At Least I Don't Have a Garage

At this point, things are looking a little more Grey Gardens than Farnsworth House.  So it is time to do so some clearing out.

Yeah...

Loft Living

Master bedroom update:  it's movin' along

The master bedroom, or as we like to call it, the studio loft, is now looking much more habitable.  Just a few short months ago, this was nothing but a storage space crammed floor-to-ceiling with jumbles of MCM junk. 

It still requires some finishing touches like drywall repair, paint, some electrical wiring, and general decorating, but I like the way is coming together.  That's quite a result for a room that's just full of all the leftover furniture that didn't make the cut for downstairs.  A dining table in the bedroom?  It's the next hot trend!

What time is it?

By now you should all know what this means.

Heads up

I've got a couple really cool things to share with you tomorrow, but I just wanted to give you all a quick heads up.  They're doing another sale today.

I know.  I know.  Two sale alert posts in one week is a little much, but these things tend to go fast and they are great bargains compared to the others that you'll find online.

They've also got a new repro of the spike clock that I've never seen before.  The regular versions have stained/painted wood spikes, which I assume are oak or another cheap wood.  This new one is somewhat more expensive, but is constructed of solid walnut, which looks to give it a really nice color and grain.  It's definitely worth a look.

Check them out here.

House Tour (redux)

We've gone through a number of adjustments at the homestead, so I thought it'd be a good time to update the house tour.  The place is really starting to come together and look like an actual grown-up residence.   Considering that I bought my first home and began collecting less than a year and a half ago, I'd say we're making good progress.  Don't worry though.  There's still plenty of work to be done and Mid-Mod finds to share! 

So, without further adieu, here's the grand tour.

Mid-Century Midwest House Tour (1/30/13)

Living Room

Jacks

The willingness of buyers to continue to throw down 1, 2, or even 3+ hundred dollars for a set of Jack bookends is simply beyond my comprehension.  They're an undeniably cool piece of retro decor, but are they really worth that serious amount of scratch?

Perhaps the widespread misattribution to George Nelson throws people, but even a cursory Google search now turns up a number of pages debunking this link atop the list of results.  As discussed in an earlier post, the actual maker was Bill Curry and his company, Design Line, Incorporated.  

Get 'em while they're hot

There's a replica Nelson clock sale over at the Foundry?!

As always, I'm in!

At this rate, I'll soon have the whole collection.

If you'd like to pick up your own Nelson clock replica on the cheap, hit this LINK and sign up.  These things don't last long!

What do you think, should I pick up the ball clock in yellow, orange, or walnut?

Source: The Foundry

What time is it?

It's time to get yourself a sweet knock off George Nelson clock!

I'm always on the lookout for a slick deal on the Kirch/Verichron replicas, as they give you 90% of the look for about 20% of the price of a "real" Vitra reproduction.

Well, this deal is pretty darn hot, with the best prices and selection I've seen out there.  So hit the link below and get yourself a wall full of Nelson!  They've got Spindle Clocks, Starburst Clocks, Turbine Clocks, Eye Clocks, and many more.

Nelson Clock Sale at the Foundry   <<<Link (click here, sign up, and then click on the "George Nelson" sale)

I just picked myself up a 30" brass turbine clock for $89, which I hadn't seen anywhere else below $200 despite months of searching.

Yes, you'll have to sign up to the website first, but believe me, it's worth it.  The Foundry is totally legit and occasionally has other great deals on mid-mod style goods as well, so keep your eyes peeled.  You can check out my review of the Starburst Clocks that I ordered from them a few weeks ago here and here.

source: The Foundry

Special Delivery

We here at Mid-Century Midwest are not frequent mail recipients.  Oh, we get the occasional coupon pack, credit application, or bill, but the whole of my inbound correspondence generally goes straight to the recycling bin.  So when a package arrives, it's almost like Christmas.  What could be inside?!

Well, this looks promising.

Ta-da!  It's another Verichron replica George Nelson clock.  Yes, I've already got a few of these hanging around, but who couldn't use some more George Nelson goodness in their life?  I certainly can't get enough.

The starburst replicas are especially well-built, with a thick, powder-coated face (no plastic here),  stained wood arms, and the proper dimensions.  One would be hard-pressed to find any major differences between them and the official Vitras, which will set you back 5+ times as many bones.

So, that's one more for the collection.  Next up on my dream clock purchase list: a replica George Nelson 30" turbine clock.  That's gonna take a little savin'.

