Reflecting on recent retro style
Well, it’s been a minute!
This year we’re keeping our “Thanksgiving table” simple with a fall picnic and fresh food.
A post on learning to run the race, even if you’re still figuring it all out…
Today’s post is about pasta. And unpredictability.
With Halloween just three days away, I thought it would be fun to spotlight festive textile patterns from one of my favorite books, 1980s Fashion Print by Marnie Fogg (available at Amazon.com). Wonderfully curated, it features some of fashion’s best, from the neon to the glamazon. Here are some designer prints in the colors of Halloween:
Apparently you always find what you’re looking for after the fact. True to form, shortly after posting this past week’s blog entry on ’80s decorative items with iris and lily motifs, I came across this amazing iris-themed vase at my favorite local Goodwill. And boy is it pink!
The phrase “’80s floral” may conjure visions of pastel-hued Laura Ashley bedding, or drapes and wallpaper you hope you never see again. But what if some ’80s floral had a modern, Asian flair? Believe it or not, a contemporary floral motif of iris and lilies appeared on a variety of home decor accessories in the ’80s, from china patterns to wall art.
A little vanity never hurts… Watch a teen flick from the 1980s, and you just might catch a glimpse of a dressing table–or vanity–in the background, packed with knickknacks and collectibles. Mirror80 made a go of it using finds from Goodwill, Savers and a local antique mall. Total cost: roughly $25.
This ’80s-fabulous interior decorating book by Mary Gilliatt is the real thing–published in the ’80s, it authentically recommends ’80s decorating techniques! The result: an honest, edgy look at design conventions from this incomparable decade. Here are some of the bolder highlights:
The angles, bold lines and graceful curves of the Art Deco movement returned in the 1980s, not only through art and graphic design, but in home décor as well. This Deco resurgence often appeared in the form of ceramics…
In our last post, expert vendor Bill Goodpasture from Austin’s Room Service Vintage helped us wade through some obstacles facing collectors of ‘80s furniture and home décor items.
While some 1980s pieces are made of less than sturdy material and feature color combinations that people either love or hate, the relatively short time span separating the ‘80s from today may also be responsible for the fact that we are still hard-pressed to find many houses decked out wall to wall in 1980s décor.
So why go (back) there? Good question. One I’ve heard a lot lately. While a 1980s fashion revival has been well established, an official ’80s comeback has yet to hit the world of interior design. Furniture from the 1950s and ’60s is white hot at vintage shops and antique malls. Even pieces from the ’70s have their appeal, at times for their look and at times for their kitsch.
