The elegant proportions and fluid lines of these chairs result from the slender members used and the crest rail and armrests which turn continuously into their respective front and rear posts. The rounded right angle joints, commonly translated as "pipe joints," are however inherently weak and these chairs show evidence of once having had their corner joints strengthened with metal reinforcements.

Each of the two basic armchair forms, the "roundback" and "yokeback" were designed in two styles. The more common "extended" style had the crestrail and arm rests extend beyond their support posts terminating in a rounded finial. The second or "continuous" style, the type shown in these two sets of chairs, used crest rail and arm rests that flowed uninterruptedly into their support posts. All four types of armchair are displayed in this gallery.