“Mid century modern” furniture-anyone else suddenly appreciate it?

[JudgeRindersMinder]

We’re doing a full house renovation which will eventually involve replacing a lot of furniture.
I was born in 1970 and so was brought up in the era of teak furniture and have always turned my nose up at it…till I saw a set of Ercol pebble tables on a local auction house’s site.
Then I started looking a bit deeper into furniture from the 1960s and 70s and realised it’s such good quality, proper wood instead of chipboard etc…and the style has started to totally grow on me to the point that I think we’ll probably seriously look at it as a definite option for replacing what we have.

Anyone else have an appreciation of this furniture?

I really like it too, but it doesn't have to be all wood and dark. I have Eames chairs which look good with a wooden table. Am on the look out for a side board now. (I should have just kept all of my mums stuff of course...).

And yes, far better to buy something mid-century from the second hand shop than buy ikea crap.

@Mollysocks

I love it but only done on a fresh and clean modern way. Like the photos below. I can’t be doing with avocado green and orange patterned wallpaper or curtains if you know what I mean.

Yes, I agree - that living room looks lovely.

I love having furniture that will last. I think I like (some) Ercol so much because of it's simplicity - it's like it can't go out of fashion because it's outside fashion anyway.

My friend's son (early 20s) is running a side hustle dealing in this furniture. She has tables everywhere in her house

@OakPine

"about to boom"

lol - I looked to see if this post was 10 years old.

It's been back in fashion for years, and is on the way out.

I did the same, genuinely thought this must be a zombie post

i picked up some fab danish bits for about £15 each a decade ago. they'd go for hundreds now

but also, g plan especially but also ercol is actually mostly veneer, good veneer but yes, essentially chipboard

I often wonder what will become vintage in years to come, with the mdf flat pack stuff about now. It will barely see the year out, never mind be around to make a comeback in 40 years!

I live in a 60s house and have 60s sideboards mixed with more modern pieces. I love that they have a history and that they're so well made

@Mollysocks my 1960s house had been owned by the same couple for 50 years and was full of avocado green (downstairs loo, red (bathroom suite) and orange patterned wallpaper as well as carpet on the walls, panelling too. Left some furniture but no nice MCM bits like your pics unfortunately.

I have a dining table, sideboard, coffee table and corner unit. Bought about 10yrs ago. Still haven’t find chairs for my dining table so using some random 70s replica ones with awful brown corduroy.

I fell off my coffee table last year and hurt myself. My friend said to get rid of it “I can’t it’s MCM!” 😆

I live in a 1950s and own various pieces of Ercol, G-Plan and String. I love it all.

@StormBaby

This is about to boom. I used to buy and sell antiques and this era is about to be the next big thing. I’ve started buying it and putting into my storage to renovate it. Get it now while it’s still relatively unknown and cheaper. Some of it is worth a fortune already.

About to boom?? It's been huge for years! I'm a fan, and have quite a few bits in my house. I'd love more but I don't think I can afford it now...

I just bought a beautiful teak dining table and four chairs. The table is by Younger...who I'd never heard of, and the chairs are Danish. They're beautiful and really well made. I'm a convert.

All the dealers and charity shops are on to it. For example, anything by G plan donated to the British Heart Foundation shop gets put on an eBay auction and goes for way more than standard furniture.

There is some nice pieces and as it’s so unfashionable, often you can’t even give it away, it’s cheap, but yes better made than low cost modern equivalents.

It’s not my thing to be honest.

Love it and have quite a few bits, Gplan chair from in-laws, a Nathan trinity table - just stunning and so useful - I saw it in a very lovely vintage shop for £365, but bought one off eBay for £80.

I also have a full wall of black string shelving, media unit, bureau. Again so useful.

I've quite a scandi look, the retro stuff looks great with big squashy sofas, plants, baskets and rugs.

I have a fair bit of MCM furniture.. used to buy and sell it but it became too pricey.

Love my 'chocolate buttons' sideboard!

[quote Ribb]@Mollysocks my 1960s house had been owned by the same couple for 50 years and was full of avocado green (downstairs loo, red (bathroom suite) and orange patterned wallpaper as well as carpet on the walls, panelling too. Left some furniture but no nice MCM bits like your pics unfortunately.[/quote]
Ooh I do love a bit of wood panelling especially in the ceiling 😊 the holy grail would be a conversation pit. Never seen them in U.K. houses (and think it’s more of a 70s thing - is 70s still MCM?) but my dream house has one of these!

@Davethecat2001

I have a fair bit of MCM furniture.. used to buy and sell it but it became too pricey.

Love my 'chocolate buttons' sideboard!

So do I that’s so cool!

My best skip find was a fibre glass rocket lamp in the 80's. My whole house is now styled around that. Mostly from charity shops.
I bought a replacement dining table of eBay for £4.99 10 years ago. Schreiber is my furniture of choice.

I'd quite like one of those 50s kitchen cabinet things. I've been looking at eBay.

@Rosebuud

There is some nice pieces and as it’s so unfashionable, often you can’t even give it away, it’s cheap, but yes better made than low cost modern equivalents.

It’s not my thing to be honest.

Where do you live that it is so unfashionable?

@Mollysocks I just googled them and they started in the 50s......you'd need a good sized pad for one of those bad boys! I'm now daydreaming about whether I could create one in my, not yet started, 4m x 4m extension 🙄

Where do you live that it is so unfashionable?

I'd like to know this too as apparently they're giving it away there, so I'll pop down

@StormBaby

This is about to boom. I used to buy and sell antiques and this era is about to be the next big thing. I’ve started buying it and putting into my storage to renovate it. Get it now while it’s still relatively unknown and cheaper. Some of it is worth a fortune already.

In our area it's already booming - hard to get a bargain

My nephew has this Ercol dining table in his very cool flat and I've never coveted anything more in my life. It would be perfect in my dining room. I also love the Ercol benches but that's about it as far as I'm concerned.

Me!

I adore it but my husband says we are in danger of turning the house into an Ercol museum.

My love of it began about twenty years ago when MiL gave us an 'old' chair she no longer wanted/liked and it was an Ercol 477 chair. It took me years to get it reupholstered but it now sits in my bedroom covered in a wacky Emma J Shipley fabric.

Since then I have bought two sideboards, two coffee tables, a dining table and 6 chairs, all off FB market place and Gumtree. There are two brilliant groups on FB, they are full of love and passion about Ercol. Just don't mention you bought your Ercol at John Lewis...

@grandmashotdoodlebugs

I have my grandmothers Ercol sideboard and pebble coffee tables plus a large coffee table in the loft

Love it!

Ercol pebbles = top level Ercol ownership.