The Papasan Chair: A Unique Seating Experience

Whether your home's interior is classic or modern, a papasan chair is a smart choice for any room, nicely complementing your existing furniture. A papasan chair is a cross between an simple bean bag chair and an an upright chair. Many of you might already be familiar with the this unique chair, but if you aren't (and even if you are), read on.

These chairs consist of a base, a bowl-shaped body, and a cushion designed to be placed within the bowl body. The body of the papasan chair sits on its base in the same way that a hard-boiled egg fits into an egg cup. Therefore, you can shift the angle of the chair body on its base in much the same fashion as you can reposition an egg in its container. Take a look at the picture below to get a better idea of how this works. As a result of the ability to change the angle of the chair within the base in an infinite number of directions, you're sure to be able to find a seating position that's perfect for you.

Constructed from either corduroy or heavy linen, the traditional papasan chair cushion is usually stuffed with a fiber fill made of cotton. Newer materials used to make these cushions include durable nylon for use outdoors, suede, and leather. These modern cushions will, more likely than not, be filled with foam chips. And because the cushion is usually not attached to the chair body, it can be removed and used by itself.

Constructed in a variety of sizes and utilizing natural materials and traditional methods, the chair base is made out of rattan. Whether modern or traditional, the goal is stay true to the chair's original design, with its unique, cultural flavor. The junior papasan chair stands 36 inches tall and is the premium papasan chair because of its popularity. To create a sofa-chair suite, add the double papasan sofa or love seat, measuring 48" x 60".

The first papasan chairs were created in the Philippines during the 1950s or 1960s and then made their way to the U.S. shortly thereafter. Spreading across the globe from its humble origins in the Philippines, the papasan chair has become a beloved classic. Its simple and enduring design is what has kept it in style for over half a century.

Manufacturers have created newer versions of the papasan which differ in several respects from the original chair. The major difference involves chairs made from more durable materials, such as wood or stout wicker frames, keeping the original design in tact as much as possible.

A new, camping-style chair has popped up in the past five years, with a seat similar to the papasan's cushion and made out of plastic or metal, with a collapse-able base allowing easy transport and storage. The major drawback of these camping-style chairs is that the bowl-shaped seats can't be adjusted, but their styling makes them unique among similar chairs, and they provide a fairly comfortable seat.