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The Muskoka chair

The Muskoka chair, explained

One shape, a hundred and twenty years old, built for sitting outside doing nothing in particular. Here is where it comes from, why it works, what it is made of now, and how to buy one that will still be there in twenty summers.

Two Muskoka chairs on a dock at a lake

What a Muskoka chair is

A low, wide outdoor chair with a tilted-back seat, a tall slatted back and arms broad enough to hold a drink. The seat is close to the ground at the front and lower still at the back, so you sit in it rather than on it, with your weight settled and your feet out in front. It was designed for a slope, which is why it feels so good on flat ground: the recline is built into the frame, not into a mechanism.

In Canada it is a Muskoka chair, after the lake district north of Toronto where cottagers adopted it. In the United States it is an Adirondack chair, after the mountains in upstate New York where it was invented in 1903. Same chair, two names — the story is worth five minutes.

Why it is shaped like that

Thomas Lee built the first one in Westport, New York, for his family's summer place on a hillside. He wanted a chair that would sit level on uneven ground and let a person lean back without a cushion, so he tilted the seat, angled the back, and made the arms wide enough to set a plate on. Eleven boards, one plank each, cut with a hand saw. The slatted back came later, in the 1930s, and the fan-shaped back after that; the geometry never changed because it never needed to.

The result is a chair that is comfortable for hours — the recline takes the weight off the lower back, the arms take the weight off the shoulders — and one that is famously a little hard to get out of. That is what the ottoman is for. The geometry, drawn out.

What it is made of now

For a hundred years it was wood: cedar, pine, teak, whatever was local. Wood is beautiful for a season. Then it greys, the paint or stain fails, water gets into the end grain, and the chair starts a long argument with the weather that it always loses. Every spring: sand, stain, repeat. Here is what three summers do.

The chair we make is 100% recycled HDPE — the plastic milk jugs are made from — cleaned, ground, coloured all the way through and pressed into solid lumber that is milled and bolted exactly like the wooden original. About five hundred jugs go into each chair. It does not absorb water, so nothing rots or freezes inside it. The colour is in the material, not on it, so there is nothing to peel, chip or fade unevenly. It is heavier than wood on purpose. It sits outside all year and is hosed off in spring. How that happens.

How to choose one

  • Material first. Wood if you want the grain and will do the upkeep. Recycled HDPE poly lumber if you want to buy it once. Avoid thin moulded resin: it is light, it blows over, and it cracks in a cold winter. Resin vs poly lumber.
  • Weight is a feature. A real poly-lumber chair weighs around 35–40 lb. If the one you are looking at is half that, it is hollow.
  • Hardware. Stainless steel or nothing. Zinc-plated screws streak rust down the slats within two summers.
  • Colour through the board. Ask whether the colour is pigmented through or coated. Coated chairs show white at every scratch.
  • Warranty and returns. Twenty years on the material is normal for the good ones. Thirty days to return it after it arrives is fair. Anything less, ask why.
  • Sets. Most people end up with two, then four. Buy them together and every chair should cost less. The layouts, and the discount.

The long version: how to choose a Muskoka chair.

Ours

We make one chair, in fourteen colours, at our own factory in Ontario, and deliver it free anywhere in Canada. $299 CAD, down from $449. A matching ottoman ($99) and side table ($79) in the same colour. Sets of two, four and six are 15, 20 and 25 percent off every chair. Twenty-year warranty, thirty-day returns with shipping paid, and you can cancel free any time before it goes into production.

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Questions

Is a Muskoka chair the same as an Adirondack chair?

Yes. Same chair, same shape, same history. Canadians named it after the Muskoka lakes; Americans after the Adirondack mountains where it was designed in 1903.

What is the best material for a Muskoka chair?

Recycled HDPE poly lumber, if you want to buy it once. It does not rot, absorb water, peel or need staining, and it weighs enough to stay put in wind. Wood looks lovely for a season and then needs yearly upkeep.

How much does a good Muskoka chair cost?

A solid poly-lumber chair from a real maker is usually $449–$500. Ours is $299 CAD with free delivery, and less per chair in sets of two, four or six.

Can it stay outside all winter?

Yes. HDPE does not absorb water, so there is nothing for frost to crack. Leave it out, brush the snow off it in April, hose it down.

How long does delivery take?

Each chair is built to order in Ontario, so about 3–6 weeks from your order to your door, delivered free.