Group Therapy: Is your significant other into retro renovation and all things vintage as much as you are — or is your life a retro battleground? Has this interest strengthened bonds — or do you have to compromise (or finagle) to make it work? (Example: Like the couple in this 1948 GE advertisement, David and I juggle pretty well, but I admit, I have the estate-sale bug very bad and the number of things I constantly squirrel into the house is a source of conflict, to say it nicely…) Share your stories and tactics! This should be fun!
Related posts:
- Open thread: Your favorite Retro Roadtrips? SUMMERTIME IS ON ITS WAY — and research from...
- How to renovate during a recession? Open thread Sunday shout out: What tips and advice can you share...
- Open thread: What would you like to see at Retro Renovation this year? Do you have ideas… questions… suggestions… wants… and needs… that...
- Open thread: What’s your longest running, un-finished house project? PROCRASTINATION. I am now up to Year Seven in terms...
- Open thread: What’s on your weekend agenda? What’s on your list for the weekend? Weekend warrior?...
Want to stay on top of all Retro Renovation news? Subscribe to our Saturday email newsletter.
{ 58 comments… read them below or add one }
Yes – thank goodness my husband and I love mid-century. Everything about it – from the kitsch advertsing, the black and white and colour films, the fabulous decor, open house designs and those sublime fire places, modernist furniture pieces…and…oh, I could go on forever! It has definitely strengthened our bond
He He He. Where do I start?
Better you have a counterweight than an enabler! Then again, Laurs and I think having a mutual enabling society is pretty cool!
Dave
my girlfriend is more of the romantic fantasy Victorian type. Luckily she allows me pretty much free reign over the house, and just goes crazy decorating the bedroom. That doesn’t stop her from trying to get me interested in claw foot tubs or terribly uncomfortable couches though.
Does groaning count as being “into” retro renovations? Just asking!
BTW, Here is a website that is pretty fun to browse
Besides VERY cool custom lampshades, they also have fiberglass chairs, boomerang tables, inserts for your vintage aluminum screen door, etc.!
http://www.moonshineshades.com/
Hubby doesn’t love midcentury but doesn’t care how I decorate as long as it is practical. This doesn’t stop him from raising an eyebrow when I bring home *another* piece of furniture that I shove in the garage for later rehab….
My husband and I met as teenagers because of our love of vintage stuff. He was in a Rockabilly band and I dressed in vintage clothing. Our dates usually consisted of going to hang out at a 50’s diner or going antiquing. So, we’ve always decorated our homes in a retro style. Pretty much any decorating idea I like, he goes for, too… It is the “big budget” repairs or upgrades that cause consternation in our home! =)
My husband is not really interested in any style and like Beth, doesn’t care how I decorate as long as it is practical. The nice thing about retro is, terms like “recycling” and “thrift store purchase” come in handy if any type of convincing is necessary.
Also, having studied art, and working in the art industry, I can always claim knowledge and expertise as a trump card.
I wonder what it would be like to be married to someone with the same interest. It might be dangerous, haha.
ha…mr. “this is the last project”, doesn’t agree with me about much. as far as decorating, i opened a shop http://www.solsticehome.etsy.com, that way when i bring things home, i just tell him they are for my shop. ssh..don’t tell!
btw..tappan trailer.. thank you for the moonshine shade link, love it!
My wife does not share the passion but the appreciates the final results, often times to her suprise. I purchase 3 to 5 homes a month for rental property, most of them are homes built in the 40’s through the 60’s and often contain mid century treasures (like the “flair” oven I got from one a few weeks ago) so Im constantly bring home stuff which my wife is often dubious. But more times than not she really is happy with the end use.
My husband is trained as an architect so he loves mid century modern homes and furniture. He’s a happy spectator in my hunt for old, cool furnishings, but doesn’t really get into the “shopping” part — no estate sales for him. So I do the legwork and he goes along on the occasional craigslist find or rare vintage store visit. He retains veto power over my general enthusiasm for filling the house, but we both love the green aspect of reusing old stuff so I guess we make a pretty good pair.
Wow! Glamorlux, your story is way cool! Sort of like Elvis, I have the deal where Laura has a degree (the first one, that is) in interior design and once upon a long time ago had a pretty successful company in Tulsa…so she maintains veto power, which is why all my monkeypod wood stuff usually ends up on ebay! LoL!
