Sitting Pretty in Reseda Customizes to Taste

The operative word at Sitting Pretty is custom. This is a huge showroom of chairs, dining room sets, dinettes, bar stools and bars, from high-tech to traditional designs and just about everything in between.

Here’s how it works. You can put any top on any base--chairs, bar stools and tables. If you love that marble base but not the octagonal glass top, no problem. They’ll put the round, beveled-edge glass top on the marble base. This, of course, gives you almost unlimited choices and, with a service like this, you’re almost sure to find something to suit your taste.

Even the finishes can be customized and, of course, the upholstery. In addition to the wide selection, we’re talking excellent prices and high-end merchandise. All items are priced individually (with some sale exceptions) so you can mix and match to your heart’s content. If you want a $2,000 table but can’t swing $300 each for the chairs, owners Susan Arusi or Lois Fishman will help you pick more reasonable chairs that will fit the table.

Let’s talk prices: A round half-inch glass dinette table with the newest chiseled edge was $788, easily a $1,200 table at a major department store. A country French dining table, with leaded glass inserts (extendable from 64 inches to 102 inches) was priced at $1,499 (suggested retail $2,199). Chairs to complement it might range from $149 to $349. A 42- by 72-inch Carrera marble dining table with marble base was $749, about $500 to $600 less than at other stores around town.

Close-outs and ongoing specials offer some of the best prices. A black synthetic marble top dinette set with four black upholstered metal chairs was tagged at $749, and that price could go up or down if you choose different chairs. Another special was a five-piece wicker dining set for $699, regularly priced here at $1,299.

If it’s just chairs you want, you can spend hours looking through the hundreds of styles--Breuer dining chairs with maple frames or solid-tube Italian chrome plate frames (not the sectioned ones) are $49.95. Ladder-back chairs with rush seats and a charming bow design on the back are $39.95.

As for bar stools, there are more than 200 styles, including many to match dining chairs. There are bar mirrors and bars to go with the stools. A blackjack-style bar that retails for $2,000 is priced at $1,395. There are game tables too. A flip-top, two-in-one table (flip it over, it’s a wood top dining table) carries a $99 tag, almost $300 below the competition.

Sitting Pretty also has hutches and curios to match many of its tables--all about 30% below the average retail.

Local delivery can be the same day on in-stock items, and the cost of $25 includes two men and setup. Custom orders take four to six weeks but there are several fabric choices in stock for many of the upholstered pieces, so you may be able to take it with you.

Sitting Pretty, 7115 Darby Ave., Reseda, (818) 881-3114. Hours 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays. MasterCard and Visa accepted.

Geri Cook’s Bargains column runs every Thursday in Valley View. Questions about shopping may be sent to her, in care of Valley View, Los Angeles Times, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth 91311. Letters will not be answered individually, but topics of general interest will be discussed in future columns.