is now an Atkins family heirloom.
Since the Atkins family chair projects are now caught up, take a moment to look at the exquisite workmanship that Scott produces. Everything is impeccably done – something that isn't usually found in modern furniture unless one pays exorbitant prices for it. It's the difference between really caring about doing things right and just doing things. It reminds us of the old poem our parents used to quote when we complained about having to do chores. It's a poem the younger generation would benefit from and one the middle Atkins boy lives by.
When a job is once begun;
Do not stop until it's done.
Be the labor; great or small,
Do it right or not at all.
But are there any children out there who are expected to do chores in today's world?
