One of the casualties of the extended school break over the holidays was one of the first pieces of furniture my wife and I bought together: an Ikea Poang arm chair. If ever there was an iconic piece of first apartment furnishings, it was the Poang (which Ikea has been selling since 1977 and displays in its stores undergoing endless stress testing cycles using a robotic behind). Ours survived multiple moves, several replacement covers, my own ever-expanding frame and my wife’s eventual feeling that the old classic looked out of place with our decor. My solution was to move it to the playroom, where the kids used it as a comfy video gaming chair. And that’s where the Poang met its end when the twins finally did it in with a snap that sounded like a gun going off.
I’m not complaining about the chair’s resilience. After 23 years, it certainly doesn’t owe us anything and I know what a pair of 11-year-olds can do to the most solid furniture, even if they’re engrossed in playing Halo. And despite the loud and violent end, there was no shrapnel.
Lugging the Poang out to the curb last night felt like the end of an era. We still have the collection of Billy book cases, though…
You’ll be glad to know you can still buy that chair at Ikea. It’s one of those timeless classics, I guess.
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/series/07472/
Didn’t think that was possible… lol. We still have the Poang my wife bought before we got married; granted, its only ~10 years old for us. Do you double up the seat cushion for more padding? Brilliant.
Poang! The name of the chair AND the sound it made when it broke.
That’s a poor Poem that bit the dust. We have one of each, after it changed to Poang. It is getting really tatty and I am trying to wrestle it out, as my husband claims it is far more comfortable. Looking for something new but keep coming back to another Poang. I think I have almost won the battle 🙂
hey sorry dad about that me and bro were fighting and then it snapped lol sorry u will be miss poang