Guest Picks: It's a Mod, Mod World
Furniture with a midcentury modern bent may never go out of style, thanks to pleasingly simple lines and punchy colors
My husband and I just bought our first home. While we haven't moved in yet, my mind is spinning with how I'm going to furnish it (the manager at West Elm knows me by name) and decorating ideas. Luckily my day job is blogger (http://youaremyfave.com/blog/) so my projects can double as work.
My husband and I just bought our first home. While we haven't moved in... More »
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Midcentury furniture is in style and for good reason. With clean lines, tufting, simple knobs and great colors and patterns, it's hard not to like it. I've mixed and matched my own furniture so that my home doesn't turn into the set of Mad Men, but I would happily add any of these pieces to my collection. — Melanie from You Are My Fave
Sometimes you compromise style for comfort, but this oversize chair gives you both. I love the range of colors it comes in too.
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by House & Hold
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| This classic coffee table design is great looking while still being very functional. My pile of monthly magazines would get stored inside. |
I saw this small sofa in the Orla Kiely store in New York last month and nearly fainted because it's so pretty. The size would be perfect for a small space, and the red-orange color would add happiness to any room.
I can't wait for the new Orla Kiely furniture line to fully launch and make its way to the US. I need to find room in my house for a few pieces like this mod chair.
Most of Kiely's patterns are reminiscent of the '60s, but I think this Abacus pattern is especially mod looking.
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by House & Hold
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| If you like the look of white but are nervous about it, think about light gray. Isn't this couch so stylish? |
I love the clean lines and light look of midcentury furniture. This sleek mustard-colored chair is no exception.
by House & Hold
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Even if it's just a place for your feet to land, an ottoman can be good looking too. Plus, this one comes in tons of colors and patterns to match your decor.
If you're looking for the real deal and not reproductions of pieces, this site shares vintage furniture listings for the Chicago area. I want this dresser!
by Monarch Sofas
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This sofa can be customized to your liking for a very fair price. I love the tufting on the back.
I know the quality of furniture from Urban Outfitters isn't the best, but if you're looking for an affordable way to furnish an apartment and still keep it stylish, they have some great-looking pieces like this ottoman.
This chair has good lines and a great color. Plus, it's very affordable.
I've ordered several pieces of furniture from CB2 and have only had good experiences. The color of this sofa is beautiful.
Sectionals tend to be oversize and bulky, but this one is the opposite. I call the corner spot!
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| For some reason, it's hard to find stylish media storage. A credenza like this would do the job very nicely. |
Putting together this ideabook has convinced me that I need more furniture. This love seat is perfect.
by Room & Board
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My husband will tell you that if I buy anything leather, it's in this honey shade. It looks even better upholstering this classic chair.
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| I have the midcenutury nightstand from West Elm, and it's gorgeous. I was pretty excited to see that they now have a similar style in dresser form. Now I just have to decide whether to make the purchase or not. |
by Room & Board
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I've decided that if I ever own an Eames piece, I want it to be this chair. What, you don't dream about which Eames you'd own?
by Anthropologie
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You know how kids save all their pennies for a special purchase? My pennies are going towards this gorgeous credenza.
Next: So Your Style Is: Midcentury Modern
Next: So Your Style Is: Midcentury Modern
Ideabook published on Jan. 19, 2013.
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My bias is that I never did like it. Particularly the wooden pieces, seem to be wilfully depressingly undecorative looking. Apparently Eames was trying to build good furniture cheaply. So, MCM furniture would probably be influenced by cost.
I reckon that the whole idea of midcentury MODERN is a con. Usually, fashion is a rejection of what came before it. In this case, it seems that it was just a refining of furniture designs from the 1920s and 1930s - which is neither good nor bad, I suppose. The Seville leather chair looks almost identical to the Barcelona by van der Rohe from Knoll from 1929. Same thing with lounges: the major advance between 1920 and 1960 seems to have been replacing chrome with wood. Meh. I hope chrome indoor furniture never comes in fashion, because I like that even less. If they called it "retro" instead of "modern" it would never have taken off in the race-for-the-future 1950's and 1960's.
Two people commented on the Wallace credenza. It looks modern to me. The finish of the wood, in particular, is modern. Asymmetry was not a big part of MCM, either.
Please excuse the drear post.
This is a style that you can buy a nice piece or two in and then make or find other cheaper items to go with it. It rarely seems constructive to see how people can't appreciate something on the internet. You either dig it or you don't!
I like MCM....but then, I just put a bid on a midcentury home. I love old homes and have been living in a tiny craftsman for too long, so I'm in love with the easier-to-live-with floor plans and the simplicity of all of it. But then I've always loved art deco as well..... I'm seeing some of those styles repeated recently.
Let's face it- modernism is just the same lines repeated over and over again and "updated." But that's generally why they work so well from one decade to the next. "Retro" is a re-do without the updates. Some of the above would qualify (Thrive, especially) would also look "modern" since their original designs were such.