Replica Review: Verichron Nelson Spike Clock

After my last experience with Verichron (which appears to be owned by Control Brand), I was more than a little apprehensive about ordering another of their George Nelson replica clocks.

It's not that my Spindle Clock replica was bad, per se.  They got the overall look down pretty well, but the finer details, like the taped-on striping on the spindles and the cheap "brass" face cover, just weren't up to snuff for a wall clock in that price range.

Perhaps I'm simply a tightwad and was expecting too much?  After all, the Vitra replicas sell for hundreds more.

Well, in browsing my daily deal sites I came upon another offer that I couldn't pass up.  Before I knew it, my debit card shot out of my wallet and another Verichron Nelson replica was on its way to my doorstep.  Don't you hate how that happens sometimes?

Let's give Verichron another chance, shall we?

Ahhh, much better.  The build-quality on this spiked model is leagues ahead of the spindled version.

The face is all metal rather than plastic and appears to be powder coated, which is a big improvement.  It's also nice and chunky, like the original.  The extra heft makes the piece look much more substantial and creates a little visual interest with the spikes held away from and casting shadows on the wall.

The spikes themselves appear to have loosened during transport, but a few twists with a phillips head screwdriver fixed that right up.  The colors, shape, and materials all appear fairly accurate.

Probably the biggest improvement that I noticed was that Verichon didn't plaster that annoying "George Nelson" logo onto the face as they did with the others.  Thank goodness!

The one area that could stand some improvement is the hands.  They're on the thin side and have a tendency to bend of the clock is handled.

Other than that one small niggle, I'm pretty impressed.  Vitra, eat your heart out!  This baby delivers 9/10 of the looks and quality for 1/5 the price.

Around the Office: A Little Fishy

Sometimes you find stuff in the oddest places.

A good while back I came across this kitschy, retro cutting board while making a sandwich in the office kitchen.

I knew I'd seen that design somewhere, but just couldn't recall the source and it nagged at me for months.

Source: Vitra

"As a truly multi-talentent designer, George Nelson was also successful as a graphic designer.  His Zoo Timers - strongly colourful personalities from the animal kingdom - contrast sharply with his sculptural wall clocks from the 1950s thanks to their graphic touch. The Zoo Timers offer children a playful and enjoyable approach to telling the time."

That is until I came upon this thumbnail and description on the Vitra website.

A Japanese cutting board knockoff of a George Nelson "Zoo Timer" clock?  How strange and unexpected.

Another Craigslist find

 Well, look what I drug home on this dreary Saturday morning.

A little late-night browse on Craigslist turned up a listing for an "Mission retro table."  However, as any MCM fan would recognize, it isn't Arts & Crafts at all.  It's a Herman Miller by George Nelson Platform Bench, or at least a fairly decent replica.

The Herman Miller website has the following to say:

"Introduced in 1946, the Nelson platform bench remains a landmark of modern design. The clean, rectilinear lines reflect designer George Nelson's architectural background and his insistence on what he called "honest" design—making an honest visual statement about an object's purpose. The bench serves as a multipurpose display and resting place in offices, public areas, and homes."

Personally, I prefer the natural wood finished tops, but for the price I can't really complain.  In the end, I offered double the listing price, because the seller already had a buyer lined up and I wanted to get the first crack at it.  Still, 2 x practically 0 = not much at all.

Even with the double offer, I thought that I'd lost out at one point.  When I showed up, the seller mentioned that someone had called and offered her $200(!) for the bench.  Obviously someone out there either REALLY loves George Nelson or has cash to burn.  Turns out, she refused because she thought that it sounded suspicious that someone would give her so much for a bench.  I'm not sure if I would have been able to resist an offer like that. What's a little kidnapping/serial killing if you can bring in that kind of dough?

I didn't notice any tag or mark, so I thought that it might just be a replica, but the more I look at it, the more I think that it might be an actual Herman Miller.  The angles, shape, and dimensions (14 x 18 1/2 x 48) are certainly correct.

The construction is what really has me convinced.  The originals used dowel rods to connect the slats along the ends...

source: Design Addict

... a doll rod at each side and a row of nails in the middle...

and phillips head screws to connect the base

Generally speaking, The best way to tell a replica apart from the real deal is to take a look at how it is is put together.  Most replica-makers used inferior materials and methods, taking short-cuts or deviating from the original in some manner in order to lower production time/costs.  For example, they might use screws instead of doll rods in a piece such as this.