Our first date was to a Goodwill store and the second to a ReStore. We both have always had a love affair with what I always called the ‘Post-War Modern’ look, neither of us ever had another person in our lives who was down with it too. Still don’t have the atomic house of our dreams, but we sure have all the junk to put in it and then some!
We now have a big red boomerang painted on the wall over the chrome dining table and a silver foam-backed cutout of a big Buck Rodgers rocket in the arc of the boomerang.
As I said in my first post, we both like bowling an awful lot and both bowl old-time equipment. I recently found an e-bay seller who has a pile of new-old-stock high-end bowling shoes. It was great to have someone in my life who understands WHY I had to buy BOTH pairs the person had in my size…of course Waldo (that’s Laura for her tendency to get lost from view in the thrift stores) got a spanky brand-new pair in electric green to alternate with her usual lipstick-red ones!
It is fun, isn’t it?
Dave
My husband used to be merely supportive my my mid-century tastes, and although he wasn’t as enthusiastic as I was, he found the whole thing interesting. That was until we purchased our current home, and I started dreaming in Heywood Wakefield. He was so impressed with the modern lines and solid construction that I think he’s worse than me now! You should see him light up when people compliment our home, and he starts telling the stories behind our treasures; he’s been bitten by the MCM bug – BAD!
I must admit that I read with envy those stories of couples that both have a real enthusiasm for MCM design. My husband is one of those “guy” guys…he’s in the building industry and is practical above all else. Plus he doesn’t think much about design elements. I can’t even imagine him going along with me to junk stores to look for old stoves.
However, he’s always let me do whatever I want with the house, although I may get a grumble or two when I bring home another light fixture from the ReStore for him to put in. He even makes jokes about how I’m the idea person and he’s the muscle. And he does like how the house looks and gives credit to me whenever anyone compliments it.
And I can’t really complain, he just built a fantastic MCM screen for the front of our house to hide some unsightly pipes. (But if he didn’t “give in” to my design ideas, I’m not sure how long we would have lasted!!!)
Late last year, I completely transformed my home office into a mid-century modern dream room. (Well, as dreamy as I could get on a tight budget!) My husband was skeptical at first, but he now fully gets it.
Last night, he came home from work to see that I’d replaced a generic framed picture in the living room with a set of brass flying seagulls that I’d scored at an antique mall. His reaction: “I think your office is starting to spill out into the rest of the house.”
Me: “What? Nah.” (As I secretly rubbed my hands together in a sinister fashion.)
Great question! I’m the one with the mid-century interest, but my husband seems to have been somewhat converted to my way of thinking (Bwah ha ha). I bought a cool starburst clock and a very stylish 60s lamp, and some atomic-ish accessories for our dining room, and I think he liked the way it all came together. Later, we bought a beautiful 50/60s console stereo from Craigslist. Mostly I do the shopping, but he went with me for the Craiglist stereo, since I couldn’t handle that by myself. I do most of the antiquing/thrift stores on my own. But if I see something great that I think is too expensive for me to just buy, I’ll ask him to take a look. Loved reading about everyone else’s experiences in this regard.
I have to say my hubby is the absolute BEST!!! He will not hesitate to go to any thrift store, antique mall, flea market, garage sale – you name it. I think he loves the thrill of the hunt as much as I do, though he may not be as OBSESSED with all things 50’s – he is really great about all of my collecting obsessions, quirky as they may be. I am sure he was getting a bit worried when it took me about 4 years to refinish our Heywood dining table and chairs, and the whole thing was in pieces – and half sanded down all over our dining room – but he LOVES it now that it is finished. And, I’m sure he wonders when I bring home the umpteenth 50’s Ladies Home Journal, but he never says a word and is just so great about it! I have crazy things all over the house like spaghetti poodles and Paint by Numbers and I think he gets a kick out of it. His parents joke that our house is like a ‘Museum’! Anyway, hubby promised me that he would take me on the ‘Worlds Longest Yard Sale’ sometime, the sale in Aug. that goes through Kentucky and Tennessee. etc… etc… I can’t wait!!!
moon shine shades! It finally got on here!I don’t have a
other.My parents though, My mum could live in a house full of it, along with queen anne and french provincial. My dad he just wants a big t.v
I can say that my dear hubby tolerates my obsession up to a point. Since we live in a 1959 rancher with orginal bath and kitchen, I try to couch my ideas in terms of thriftiness. For example, “Let’s get some vintage wallpaper in this bathroom so that we don’t have to tear the whole thing out and start over.” I compromise and we meet in the middle. I think I’m making progress, though. hehehe.
