I love that ours swivel. We knew we wanted that feature because of the TV location and our banquette is behind the island seating so someone can face the cook or the table if there is a crowd.

Yes, ours do, and I think it's very important.

Ours swivel too and we have kitchen in front of them and TV family room behind. Love them that way.

Our kitchen is in front, with family room/tv behind as well. DH usually turns sideways, and I pull my stool around to the end of the island and direct it towards the tv if there's something on we want to watch while we're eating. I wish we'd gotten swivel stools now. The ones we do have were not terribly expensive, though. I jokingly told DH that if I could somehow "manage to break one", we'd have to get new ones. ;-)

TurquoiseRose, sell the ones you don't like...that always makes me feel less guilty :) Or donate. I have swivel stools in our basement at the bar, but not in the kitchen. We only sit at the island for short periods. I do love my swivel stools at the bar though! Swivel with a cross bar at just the right height for your feet.

Yes ours swivel and we really like it...helps people get on and off the chairs.

Ours do swivel, which I wanted, but what I don't like is they have the automatic self return to center mechanism that is kind of difficult to turn and makes the most annoying creaking sound as you let go of it. It goes passed center, back and forth a couple times, until it finally stops. I should have know better because I bought them off CL. Ha!

They swivel. We had drinks at Bonefish Grill's bar tonight and I was quickly reminded why I had to have swivel for mine. Theirs don't.

Mine do not swivel but I wish they did :)

Swiveling is the best especially with a beer in hand!

We have swivels and really like them. Easier to get on and off (in and out?)

Swivels yes! and ours are upholstered on seat and back, which really adds to the comfort. Our bar ones are not -- which is a fail.... fortunately people rarely hangout there for a long time (or is that the cause?)

Another vote for swivels. Ours came with this house. They NEED to be replaced but I have yet to find a set that are as comfortable as these old dinosaurs. I know EXACTLY what I want, but they do not exist!! swivel, no arm, not trendy, no upholstery, back rest, foot rest, lighter stained wood..... I wonder if you could get a swivel retro fitted?

Swivel = YES!! It was one of our non-negotiable criteria

Haven't missed the swivel, but only use them now and then...I don't think any of my serious contenders were swivel...the styles didn't call my name.

I'll be the lone dissenter. Didn't want swivel, and don't miss it. We anticipated that visitors (and even we) could potentially damage (chip) our granite tabletop edges. Not intentionally of course, but a more forceful swivel than intended is all it would take. I don't think we particularly loved any of the swivel stools we saw anyway, and were limited to small profile designs given our space.

Yes, the HW floor underneath our stools shows some wear and tear, but no regrets about our decision.

Ours dont swivel either. I bought mine at an auction, they are very unique, mahogany wood/burgandy leather seat with a grapevine inlay on the round back. Love them, everyone comments on then when they come to our home. I dont care for the metal stools that are in style right now.

Ah, fellow non-swivelers have arrived! I am wondering if three would still be a practical number if we switch our current stools for swivels. Two might fit better then at least as far as being "in action" but I like the way three looks better in our space.

What I'd love to find would be something that looks old English. Maybe even with a bit of distressed brown leather and nail heads. But I don't want the backs to come up too high and I don't want the wood to look cheap and flimsy. I'm not sure such a thing exists.

You might come upon something like that if you look at auction sites. I wasnt looking for stools but when I saw them I had to have them. They replaced stools we had, which I gave my DS and DIL.

We just got new ones and definitely wanted swivel. I'm so glad to have them now, but we had stationary ones for 12 years and my son has them now. I have heard that a lot of the swivel ones are not as sturdy as you might like them to be for the long haul, and I think I am glad to not have had them when the boys were little. They never would have sat still! LOL

We got ours online from the Holland Bar Stool Co. many years ago. When we were looking there were hardly any in the stores in our area. They are made of solid wood, however the style we have does not have backs. They are very heavy so not going to tip and we love them. Also, they have a foot rest which we use all of the time.

Another vote against swivel stools. Exactly as others have worried, they have hit our countertop several times. Both the countertop and the stool backs are worse for the encounters. Next ones in our house WILL NOT be swivel. Convenience hasn't been worth the damage to the countertop.

Ours don't swivel and I don't miss that feature at all. I also did not want stools with backs. They slide out of sight, which is important for our layout because we have a big kitchen table and chairs. I wanted an unobstructed view to the breakfast area.

Posting to add - although mine don't swivel they are backless so guests can easily turn around to face the other side of the room. They're from Pottery Barn and are pretty comfortable.

We originally had swivel stools at our last house but unfortunately they began to disintegrate after less than a year which was a shame as we chose them because they had a bit of a bentwood, slightly Parisian look going on that complemented our art nouveau stuff :(

I was wary of buying more swivel ones TBH and wanted upholstered stools with studded details but in the UK it seemed surprisingly difficult - or at least it did in 2014 - to find high quality, antique style stools so we opted for non-swivel pewter look, industrial (backless) ones from Wayfair. The consolation being they have a vaguely Arts & Crafts feel! Currently we're sans island (making do with a dresser base!) so are not using them, but overall we're happy with the lack of swivel!

No stools here, but with grand kids would NOT get swivel. DD is overly protective as it is, and when I asked if I should get stools, she said just not the ones that swivel. I also think when visitors were getting off the stools, they would be left facing the wrong direction, which would be a big pain. I feel a simple pull out stool would more likely get pushed back in. I did come across these if you're really wanting swivel, and they're very pretty though a bit pricey.

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/marcello-barstool-with-brass-nailhead-trim/10866

No swivel bar stools for us. Our bar is raised and faces the kitchen. The kitchen looks toward the breakfast room. We originally had tall-back iron swivel stools and liked them ok but I didn't care for the obstructed view. So we replaced them with leather cushioned stools with nail head trim. The seats have a scoop seat and are very comfortable, plus they slide under the bar and there is no sign of them from the kitchen.