Contrasting vintage hedgehogs, the dark metal Walter Bosse style set of 6 stacking small ashtrays is a beautiful and ingenious design and a real mid century classic. The Kosta Boda clear glass paperweight, designed by Vicke Lindstrand exemplifies the minimal Scandinavian aesthetic, a simple form with etched spines. Vintage woodland animals to add some nature inspired retro style to any interior this autumn.
These two pieces illustrate how Italian potteries were leading the way with innovative mid-century modern ceramic design. From the San Marino’s trademark foamy white smalto roccia (rock glaze) that predated West German ‘Fat Lava’ styles, combined here with a highly stylised fashionable sgraffito image, evoking the 1960’s Italian glamour sought out by the new influx of foreign tourists. The Fratelli Fanciullacci jug with its heavily textured glaze and hand painted stripes is inspired by the resurgence in studio pottery in Italy at the time, and was important in the revival of craft and the growth of ‘Made in Italy’ after the war.
Whilst the current trend for vintage West German pottery is almost exclusively aimed at the ‘Fat Lava’ genre and the factories that produced outlandish designs, some great designs can be found from unexpected makers. Such as this lovely Hedgehog dish from Goebel Porzellan, known predominantly for their Hummel figurines! This is a very stylish Mid-century animal figure that would quite happily sit alongside its ‘Fat Lava’ contemporaries in a collection, and would complement the similarly styled Walter Bosse brass figures.
A great retro sliding puzzle game, with its bright graphic image of ‘Tron’ from the 1982 Disney movie. Perfect to brighten up any sci-fi / eighties aficionados bookshelf with a good helping of style and nostalgia.
A great collectable wooden skateboard, with its parallel stripes of grip tape, vintage sticker, classic trucks and bright orange wheels. Still works great, showing signs of wear and tear which only add to its character and history. Perfect for rediscovering your 70’s / 80’s childhood, or for display as a retro accessory!
The Eames Office produced 5 different sets of the House of Cards. The small house of cards is the original, made in 1952.The images are of what Eameses called “good stuff “, chosen to celebrate “familiar and nostalgic objects from the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdoms.” The six slots on each card enable the player to interlock the cards so as to build structures of myriad shapes and sizes. There was also a Giant House of Cards (1953), a Computer House of Cards (1970) and Newton House of Cards for the 1974 Nobel Laureates for IBM.
At the moment I’m really loving pieces such as this that exhibit so many characteristics of Mid-century design. From the use of new types of plastic to create innovative pieces in abstract forms that owes so much to the Atomic-era and the Jet-age, fusing geometric angular shapes with streamlined contours. And the brightly coloured Kitsch underwater scenes, mementos of Inter-Continental foreign travel.
A highly collectable and very practical piece of mid-century modern furniture. Originally designed as a sewing / hobby box, with its cantilevered construction, opening to reveal 8 compartments. Sitting on lovely Atomic styled splayed legs, and with a bent ply handle, its form is very reminiscent of its Eames / Danish modern era origins. A great storage solution for any retro, vintage or mid century styled interior.
Starburst wall clocks are one of the definitive and most iconic pieces for the Mid-Century Modern styled house. They came in many varied designs, all stemming from George Nelson’s classic clock designs of the early 1950’s. With their atomic aesthetic, and teak and chrome construction, they are the perfect pairing for Danish / Eames furniture, as functional and striking pieces of wall art.
afterglow retro 