What a great discussion thread! I’ve taught my husband to love the Mid-Century designs but he’s still got a little something in him that draws him to the old fashioned. We fought for two years over this huge wooden Victorian wall plaque that said, “Tables for Ladies”. Oh, how I hated that thing and it’s gold gilded, scalloped edges! : ) I noticed the other day that it’s in his workshop with the power tools. Nice contrast.
Sara in AZ – You have GOT to go to the yard sale. We went last year and found so much good 50’s stuff that we ended up running out of money. : )
Thankfully, my husband shares me love of thrifting and antiquing. Maybe because I get a ton of fun mid-century stuff and he comes out with a couple bags worth of books, I don’t know. I have my degree in Interior Design too, so I get the final say but he has a good eye for mid-century stuff. Between how I decorate our home and his love of 50s music & fedoras, we’re a pretty good match. He even supports my vintage Etsy store
Well at 1st Darren thought the House looked like a cross between a Pink,Aqua Atomic Palace…. and Pee Wee’s Playhouse! LOL But now He shares My Love for MCM and even packed up and Moved with Me to the #1 MCM & Doo-Wop Town here in NJ, called “Wildwood-By-The-Sea” so now I don’t feel weird when I buy on Ebay or at Thrift Shop’s. (Thank God)
Eartha – OH MY GOD, you are totally making me want to go right now and just wait for them to set everything up. I have been wanting to go for like the past 5 or 6 years but it has never worked out, we were going to go last year, but gas was way to high. Maybe I can work it out this year, hopefully….. Thanks for letting me know it was good pickins’ anyways!
Aw this thread makes me sad for myself,lol. My significant other does not get MCM, won’t even look at any items I find on Craigslist so he certainly never goes with me to garage or estate sales. He won’t even go with me to pick stuff up that I buy.He is a good guy but he just has no tolerance for my interests. I’ve often wondered how much fun it would be to have a partner who shares your interests or at least is willing to enjoy the finished product with you.
Have to say, I am one of the lucky ones! Hubby and I fell into the MCM rabbit hole together, and we have no intention of climbing out. In fact, he is the one who started collecting MCM things before we even knew what the style was about! I have him to thank for some of our best stuff, including a great retro atomic lamp and the best alarm clock ever!
Hubby’s philosophy has always been, “if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it,” so he was pleased when I told him I liked my 1955 kitchen and bathroom the way they were. And anytime I can save a buck or two with my mid-century purchases, he is doubly pleased, LOL!
I like a more Depression-era look over MCM, actually. But, I don’t really like to decorate in any one style to a point that it starts to make me feel like I am in a museum. Husband does not like to shop for items for the home unless it is something that meets physical needs, such as a mattress. Trained as an architect, he has an appreciation for MCM and other styles, but, he’s more concerned about where he can put his stuff than about what things look like. He is tolerant and even cheerful about whatever I do decorating-wise, viewing my efforts as a way I am trying to make our house a home for the both of us. Yet, he has a tendency to tarnish a decorating tableau. I can arrange a few knicknacks in a pleasing display, then later I’ll notice he has placed a flashlight or a pair of workgloves right in the middle of it. I’ve learned not to place my little decorating touches on flat surfaces near main entries to the house, or near bathroom sinks or bedside tables, because he is going to end up putting something practical like hammer, dental floss, or pair of toenail clippers right in the middle of things.
I think I made my husband sound too much like an oaf, which wasn’t fair. He never once has fussed at me when I insist we stop and pick up something from a pile of trash on the curb, even though he knows that in a few weeks I probably will be asking him to help me haul it to the ReStore, because it just isn’t right for our house. He participates because he gets the same satsifaction out of it as I do when we prevent a treasure from ending up in the landfill.
YES! It was actually one those MUST HAVE qualities. I had been in relationships where the love of all things vintage and retro was not shared. It was too weird for me and didn’t work. Before I met my husband I was so tired of guys asking me why I wanted ,”That junk” or describing my rentals as,”Granny looking” which I took as a compliment but that was not their intention.
