This John Lewis garden chair is the most comfortable one yet

With the sun shining and temperatures rising this week, everyone’s minds have turned to the outside. And if you’re lucky to have a garden at your disposal, you’re likely looking to kit it out asap. This week, garden furniture sales at John Lewis doubled compared to last week. And with some excellent designs available in the retailer’s outdoor furniture range – like the John Lewis Marcy garden chair and matching 2-seater garden sofa – I’m not surprised.

I might not have a garden of my own, but I’ve tried and tested a fair share of garden chairs and sofas, encountering both the worst and the best garden furniture along the way. I tried sitting on the striped Marcy Sling Garden Chair at the John Lewis spring/summer 2025 press preview and was so shocked (in a good way) at how comfortable, soft and fluffy the seating was. Really, I didn’t want to get up! Needless to say, this chair certainly falls into the category of the best garden furniture I’ve tried.

Then another shock came (again in a good way) when learning about the price point of this chair – a mere £149, which for a chair this comfortable and chic is a bargain!

How is the Marcy garden chair so comfortable?

Comfort, along with style are always high on the priority list when it comes to any furniture, including pieces for the garden. And yet, it’s often difficult to find the best garden chairs that would tick both of these boxes, while also being fairly affordable.

Matthew Steels, furniture and home accessories designer at John Lewis, explains how the high level of comfort has been achieved in the Marcy garden chair. ‘The Marcy armchair is designed for ultimate comfort, combining thoughtful upholstery techniques with a supportive structure to create its signature cloud-like feel.

‘The seat and back cushion are sewn as one piece, with a subtle seam acting as a live hinge – allowing the cushions to fold seamlessly into the slung frame for an inviting, pillowy effect. Beneath the generous cushioning, a webbed sling provides a hammock-like support system for a perfectly balanced seat. This layered approach means you’re not only sinking into soft, bellowing cushions but also benefiting from a structure that offers both comfort and support in equal measure.’

And I’m not the only one from the Ideal Home team that’s fallen in love with this garden chair design. So has our Digital Deputy Editor, Rebecca Knight, who’s also noticed its likeness to the much more pricey Ferm Living Desert Outdoor 2-Seater Sofa, available at Nordic Nest.

‘I fell hard for the striped garden chair at the John Lewis press show,’ she says. ‘It looked very similar to a striped Ferm Living outdoor sofa I’d been lusting after, but it was less than a 10th of the price. I was seriously impressed when I heard how affordable it was.

‘Stripes are having a moment at the moment, but they’ll always be a timeless pattern and give the range of chairs and two-seater sofas a high-end look. Plus, I can’t even begin to explain how comfortable they are to sit in, think relaxing into a plump marshmallow.’

The available colours and matching pieces

If you’re a fan of mid-century living room ideas which are trending again this year, you’ll love the mid-century, 70s-inspired design of the Marcy garden chair.

‘The Marcy Armchair reimagines nostalgic mid-century design through a modern lens, combining retro forms with contemporary materials for the perfect outdoor statement piece. Inspired by the tubular steel furniture of the 1970s, its bold silhouette is designed to perfectly suspend the sling, creating a light, open structure that feels both playful and refined,’ Matthew at John Lewis explains.

The chair is available in three striped colourways, championing this year’s striped upholstery trend – a vibrant burnt orange, a sophisticated green and a minimalist greige. I expect the former to be the most popular shade which Matthew describes as ‘a bright, summery orange frame which anchors the design, colour-matched to striped upholstery for an authentic nod to 1970s LA style’.

And you can also match your Marcy garden chair with the coordinating 2-seater garden sofa to bring ample seating into your garden, as well as the matching Marcy side table.

I truly believe this is the most comfortable garden chair I’ve ever sat on and one that also comes with bags of style. So I couldn’t recommend it enough. Will you be bagging one? But better be fast while it’s still in stock.