50s interiors — Retro Renovation

50s interiors: Horse motifs everywhere

Posted by: pam kueber • March 21, 2009

I find it fascinating that primitive horse themes were so popular in the 50s and 60s. Why? To be sure, there was a sense of internationalism about modern interiors. Did these horse motifs evolve from Spain…or the prehistoric cave painting in Lascaux, France (at left) – as this 1959 interior (above) seems to clearly reference? Does this all start with Picasso? And, the horses are also very associated with the Danish Modern movement. Wherever the idea came from, they are wonderful.

Additional posts on international influences:

A RetroRenovation re-run: This post originally ran on Feb. 26, 2008

Comments 11

50s retro equals Colonial, Provincial, Capes and Split Levels — too

Posted by: Pam Kueber • March 3, 2008

One of my pet peeves is that decorating pundits always seem to associate 50s with only modern…atomic. In fact, colonial was wicked hot and even French provincial was extremely popular. It’s not that I don’t love atomic — I do. It’s just that, well — it didn’t rule. Those of us with Capes and Colonial and Split Levels — and the eclectic quasi traditional decor to go with them — are proudly postwar, too.

Those cool illustrations from 1958 showed housewives how they could take the same furniture and through accessories — swing either Modern or Provincial.

Comments 5

1960 soap suds…with great interiors and clothing: AMC’s Mad Men

Posted by: Pam Kueber • January 27, 2008

Several readers, including Kay and Stephan, have sent me emails raving about the interiors in the AMC series, Mad Men. I checked out all the promo video on their website, and sure enough, the set and costume design is fantastic. The series is set in 1960. The corporate interiors are all very modern, but the home interiors – as we’ve discussed often – are eclectic. Case in point: Distressed Betty Draper’s great knotty pine kitchen.

Comments 1

Retro starburst mirrors – a survey of what’s available

Posted by: Pam Kueber • January 22, 2008

I saw this lovely photo of a starburst mirror on Design to Inspire, and recognized it immediately as the same one I’d bought from Ballard Designs about two years ago. We have it above our fireplace, against our grasscloth-covered walls, and it looks great – modern and serene.

I am a big fan of having one of these mirrors somewhere in your home. In general — just one, though — you’ve got to be careful not to overdo it with the starbursts. That said, there also was a nice photo (above, click on thumbnail to enlarge) of a pair of starbursts used symmetrically over bedside tables – and I think that this worked very well.

So… I surfed around and found a selection of retro styled starburst mirrors available today. There are quite a few to choose from at all price points — from $70 at Target to $6,000 from Baker Furniture. You do get what you pay for, of course. My $300 Ballard has a convex mirror and a nice heft. The $70 Target model, much cheaper, has lesser features even though it is still quite decorative.

Also, you can check ebay. In fact, my Ballard model, which also appears to have been for sale at Horchow and Neiman-Marcus, seems to be discontinued at these retailers – but you can get it online, and for an even better price, it appears.

Another thought: Watch for starburst clocks at local tag sales and the like. I’d bet it’s fairly easy to have a mirror re-set where the clocks go — as heretical as that may seem. Hey, a lot of these clocks were not what I’d call “dear.” If you think you could make better use of them converting them to a mirror, I say do it.

All of these can be enlarged; toggle over them to see the company and listed price: