While Laver was attempting to explain people's perception of clothing styles, his observations seem to hold equally true for furniture.
But if you're too impatient to wait for a piece to come back into vogue, an upholstery change could infuse it with new life.
From wikipedia.org
Laver's Law
Current Style...................................Smart
1 year after its time........................Dowdy
10 years after its time....................Hideous
20 years after its time.................Ridiculous
30 years after its time...................Amusing
50 years after its time .....................Quaint
100 years after its time................Romantic
150 years after its time.................Beautiful
That being said, some things are just WRONG. Design Addict had a great thread about unfortunate upholstery choices for mid-century pieces a while back. Here are some of the highlights...but be sure to check out the entire thread for design gaffes owners have made in the name of "updating" by putting the fabric du jour on an older piece.
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| Wanting your Saarinen Womb Chair to blend into that traditional living room? Wrong! pegboardmodern.com |
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| Involving an Eames rocker in your Southwestern/Traditional/MCM identity crisis? Wrong! designaddict.com |
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| Hoping your Finn Juhl chair will sit demurely and pretend to be shabby chic? Oh, so very wrong! designaddict.com |
Those two florals are so wrong! Even though I'm not a big fan of southwestern style I think the rocker is kind of awesome. Not what I would pick, but I think the geometric patterns and bright colors play well with the style of the chair. In the right setting this could be a standout.
ReplyDeleteThere was an Eames-style Plycraft lounge chair in the DA thread that had been recovered in a hot pink Guatemalan hammock. Some of the readers liked it too.
DeleteBoy, I thought I'd seen some really horrible combos but these and the pics on the thread are enough to make a MCM type really cringe. There should be a law against this!
ReplyDeleteI have to admit that there was a dining set my grandparents gave me in the late 60s when I was a very young newlywed that I painted with psychedelic Peter Max-style flowers...but I think the statute of limitations would be up on that...haha
DeleteWow, these are bad. The Eames rocker with the southwest print is actually burning my eyes. The womb chair, so so sad.
ReplyDeleteI have 2 chairs in storage that are great examples of horrible upholstery jobs relevant to the time - an 80's style blue floral fabric on mid century modern arm chairs. They're actually on my blog in the "Mid Century Chair Parade" posting - #5 photo down.
I guess some people believe the intentional use of bright ethnic prints (and the bizarre treatment of the egg chairs shown in the DA thread) make some kind of cool, ironic statement, and maybe in some over-the-top pop art world, they might. But I'm with you and some of the people who commented on DA...In MY world they burn my eyes and make my teeth hurt. The cute little prints (like your blue ones) are a whole other ball of wax. I think they're the result of well-intentioned folk who know nothing about mid-century design thinking they can make do with thrifted chairs by recovering them. Egads...shouldn't a reputable upholsterer have tried to guide them in another direction?
DeleteWe find furniture like this all the time. That's why my SIL is paying for me to take an upholstery class! LOL
Just as bad as a Eichler style house with colonial furniture and traditional kitchen cabinets.
ReplyDeleteExactly! Like the old saying goes, I guess there's no accounting for taste.
DeleteI totally agree that they are just not right at multiple levels :(...whatz with people wanting to use floral fabrics for clean line pieces
ReplyDeleteI honestly think they don't know enough about design to notice that the two don't work together. But, you know, I feel the same way about a wild atomic barkcloth on a MCM classic. Just because they're both mid-century, they don't necessarily complement each other. Don't get me wrong...I own barkcloth pillows and think they're great accent pieces, but that doesn't mean I'd put a wild googie pattern on a Papa Bear or a Womb chair. Apples and oranges!
Deleteso true...:(
DeleteDid you switch time zones? lol
ReplyDeleteAt first I didn't know what you meant...but now I see that my time stamps are all wonky. What's causing that??? It's 4:02 p.m. Let's see what the stamp says when I click publish.
DeleteI checked my settings, and they were still on CST. I don't know what's going on. Let's see what this says.
DeleteI'm stymied.
DeleteAlways ahead of the times or behind? That is Texas for you, a nation unto itself!
ReplyDeleteOr just totally confused...:)
DeleteOh wow, and SO TRUE! Its only human nature but I hate it when people botch up a referbishing job wihtosmething hideous... Eames Chair with and Identity Crisis! HAH! :)
ReplyDeleteDoesn't it just break your heart to see a once glorious piece of furniture stripped of its dignity?
DeleteGreat post Dana, I hope my recent refurbs don't make it onto this list! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's funny you should say that, because as I wrote this post, I was ticking off the list of things we've sent to the upholsterer the last few weeks and hoping they don't end up on any "oops lists" too. :)
DeleteThis such a fun post. It was super hard picking fabric for the vintage chair in the guestroom (not that it's a classic, or anything) but these are just funny.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to believe that anyone could look at some of those pieces on Design Addict and not see how dreadful they are. They must have gone to the fabric store blindfolded...LOL
DeleteEvidence that looking at pictures of chairs CAN be bad for your health!
ReplyDeleteYes, but I don't know what they're more harmful to...your eyesight or your mental health. :)
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