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!
Reader Interactions
90 comments
Jita says
My darling husband ADORES all things vintage like me. We both adore and get excited about estate sale shopping. It’s our shared passion.
Glamorlux Nancy says
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! =)
Tera says
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.
sumacsue says
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.
sumacsue says
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.
sablemable says
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!
RetroRuth says
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!
Kitschy Kimberly says
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.
Sara in AZ says
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!
Kory Carroll says
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)