Archive | January, 2012

Top 10 Mid-Century Decor Must-Haves

31 Jan

Think of this as the David Letterman list (am I dating myself?) of the top ten things I think say mid-century design in a home. When I think about my hopes and dreams for this house, only half of it is structural. The other half is decor…furniture, object d’art, accessories. So I started making a list for myself that I thought I would share it with you, dear readers. This is an ‘in my opinion’ list. My opinion. Brandy’s. It’s as eclectic as I am (i.e. mis-matched and slightly askew).  And I am sure I will miss something that you personally love and think is a ‘must-have’. I have no Florence Knoll or Le Corbusier or Mies Van der Rohe, all of which I love but I had to make some practical choices based on my own home. So pile it on in the comments.  Tell me what you love too and share it with other mid-century crazies enthusiasts like us.

Whether you buy an original or a replica or a used piece, there are many ways to fit these into your home based on your budget. (I know there are soaring debates about authentic versus replica, but let’s just say I don’t judge. Some replicas are quality; some not so much. Everyone needs to do whatever they need to do within their means and values.)

10. Flokati rug:  Ebay vintage 4×6 $40, New 4×6 $139

Flokati Rug 70 x 140cm

9. George Nelson bubble lamp:  Original 16″ vintage on ebay $450, New authentic from Design Within Reach $329

8. Catherineholm enamelware: Must buy it vintage on places like Etsy or Ebay. Never seen one out in the thrift store wild, but I have to believe they are out there. The set below is priced at $380 on Etsy, which feels a little high to me.  You can find good pieces upwards of $50 for the smaller ones.

7. Some kind of owl something: Easy peasy. Dig an old macrame out of your mom’s attic or pick up this slightly kitchsy but wonderful owl wallpaper by UK designer Abigail Edwards.

Pinned Image

6. Noguchi coffee table:  Authentic from Herman Miller for $1399 or a replica from Rex Kelly for $349.

5. George Nelson platform bench: 5′ at Design Within Reach $779 or 5′ replica at Lexington Modern for $349

4. Eames lounge chair:  Herman Miller $4499 or replica at Kardiel for $1249 or another replica at Rex Kelly for $849.

Eames Lounge Chair

3. Eero Saarinen Tulip chair and table: From Design Within Reach $1807 for the table and $1440 for each chair or from Designer Seating on Amazon $1130 for the set.39" Eero Saarinen Style Tulip Dining Table with White Marble Top and 4 Tulip Side Chairs

2. Danish teak credenza: These are everywhere but not cheap.  If you are lucky, you will find a decent inexpensive one in a thrift store or you can look for them on Ebay (like the one below for $1750) though some are $200-500 if you are willing to do a little work.  Also check your local craigslist.  You never know.

1. Eames fiberglass shell chair: What can I say? For me this is the iconic must-have piece in any color in any style. I love them beyond words, especially the rocking chair, which I would want in celery and can only find at Modernica for $375.  Not too bad.  Rex Kelly also has some replicas, a $99 side chair I just ordered for the new desk, so I will let you know how that works out. Stay tuned.

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The Pouf

30 Jan

I’ve gotten some pretty great feedback about the pouf in yesterday’s Weekend Show and Tell. I couldn’t find the price, so you know what that means? I most likely can’t afford it.

Michelle (who should be a detective becuase she can find ANYTHING) sent me this link to a DIY pouf from Pickles a super cute knitting pattern website. Now, if I only knew how to knit. Or knew someone who loved me enough to knit for me.  Hint, hint. The poufs aren’t exactly the same and I do like the ear-looking points on these, but a DIY one in the color I want could be pretty darn cool. They stuffed them with inexpensive feather duvets.  Heavenly.

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Weekend Show and Tell

29 Jan

Another set of lovelies for you lovelies. Enjoy!

A modern twist on the bean bag (via Pursuitist), the Slumber Pouf from Casalis Carpets. With a pattern much like a knitted fisherman’s sweater, these poufs were designed by textile artist Aleksandra Gaca and come in 12 different shades. The only thing I can’t seem to find out is how much they are and where the heck to buy them! Can you?

