I started out, all about the 50s. It wasn’t long before I totally adored the 60s. And now, I will do my best to suck you into the Best of the 70s vortex, right along with me. Despite the fact that I came of age — with all the associated horrors — during the 70s, I have to say that much of the design now appeals to me. Immensely. Today: A Palm Springs time capsule spotted by reader Frank. This first bedroom: Awesome. Heck yeah there is more →
That 70s house: A Palm Springs time capsule
Posted by: • October 6, 2009
Jack and Jill bathrooms
Posted by: • September 29, 2009
Susan has an original brochure showing the layout of her 1962 Jack and Jill bathroom
JACK AND JILL bathrooms… or Jack ‘n Jill bathrooms were a design that saved space by letting two users, or sets of users, have their own toilet and sink — and share the tub. Here, it’s called a 2-1/2 bath. A famous Jack ‘n Jill bathroom: The one shared by the Brady Bunch kids. Heck yeah there is more →
Vintage seagulls
Posted by: • August 18, 2009
It’s a small world — I literally bumped into reader Cindy (center) as I headed to shop in Northamptom this weekend. This is really kind of freaky, because that’s a half hour from her house and an hour from my house, and there are 6,497,967 people in the great Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Cindy had been going to tag sales with friends. She picked up this trio of vintage seagull wall art for $5. I think you’d call them “in the danish modern style” – although it might be more true to say “popular 70s.” I think these are great for patios… I have a brassy seagull wall hanging, also a steal $, above our barbecue in the U-shaped patio at the front of our house. Well done, Cindy. See you at the James Taylor concert at Tanglewood in two weeks!
Midcentury modern Lexington, Kentucky: Huckleberry’s Chair Fetish
Posted by: • July 20, 2009
This is not my house. It is the first room in Huckleberry’s Chair Fetish – a midcentury modern shop near the campus of the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Regular readers will recall that I visited Lexington last Thanksgiving to meet up with Sumac Sue aka Judi for a look at her house, her neighborhood, a pink bathroom, an aqua bathroom — and yes, a little side trip to this mid mod furniture shop she had recently discovered. Even though it’s taken me a while to get to this post, it is not for lack of immediate love of the place starting with the name, Huckleberry’s Chair Fetish. First there’s the surname Huckleberry, it goes with Earlene – the proprietress. Then there’s Chair Fetish. Earlene is calibrated as nutso as the rest of us for this mid mod stuff. Her eyes had that wild look when she talked about her store and all its contents. Fetish. That just about sums it up. And I bet that putting it into the headline of this post is going to bring me a whole new slew of readers. Oh joy. Heck yeah there is more →
The midcentury flower of choice: red geraniums
Posted by: • July 8, 2009
Longtime readers may recognize this photo, it’s one of my favorite images of idealized 50s family life ever. And ooooh, I like that colonial-modern kitchen, too! But look, it also includes pots of red geraniums on the window sill. In my detail-focused time travels back into retroworld, I have most definitively noticed a trend to include red geraniums in postwar kitchen designs. I have a few theories why: 1) Geraniums are big and bold – in synch with the times. 2) They are middle class… egalitarian. 3) They need sun, and we were California-livin’. 4) They look really good with cool colors like aqua and robin’s egg blue. 5) They also play into the patriotic sensibilities of the time. I run a flickr group called Midcentury Modern Red Geraniums - take a look at about 50 images in all. The majority of them come from flickr friend American Vintage Home, who has quite an online archive of vintage photography. Thank, you American Vintage!
Nancy’s happy 4th of July house
Posted by: • July 4, 2009
READER NANCY (of the yellow bathroom and beautiful-but-uncleanable-brick fireplace) sends us a happy July 4 image – the wall hanging above has been by the front door all 50 years! Thanks, Nancy, and happy holiday, all!
Hi Pam – We are getting ready for the 4th of July & our granddaughter’s 2nd birthday. Wanted to show you how happy our 50′s home is. Don’t you think that the front almost looks like a happy face? Had to include the wall hanging by the front door – that has been there for all the 50 years & I love to decorate for holidays.
Have a great weekend!
Nancy
41 midcentury lighting ideas – post lanterns, lamp posts, wall lanterns and landscaping lights
Posted by: • June 28, 2009
HERE IS A REALLY GREAT SURVEY OF VINTAGE OUTDOOR LIGHTING, from my 1961 Progress Lighting catalog. I started with this photo because: Just look at the little umbrella landscape light. It is phenomenal! The careful addition of outdoor lighting can be one of the easiest and relatively cheapest ways to improve the curb appeal of your midcentury ranch house, Cape, colonial or contemporary. At minimum, think: High quality, well maintained wall lanterns adjacent to or above the entry door and garage, and a lamp post either at the front of the driveway or closer to the house next to a walkway heading toward the door. Landscape around the lamp post – this is also a great piece of ‘hardscape’ to launch a decorative fence. Light are “sentinels”. Use them to ultimately draw attention toward your front door…they are tools to make your house say a big, warm “Welcome.” Heck yeah there is more →
Midcentury modern post lantern from Besa Lighting
Posted by: • June 27, 2009
Jennifer gets snaps for sending us this very nice midcentury style post lantern, with matching wall lantern. to consider for out front. Finding appropriate outdoor lighting is always a hot topic, with not *that many* resources on our list yet. So this is a very welcome addition. Here’s what Jennifer writes: Heck yeah there is more →
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