I cant be 100% sure though.  I'm pretty fresh to this MCM stuff and I'm certainly no expert.

Overall, the condition is fair.  I'm not sure what the correct carpentry term is here, but one of the crenelations along the side had chipped and cracked a little.  Other than that, there's just the usual scuffs, scratches, and dirt.  I was thinking about giving it a fresh coat of paint or perhaps stripping the top and putting a natural finish on it, but since this might be an original, I think I'll leave it alone for the time being.  

While I was in the living room, I also took the time to rearrange the Plycraft lounge chairs.  The chartreuse one has a few scuffs on the back and I really wanted to show off that replica Eames Lounge's sexy rump, so this works much better.

It's here! It's here!

It's finally here!

Dana over at Mid2Mod and I both ordered replica Howard Miller by George Nelson spindle clocks (Model No. 2239) from The Foundry way back on October 10th.  The site touted its speedy 2-day shipping, but it would appear that there was a slight miscommunication.  12 long days later, I came home to a big, brown box on my doorstep.

There are a number of manufacturers of knock-off Nelson clocks, but this one turned out to be a Verichron.  The total purchase price was $51.  However, I received a $10 discount off after calling up regarding the shipping delay.  You know what they say, "The squeaky wheel always gets the grease."

Now, I must preface this review by stating that, for the price, I was satisfied with my purchase.  The clock looks great and is as consistent with the original as could be expected.  The only differences that I could ascertain were that the color of the hands is off (white hour hand and orange minute hand vs. black and white, respectively) and it is slightly smaller (18.5" vs. 22").  This is also likely the cheapest Nelson replica you'll find, and, naturally, when you go cheap, the quality isn't going to be all that.  However, I just want to be sure that my readers are aware of several additional issues with this model before committing their purchase.

The first, and most obvious, issue is the "George Nelson" label on the face.  I'm not a big fan of such things and the pictures showed the clock sans label on the website, so that was a bit of a bummer.  I'd remove it, but there is some sort of lacquer or film over the face and I wouldn't want to mess it up.

Next is the face itself.  The website stated that it would be "brass metal", but I'm somewhat skeptical.  It doesn't feel cool to the touch and has a hollow, plasticky sound when tapped.  I'm pretty sure it's either a paper thin layer of metal over plastic or just entirely plastic.

The "metal" also doesn't wrap all the way to the back of the clock and only covers about one-third of the side.  A bit of ugly, glossy grey plastic (I wish that they would have at least used matte black) extends about an inch beyond the cover and, when viewed from the side, sticks out like a sore thumb.  I presume that this was done to save on material costs.  However, it seriously detracts from the aesthetics of the clock.

Lastly, the little contrasting bands on the spindles aren't a different shade of wood or even painted on.  They're strips of colored electrical tape!  In my case, the tape came loose in transport and needed to be redone.  They at least put the seams around back, but you can see some serous cost-cutting was done here.

Despite all of the issues, I must say that it is an attractive clock once hung.  If you squint and look at it just right, you might even mistake it for a real Nelson.  With the price of higher-quality reproductions running into the hundreds, I can certainly overlook the differences until I can get my hands on an original.

Source: georgenelson.org

Here comes the sun. Here comes the sun, and I say it's alright.

Whenever anyone visits my home, two pieces always seem to elicit a lot of questions/interest.  The first is the Sputnik chandelier, and the other is this sunburst clock.

This little beauty comes courtesy of Target and is "inspired" by the designs of George Nelson (although  target.com gives him zero credit).  The "spikes" are slightly less elongated, the color scheme is a bit off, and there is that irritating logo on the face, but other than those few small differences, it remains pretty faithful to the original design.  If I ever feel up to it, I might get out the spray paint and gussy it up a little.

I've seen a few original Nelson spike clocks pop up on Craigslist recently and reproductions are available through Vitra, but they all cost hundreds of dollars.  That ain't gonna happen.  While I understand the draw of originality and designer names, I'm just looking for the maximum style + value per dollar.

With coupons, my total came to $35.63.  The next cheapest knockoff I could find was $178 and Design Within Reach wants an absurd  $327.25 for a Vitra repro!  Sure, nobody will ever mistake this clock for a Nelson, but with a savings of $291.62, I think I can live with that.