Back to the home office with Hans J. Wegner's CH621 swivel chair

I’m slowly easing myself into the new year and trying to get back into the swing of things. January isn’t the most uplifting of months but I’m taking the small pleasures where I can, with a tidy desk, tidy mind way of thinking. I like to think of January as the calm before the storm – it’s a time when I can get organised, regroup and begin again. If there’s anything I enjoy about this month, it’s the fresh page of a new notebook, a clear diary, renewed intentions, a pause before the real work begins in Spring and Summer.

I work from home by myself so it can sometimes be hard to find that internal motivation without anyone telling me what to do. I have to find my own inspiration, seek out my own incentives and give myself little rewards when I can. For me it all starts with my working environment. I can’t work if everything’s a mess, and I’ve been known to do all the washing, clean the kitchen and tidy before I can even open my diary for the day (yes, I work best with a physical, old school paper diary). I have a cupboard where I can hide away paperwork, fabric samples and the odds and ends I don’t want to see on a daily basis. The aim is to have a clutter-free space where I can think, dream, create and be inspired. That means function-first furniture, aesthetically pleasing organisers, neat cable management and good task lighting.

A good workspace also needs a good office chair. And it seems a stylish, aesthetically pleasing work chair is notoriously hard to find, especially for the home. I’m sure most people, like me, desire comfort and function, but don’t want it to look like an ugly, clunky thing you’ve brought home from the office. I want my work chair to blend in and fit with everything else in my home. Modern work chairs may act the part, with fancy mechanisms, but sometimes simple is best. And perhaps Hans J. Wegner knew what he was doing all that time ago in the 1940s.

[AD – this post is in partnership with Carl Hansen & Søn]

Let me (re)introduce you to the CH621 Swivel Chair, produced by Danish brand Carl Hansen & Søn. Designed by Hans J. Wegner in 1948, it offers the perfect balance between functional ergonomics and elegant aesthetics. The brushed stainless steel frame gives the chair a clean, simple silhouette, while the oak adds warmth, softening the design for the setting of a home interior. It feels lightweight and non-obtrusive yet wonderfully tactile.

Carl Hansen & Søn have made a few adjustments to allow the CH621 swivel chair to suit a new audience, elevating it from coveted collector’s item to a functional classic. The chair is now more stable with five castors instead of the original four. They were custom made to suit the slim profile of the frame, fitting the petite mid-century look of the chair.

At the time in the late 1940s, Wegner worked with doctors and physiologists to work out the ideal sitting posture and lumbar support for a chair’s comfort. The curved back rest perfectly fits the curve of the body and armrests sit at just the right height. Now, instead of a spindle, the new version has a height-adjustment lever that’s operates a modern gas lift cylinder, so you can adjust the seat height to your desired level. It’s discreet and doesn’t detract from the overall appeal of the design.

I love how the CH621 chair blends old and new; the form is slightly retro but it still looks as fresh as the day it was designed. I think it’s no understatement to say this is possibly the most stylish office chair I’ve ever seen – the gorgeous green fabric, the tactile wood, the simple frame, it couldn’t be more perfect in my eyes.

Find out more about the CH621 office chair here.