Hi Dave – Yes, it is fun! I think what brought my husband and I together was not just our love of old “stuff” and music (1920’s-50’s), but also an appreciation for – and sometimes a desire to live in – the past. I know it is naive to think life was better then, but old things just make me happy… they have a story, they have charm, they are not like everything – or everyone – else… It would be so strange to me to be with someone who didn’t really get that (not that I’m saying my relationship is better than other people’s!).You and Laura will have so much fun decorating your first house! I’m on my second – but it is never quite like the first time! =)
My darling husband ADORES all things vintage like me. We both adore and get excited about estate sale shopping. It’s our shared passion.
PS
Our style is MCM too.
Kitsch Kimberly, just remember: you have an advantage over those of us with a partner who exercises veto power. I can get really excited about something I want to get, but when my husband sees it, he may respond with a resounding “no way”.
There’s a lot to be said for being able to decorate exactly the way you want!
Well I hadn’t looked at it that way,Elvis aka Jane ,but you are right. I am free to get whatever I want and decorate in anyway I please which is certainly easier than trying to please both of us.He’s a bit of a curmudgeon and generally hates anything and everything to do with design but he doesn’t ever ask me to change anything which I guess really is a nice bonus for me. In fact, as long as he has his old “Archie Bunker” chair and a tv in front of him, he doesn’t say much of anything,lol.Thanks for pointing out that while I was lamenting my cup being half empty, it was in fact half full:-)
I’ve been collecting and garbage picking since as long as I can remember. When my brother was hired to help clean out an old house in the early 80’s, I was there almost everyday looking in the dumpster (old 78’s retrieved), garage, closets, etc. Looking for treasures to take home (the house was loaded) – I was in 7th grade, and my brother didn’t understand my fascination with all that “old stuff.” My tastes run to mid-century, but I like most things with a history, so I have everything from newpapers from the 1860’s to trivets from the 1970’s. Being single, I have final say, but wouldn’t mind finding someone to share the fun. Can we add a singles caffe klatch corner on this site Pam?
MidCent Keith, there is virtually nothing that makes me happier than fixing people up! Let me think about how to make a singles’ corner. You all just have to name your first borns after me, that’s all I ask.
MidCent Keith I am 11 but since forever I’ve been doing the same thing.
Well I have a husband too who doesn’t care. It doesn’t seem to worry him too much when I bring things home from the op shop. He does care when I start bringing or buying furniture because then I have to find somewhere to put the old furniture it replaces. He is, I must say, very enthusiastic about “Shag” the artist. He does love his work very much, so I have no problem when it comes to wanting to purchase a piece of his artwork.
I think my husband is finally starting to see the light. He was rather skeptical when I began to show a fascination with all things Midcentury, but when we talked about remodeling our kitchen, he confessed that he liked the look of black-and-white checkerboard flooring. Of course this fit in well with my vision, which included a cracked ice chrome table, so the plans starting building from there. Today we have a kitchen that we both think is different and ultra-cool. My husband has become an ally in our quest for original Midcentury products that go with our new kitchen and dining room area; a few weeks ago he called from the used furniture store and let me know that there was a little chrome side table that had gray cracked ice Formica on it. It was a great find! I like to think he’s slowly becoming an addict much like I am.
My hubby supports my bad habit. He just doesn’t join me on my ventures, he doesn’t have time. When he does, he ends up standing around waiting for me to finish (if there aren’t enough tools to look at!). He doesn’t groan at all when I bring home the third wicker chair (that I don’t need), you get the picture! He loves restoring each house we have lived in, we both agree almost totally on the restoration choices we have made.
My husband is a convert, thankfully. When I first met him, he wanted to make all his own furniture and was into that hewn log, Grizzly Adams style of decorating. **shudders** o_O
Fortunately for me I had an apartment full of furnishings and he had diddly squat. ;P Now he’s asking me for help in decorating “his” basement (the one area of the house I wasn’t allowed to touch) in that “modern” style that I’ve used throughout the house upstairs.
He also complains that our friends’ contemporary houses are boring and that they don’t have enough stuff on the walls (a major depositing place for my vintage finds).
