Custom Loose Cushion Sofa Designed by William Haines
View Similar Items
Custom Loose Cushion Sofa Designed by William Haines
About the Item
- Creator:William Billy Haines (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 32.5 in (82.55 cm)Width: 91 in (231.14 cm)Depth: 37.5 in (95.25 cm)Seat Height: 20 in (50.8 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1966
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Palm Desert, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: 13103179772101
William Billy Haines
Plenty of prolific designers started off on slightly different tracks than those on which they ended up, but rarely did they begin their careers in a totally separate industry like William “Billy” Haines did. Before he gained a reputation as a furniture designer and decorator to Hollywood’s biggest and brightest, Haines was himself a star of the silver screen.
After leaving his native Virginia as a young man, Haines earned modeling and acting jobs in New York City and then won a Goldwyn Studios talent contest in the early 1920s. The next frontier was California, where he would go on to appear in more than 50 films. His acting career was halted abruptly in 1933, allegedly because he refused to leave his partner, British footballer Jimmy Shields, at the request of his representation at MGM Studios. Whether it was the fact that Haines was one half of Hollywood’s first openly gay marriage or that there were other factors at play, MGM cofounder Louis B. Mayer canceled his contract.
Luckily for Haines, he had nurtured a side career that kept him on Hollywood’s radar: He was a prominent antiques dealer on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles. Haines dedicated himself full-time to both dealing and designing furniture as soon as his tenure as a leading man came to an end.
Haines collaborated with the era’s biggest names in architecture and created a desert living room for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition in San Francisco that featured walls made of California Joshua wood and a painting by Georgia O’ Keeffe. He paid close attention to lighting design, employed hand-painted wallpaper and favored featuring Chinese ceramics alongside Chippendale chairs and ottomans for entertaining. His most famous clients included Joan Crawford, Carole Lombard, Betsy Bloomingdale and more. Crawford played a significant role in kick-starting his career when she commissioned Haines to decorate her entire home in Brentwood.
Haines was such an esteemed tastemaker that he’s among those credited with having cemented Hollywood Regency as a reputable design style. (Its origins are owed to influential interior decorator Dorothy Draper.) While he gravitated toward the look of chinoiserie and English furniture, his signature was low-level seating and giltwood accents. Haines’s interior design style was so in vogue that Nancy Reagan became one of his biggest fans and eventually enlisted Ted Graber, Haines’s successor following his death in 1973, to decorate several private and public rooms in the White House.
Find a collection of vintage William Haines lounge chairs, lighting fixtures and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- A Two Cushion Sofa on Runner Legs, William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Williams in 1933 was given the Haines touch when his clients a young family of five...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Walnut
- A Pair of Large Custom Mirrors, designed by William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection, purchased directly from the heirs of the estate presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Williams in 1933 was given the Haines touch when his clients a young family of five...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Floor Mirrors and Full-Length ...
MaterialsMirror, Wood
- Custom Neoclassical Table with Original Finish by William Haines for Jack WarnerBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis is an original custom made neoclassical table by Billy Haines for the Palm Springs home of Jack L Warner. The round table top's geometric desig...Category
Vintage 1950s American Neoclassical Tables
MaterialsConcrete, Travertine, Metal
- A Pair of Cobalt Blue Swiveling Tub Chairs designed by William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAOffered here a pair of swiveling tub chairs, sitting on a stylized Chinoiserie base. The bases are painted black. The chairs have been newly upholstered in Romo/Zinc Ocelot - Midni...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Swivel Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- A Pair of Iron and Leather Benches designed by William Haines for Francis BrodyBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThese benches, created by William Haines for the home of the Brody’s located in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles are a part of a collection executed in iron rod. This ...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Benches
MaterialsIron
- A Pair of Wooden Columns, William HainesBy William Billy HainesLocated in Palm Desert, CAThis collection presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of Los Angeles design history. The house, originally designed by Paul Williams in 1933 was given the Haines touch when his...Category
Vintage 1950s American Greco Roman Pedestals and Columns
MaterialsWood
$7,000 / set
- Parisian Style Loose Cushion SofaBy The Tailored Home, Jhon OrtizLocated in Greenwich, CTParisian style sofa with single bench cushion and large side and back cushions, all stuffed with down/feather. Shown in white denim with black lacquer l...Category
2010s American Modern Sofas
MaterialsDown, Feathers
$7,200 / item - Modern Curved Loose Cushion SofaLocated in Greenwich, CTThis modern curved sofa is built to order and features 3 loose back cushions with a single cushioned seat. This piece is customizable and can be built to the size specifications of y...Category
2010s American Modern Sofas
MaterialsMaple
$8,142 / item - Rare and Exclusive Loose Cushion SofaBy George NelsonLocated in Munich, DEBy george nelson. ultra soft high qualitily leather with nice and worm patina. down filled cushions.Category
Vintage 1960s American Sofas
MaterialsLeather
$5,008 Sale Price20% Off - 1970s Custom NY High-end Upholstery Shop D' Angelo Sofa With Loose CushionsLocated in Miami, FL1970s Custom NY High-end Upholstery Shop D' Angelo Sofa With Loose Cushions Offered for sale is a fine-quality custom-made sofa upholstered with what appears to be a silk-blend stri...Category
Late 20th Century American Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Foam, Wood
$1,200 Sale Price52% Off - Custom Curved Sofa with Wood Base and Loose Seat Cushion on Wood BaseBy LF UpholsteryLocated in Brooklyn, NYThe Geneva sofa is the larger companion to the Verona sofa - same styling but slightly larger proportions - its Verona's soulmate - same strong maple framing with handcrafted upholstery with hand webbed seat platform, stitched all throughout the upholstery, and a soft foam with feather and down loose seat cushion. The wood base...Category
2010s American American Classical Sofas
MaterialsFabric
- Custom Sofa with Wood Surround at Arms with Loose Back and Side CushionsBy LF UpholsteryLocated in Brooklyn, NYOur version of the timeless St. Thomas sofa - we call the Carnot - with square notched arms, feather and down back and side cushions and a hand rolled mattress edge...Category
2010s American American Classical Sofas
MaterialsMahogany
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
In Dragonette’s New Palm Desert Digs, Great Design Springs Eternal
Since leaving Los Angeles, Patrick Dragonette is experiencing a new kind of creative freedom.
Why This L.A. Designer Prefers Soulful Sophistication over Snobbism
Mallery Roberts Morgan practices a singular brand of creative fluidity as a writer and a quietly influential interior designer.