Courtesy of Mid Century Home, this wonderful tour of a house designed by Arthur Witthoefft in 1957 that the owners have renovated back to its original state. First of all, holy fireplace, Batman! And (this will cause my husband to roll his eyes and tell me to just go ahead and finally move to Palm Springs) secondly, I love those kind of floors but I have no idea what they are. Do you? (Maybe I should call this post ‘Help Me!’?) Check out the original Architectural Pottery planter too!

Valentine’s day is slightly more than two weeks away. What are you getting your sweetie? If we had any red in our house, I know what I’d want: this Case Study fiberglass shell chair in a special Valentine edition color ‘Love U Red’ from Modernica.

A slightly smaller but just as charming Valentine’s gift that I ‘dig’ is this keychain from the riskybeads shop on Etsy.

Finally, as I leave today for London, I am thinking of travel alarm clocks. (God bless Remodelista for an entire post on stylish ones!)  I love this one, the Kikkerland Classic Travel Alarm Clock.  And for about $10, it’s practically free!

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Purple-free

28 Jan

I will just start by saying I am pleased with it. Yes, indeed. Very happy. For once, we put a gray on the walls and got it right the first time, thanks to all of you and my family. Nary a purple tinge to be seen. The color is Granite Boulder by Behr and it’s a perfect gray for the room.  With some green undertones, it works well with the Yolo Leaf 04 in the family room.

I think we are getting close to our palette for these rooms (from Design Seeds).

Before:

And….drumroll please….AFTER!

Below are my Matte Stephen’s prints of Chicago and Seattle.  I couldn’t wait to hang them on the new walls.  The green in them ties nicely with the family room and brings it all together.

Of course, backsplash and floors are still on the list, but I taking a moment to enjoy where it is and marvel a bit at where it was. And though it’s not mid-century modern per se, it certainly fits better in the house than it did before.

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Stuck in the Middle With You

23 Jan

So this is what I hate about home projects: the middle part. There is the flurry of excitement in the planning phase, the determination of supply gathering, the hopefulness of the first step in the process. And then there is the dreaded middle. That space where you sit equidistant from the beginning and the end. That endless road ahead of you when it feels like you are a long way into the process and a long way from the finish line. (Brace yourself for some melodrama here.)

And that’s were we are with the kitchen. In the middle. The never-ending cabinet painting process is over. Today, literally in the middle of a single project, painting the kitchen I wanted to throw in the towel. It seems everything…and I mean everything…takes longer than I expect. I thought we’d knock this out in a few hours. Well, given the holes in the wall we needed to patch, the second coat we need to do on the cutting in and whatever else got in the way, we are about four hours in and not finished.  We are at this place where the house looks like a mess, the painting project is almost finished but I know that we still have the backsplash and the floor and it feels like this goes on and on and on. (Yes, I am a 40 year old having a total tantrum right now. Better to read about it than to see it!)

As we are getting started. Backwards cap on means we are getting down to business. (No, not THAT kind of business time!)

We removed some old phone jacks and had to patch the walls. Learning to do this was new for me.  You buy these wall patches at your hardware store (Home Depot $3.97) and attach them over the hole. Then you take some mud (yes, it’s called mud) and cover the patch with it, smoothing it out. You let it dry for two hours and sand it flat with fine grit sandpaper (maybe like 200). Then guess what? You do it again. Mud. Dry for two more hours. Sand. (Yeah, so that’s four hours waiting for these patches to dry.) We painted around them, but right now they are still drying and we are still far from the finish line.

The other thing that sucks (as long as we are on the topic of what sucks) is texture on your walls because now whatever we patched won’t match. Also texture on your walls makes for an awful time trying to cut in a straight line anywhere. Do not texture your walls, people.

And now, everything in the kitchen and house is just a mess. And as I was painting and thinking of throwing in th towel, I found myself asking that question I always ask when I am in this position: If I had all the money in the world, would I be doing this? Because I know, there are people who really love doing this kind of work. But, you know what? I don’t. I don’t love the work. I do love the sense of accomplishment and ownership I get from the completed project, but then the project actually has to be completed. I love looking at the finished product and know that we did that. And I know that it’s a marathon and not a sprint and I need to pace myself. And of course, one feels just the tiniest bit virtuous about not having hired someone and paid more than necessary. Okay, maybe I really do like it?

Nah. Not really. Not today, anyway.

(Do you get the DIY blues? Tell me how you deal with it.  Give a girl some advice!)

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