Muaaahaahaaa. How the mighty have fallen…
Well, he’s the one who bought this house before we got married. So I’d say “yes”.
I wish my husband shares my enthusiasm for mid-century style as I do. He and I have similar tastes–as in clean lines that classic mid century design is known for. But I tend to lean towards more kitschy style and like to collect vintage coffee sets, milk glass, depression glass, etc. etc. I absolutely love vintage fabric and want to use it around the house as accents. He is VERY minimalist so if it doesn’t have a function or is not a solid color, it falls into the “useless crap” category or “it’s has a busy pattern and I can’t relax” category, respectively. However, according to him, old computer parts and dance records are perfectly fine to have laying around the house….
We need to start a couples therapy group on mid-century style!
My dh didn’t understand my enthusiasm over pink poodles for our recent basement reno. Just didn’t understand. Others come to view our basement and are so complimentary over our pink-painted bathroom (complete with as of yet unorganized vintage stuff!!) He’s starting to get that it is neat??!
retroppo 02.24.09 at 11:42 am
Well I have a husband too who doesn’t care. It doesn’t seem to worry him too much when I bring things home from the op shop. He does care when I start bringing or buying furniture because then I have to find somewhere to put the old furniture it replaces. He is, I must say, very enthusiastic about “Shag” the artist. He does love his work very much, so I have no problem when it comes to wanting to purchase a piece of his artwork.
Can we do more about op shops Pam?
All single and don’t regret a minute of it.
I need to give props to my hubby, even though I did sort of wistfully write in my first comment about my desire for a partner more involved in MCM stuff. He’s spent the last few days patiently painting my kitchen the brightest orange-red you can possible imagine. My choice of color.
When I first saw the result on Monday when I came home from work, it freaked me out. It is SO red! He said he didn’t have a problem with repainting over it if I didn’t like it (although it would take about 14 coats of paint to cover it!). What a guy!
But it’s grown on me, and I think it’ll work. So now I have an orange kitchen with the original green formica metal-edged countertops, whitewashed poplar cabinets, and a chartreuse and cream tiled backsplash. Dear hub will soon be putting in a green VCT floor (or Marmoleum, haven’t decided yet). I’ve taken inspiration from all the orange kitchens that Pam has featured here, although I don’t have it with pink!
It’s nice to be single. Though it would be nice to have someone opposite minded to bounce ideas off of; but then I’d never get approval for anything. And who wants to be in a relationship with someone that always agrees with you? Of course then, an extra income wouldn’t hurt matters either, but then you’d have to put up with someone else’s opinion. Is it bad when you argue with yourself and lose? Ha Ha! While I like the MCM stylings I tend to run more “Deco-streamline” in taste (roughly 1942-1952) but some things do grow on you. I can understand where MidCent Keith is coming from. I’ve been collecting post-war items since the early 90’s when I was a little kid. Always fun having your parents AND friends gang up and grill you on “Why do you want that old piece of junk?”
Our fascination with retro style is relatively new, brought on by our pending purchase of a mid century house. So far, my husband is somewhat encouraging, especially since the new house is much bigger. But I am a long time garage sale fanatic, and he frequently objects to the treasures I drag home. And while he’ll go along on my forays, the truth is, I have more luck when he doesn’t, because I am more willing to spend the time to look at things. He usually takes a quick glance and then heads back to the car.
My husband and I both have embraced the 1950s since buying our 1955 National Homes Corp. home.
We occasionally disagree about keeping or restoring something but it’s minor stuff and neither of us leans more toward moving away from the style.
Examples: Our Youngstown cabinets were used, abused and covered with woodgrain paper by previous owners. I wanted to keep them. He pointed out that someone had replaced some of the doors with a new material. So they will end up going.
When we replaced the 1980s sink with a vintage legged wallmount, we found the original flooring: Big black tiles. Seems to dark for a small bathroom to me. Hubby is adamant that we get big, black melamine to reproduce the look in an eco-friendly material. We’ll probably end up doing just that.
Thankfully I am married to man who is every much as obsessed as living as close to the era of our 1920’s house as I am–perhaps more so. Antiquing for us is basically foreplay. Ha ha. I do like slightly later (30’s 40’s) era things for my kitchen though and he has graciously learned to not only embrace that but appreciate it. So we do pretty well. I can’t imagine living with someone where it was a battle. yikes.