Softness matters least of all. A chair that swallows you feels lovely for ten minutes and tires your back within the hour.
What makes a garden armchair comfortable?
A low, deep seat you can lean back in, arms at the height your forearms fall to, a back that takes your weight, and a seat that drains. The first three are the same as indoors. The fourth is the outdoor one: a seat that stays wet is never comfortable.
How high and how deep should the seat be?
As a guide, 14 to 17.7 in high and 19.7 to 21.7 in deep for a lounge chair. Lower and deeper feels more relaxed, and is harder to get up from.
Kenny has a seat height of 15 to 19 in and a 20.9 in seat depth: deep enough to lean right back with your feet flat on the ground. A garden dining chair, for comparison, sits upright at 18 in.
Arms or no arms?
Arms, on a lounge chair. They carry the weight of your forearms and give you something to push on when you stand up. Kenny's arms sit at 19.3 in; Arvid has integrated arms.
Both our lounge chairs have arms. The armless seats in our garden range are dining chairs and benches, made for a table, not for lounging.
Does a reclining garden armchair need an adjustable back?
No. A fixed back at a relaxed angle is what most people sit in all evening. Kenny and Arvid both lean back at a set angle, with no mechanism, so there is nothing to wear, jam or rust. We make no reclining armchair.
If you want to change position, from sitting up to lying flat, that is a sun lounger. The Bazo backrest locks in four positions, flat to reclined, without tools: see how to choose a sun lounger.
Mesh, teak or a thick cushion?
Mesh is the comfortable seat that dries. Kenny's seat and back are outdoor mesh that carries you and drains the moment rain lands, with an Oat olefin cushion on top, included.
Teak is the firm, warm one. Arvid is teak slats; add the two-piece Arvid cushion, seat and back, 4 in thick, in Oat or Dusk and sold separately, and it is a chair for long evenings too.
Will the cushion stay comfortable outside?
Yes, if it is solution-dyed and you store it dry. Ours are Sunproof Fontelina olefin with the color through the fiber, rated 7 to 8 for weathering fastness and 80 for water repellency. A shower is fine. Bring cushions in for long rain and winter: the fabric copes, the foam inside lasts longer dry.
The covers lift off to wash. More in outdoor cushions.
Kenny or Arvid: which is more comfortable?
Kenny if you want the soft seat with nothing to add. Arvid if you like teak and a firmer sit, with the cushion for long evenings. Put a table at seat or arm height beside either: see outdoor side tables, and the garden lounge chair guide for the rest.
| Kenny | Arvid | |
|---|---|---|
| Seat | Outdoor mesh, Oat olefin cushion included | Teak slats, cushion sold separately |
| Feel | Soft, the mesh gives a little | Firm bare, soft with the 4 in cushion |
| After rain | Mesh drains at once; lift the cushion off | Teak drains and dries; cushion kept dry |
| Frame | Stainless steel, powder-coated black | Steel, powder-coated black |
Low, deep, arms, and a seat that dries
- Kenny
- cushion included
- Arvid cushion
- 4 in
- Recline
- fixed angle
