Thrifty Find: Faux Bamboo Chairs

Over the past several years that I’ve been reading design blogs I’ve noticed that faux bamboo furniture has been popping up all over the place. I don’t really know where this trend began but I love it! I especially love a good faux bamboo chair at a desk or dining table.

via Better Homes & Gardens

via Southern Living

via Glitter Guide

via ColorDrunk

via Jonathan Adler

I’ve been hunting for inexpensive bamboo pieces for a long time, and with a few exceptions (like my awesome mirror), I haven’t had a lot of luck. Turns out that the Midwest isn’t the hotspot of Chinoiserie furniture, who knew?

But I finally had a spot of luck the other day when I came across a set of four faux bamboo Thomasville chairs on Craigslist for $300. I really only needed one chair, but the seller had another buyer interested in two chairs and would only sell me the other two. I didn’t want to lose this purchase so I went ahead and bought two of them, but I did negotiate the price down from $150 to $115 for two armless chairs. It may not be thrift store prices but I think they’re well worth it, especially because they’re in perfect condition. The previous owner had used a sprayer to repaint them and she recovered the seats in a durable black faux-leather vinyl. Plus it’s much less than you would pay for two new chairs, especially ones this stylish.

I’m using one as my desk chair and the other is hanging out next to the fireplace in the living room, although I may end up moving it someplace else. I tried it in the entryway but I missed the color of the dining chair that’s there now.

What do you think? Have you jumped on the faux bamboo bandwagon yet? Or have you found any other treasures on Craigslist lately?