Modern + Vintage =

A few months ago I decided to recreate my existing home office, previously known as our eldest daughter's bedroom.

I had used it since she moved out after university and then married, but had never got around to updating the new office's décor. I moved out her bedroom furniture and moved in what can only be described as a mix-n-match collection of an old IKEA desk, a couple of bookcases and a splattering of ugh...

I ought to have painted it before the renovation, but the paint is acceptable and, well, COVID restrictions were in effect, so no painter in to do the work. (I had, long ago, retired from painting rooms in our homes with a firm, "I'm too old for this s***.")

So, I looked around for modern pieces and ended up with IKEA white Kallax shelving for the typewriters and accessories, that I found already-assembled and in mint condition nearby on Facebook Marketplace (saves a lot of arguing, too, with my husband, as he grumbles putting it together...) and bought for the proverbial song. It was more difficult with the desk and chair, but I found both that I liked at Staples (brand new and unassembled...) which matched the Kallax and the modern furniture feel well. Next up was a white IKEA bookcase, and two matching IKEA "end tables" for lack of a better description, which I found separately on Marketplace, yet were perfect matches. They now hold the two printers.

Those were the main pieces finished. As it turned out, I needed a new iMac, so ordered one from Apple and, while the front lower panel is coloured blue, I wish now I'd gone with the green.

The other item I really needed was an old typewriter table at the perfect height of 27". The sort I wanted was, of course, nowhere to be found, and those online were insanely priced at the time I looked, so I asked my son-in-law to build one out of wood and industrial pipe. In the meantime, I found one on Kijiji for $25. and scooped it up. It has the two folding panels at each side and is at that ideal height of 27". By the time I found this, my son-in-law delivered the one he made me, which is gorgeous. So, I now keep the IBM Selectric on the 1950s' table and the manuals are rotated on the new one.

Below, is a slider of some of the accessories I've added. Many of these items have been found at thrift shops and some are new (though some were found brand new at thrift shops.)

As the title of his post suggests, I enjoy mixing the vintage in with the modern furnishings; it's a good balance and I am surrounded by things I enjoy and are special to me. Every one of us is different when it comes to preferences. I can't give up modern technology and I can't give up my love of nostalgia and vintage items, so I mix the two in equal balance.