Our Barcelona ottoman white is the low, backless footstool from the 1929 Barcelona design, sold on its own: bright white Italian aniline leather, tufted by hand, on a mirror-polished stainless steel X-frame. We size it to sit in front of our white Barcelona chair, and at 61 × 54 cm it also works alone as a light extra seat in a small, bright room.
Below we explain how it lines up with our chair, what it is made of, and when another colour in our Barcelona ottoman range is the better buy.
Key Features of Our White Ottoman
- Sized for our white chair. At 42 cm high, the cushion sits about 4 cm below the 46 cm seat of our chair, so your legs rest close to level when your feet are up.
- Full-grain Italian aniline leather on top. The surface your heels and calves touch keeps the natural grain of the hide and softens with use.
- Hand-tufted squares with piped edges. The piping gives the cushion a clean, defined outline from every side.
- Stainless steel throughout the frame. A knock from a shoe or a vacuum cleaner shows bare steel, never rust.
- Light enough to move. At 11 kg, one person can carry it from the chair to the coffee table or bedroom.
- A small footprint. About a third of a square metre, so it fits where a second armchair would not.
Who Buys a Barcelona Ottoman White on Its Own?
The most common reason is a white chair already at home. Many customers start with our single chair, then add the footstool once they know they want their feet up. Ordered later, it uses the same white leather, steel frame and size as the ottoman in our white chair and ottoman set. Our article on Barcelona chair comfort shows how a footstool changes the way you sit.
The second reason is space. In a small, light room a full armchair can feel like a wall, while a backless seat lets the eye travel over it to the window. White leather on polished steel stays visually quiet against pale walls and oak boards, so you gain a seat without crowding the room.
It also works as a footrest for a sofa or armchair whose seat is a few centimetres higher than 42 cm. Measure from the floor to the front edge of the seat cushion before you order.
White Leather Barcelona Ottoman: What It Is Made Of
On a footstool, the top is the part your feet and legs touch, so that is where the leather matters most. Ours is full-grain Italian aniline leather: the natural surface of the hide is kept and coloured with dye, with no pigment layer painted over it. It feels warm under bare feet and softens over the first months, and in return needs a little more care than coated leather.
Under the leather is fire-retardant high-resilience foam, which springs back when your feet come off and keeps the cushion square. The cushion lies on leather straps double-riveted to the frame, so the top has a slight, even give rather than the hard feel of a board.
The frame is grade 304 stainless steel, welded in one piece and polished to a mirror finish. It has no plated surface to wear through, which matters on a piece that gets nudged around with feet.
The Backless Half of a 1929 Design
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich designed the stool alongside the Barcelona chair for the German Pavilion at the 1929 International Exposition in Barcelona. The crossed legs are usually traced to the Roman curule seat, which was itself a backless stool, so of the two pieces the ottoman stays closest to that idea. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art catalogues a Barcelona stool as an object in its own right, and notes that its dark brown leather has faded to tan over the years.
Barcelona Stool White: Size and Specifications
| Product | Barcelona Ottoman White Replica, sold on its own (chair not included) |
| Design reference | 1929 stool by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich (replica) |
| Colour | White leather, polished steel frame |
| Top | Full-grain Italian aniline leather, hand-tufted squares, piped edges |
| Filling | Fire-retardant high-resilience foam |
| Cushion support | Leather straps, double-riveted to the frame |
| Frame | Grade 304 stainless steel X-frame, mirror finish, welded in one piece |
| Size (W × D × H) | 61 × 54 × 42 cm |
| Floor area | About 0.33 m² |
| Net weight | 11 kg |
| Box size and weight | 66 × 66 × 35 cm, 14 kg |
Our Barcelona chair dimensions page shows how chair and ottoman sit together. Shopping in another language? The same piece is listed as a Barcelona Hocker in German, a poef in Dutch, a pouf in French, a sgabello in Italian and a taburete in Spanish.
Before You Order: Does White Suit the Way You Live?
It suits you if
- You own our white single chair and want your feet up on some evenings.
- Your room is bright and you need a spare seat that keeps sightlines open.
- You want a low perch at the end of a bed or in a dressing area, where shoes come off before you sit.
Look at another version if
- You have no Barcelona chair yet. The white chair and ottoman set brings both, with leather from one batch.
- Your chair is our cream one. White next to cream looks cooler and brighter, and we do not sell a cream ottoman separately; the cream chair and ottoman set keeps one tone.
- Feet go up in outdoor shoes, or children and pets will share it. Our black leather stool hides far more.
- You want storage inside. This is a solid cushion on an open frame.
White, Black, Brown or Cognac: Our Barcelona Ottomans Side by Side
| This white ottoman | Black stool | Brown ottoman | Cognac ottoman | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leather tone | Clean, cool white | Deep black | Dark chocolate brown | Warm tan |
| Sits best with | Our white chair, pale stone and oak | Our black chair, any floor | Brown leather sofas, walnut, dark parquet | Honey oak, terracotta, linen |
| Shows marks | Most of the four | Least, though pale dust shows | Very little | Light marks blend in |
| Choose it if | You want the lightest look | You want the lowest-effort footstool | You want warmth that hides wear | You want a warm accent |
Keeping a White Footstool Bright
- Take shoes off. Grit in the soles scratches aniline leather and leaves grey lines on white.
- Wipe the front half of the cushion weekly with a dry, soft cloth, as a Barcelona footstool in white marks first where heels rest. Every couple of months, turn it round so the leather ages evenly.
- Dye from new dark socks and jeans hems can rub onto pale leather; a folded linen throw helps on daily-use evenings. Cups go on a rigid tray, never straight onto the leather.
- Use a colourless aniline-leather conditioner once or twice a year, tested on the side facing the wall, and keep the ottoman out of long hours of direct sun.
- Lift the frame rather than dragging it, as the flat steel feet can mark soft wood. A dry microfibre cloth is all the steel needs.
For stains, our guide on how to clean a Barcelona chair works step by step for the ottoman too.
Questions About Our White Barcelona Ottoman
Can I buy the white ottoman without the chair?
Yes. This product is the ottoman alone; the chair is not included. If you want both, the white chair and ottoman set comes in one order.
Will it match a white Barcelona chair I bought earlier?
If the chair came from us, yes. The ottoman uses the leather and frame of our white chair, and its 42 cm height suits our 46 cm seat. A chair that has stood in daylight for a year can look a shade softer than a new cushion, so give the two a few weeks side by side. If your chair came from another shop, compare three things: its seat height against our 42 cm, whether its white is cool or ivory, and whether its frame is mirror-polished or brushed.
Can the ottoman be used as an extra seat?
Yes, for short spells. At 42 cm it is a little lower than a dining chair, and with no back it suits a guest joining the conversation or a quick sit to put on shoes. Sit in the middle, not on one edge, and never stand on it.
How do I keep white leather clean on a footrest?
Keep shoes off and give the front edge a dry wipe once a week. Blot any spill at once with a plain white cloth instead of rubbing it.
What size is it, and how much room do chair and ottoman need?
It measures 61 cm wide, 54 cm deep and 42 cm high, and weighs 11 kg. In front of our 78 cm deep chair with a small gap, the pair runs to roughly 1.4 metres front to back, so mark that out with masking tape first.
Our ottoman is an independent replica inspired by the 1929 design and has no connection with the design’s rights holders. See our Legal Disclaimer for terms.
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