Mid Century Modern – Champagne Tastes on a Beer Budget

Photo of nightstand with words "mid century modern find"
Photo and graphic: Nanu

After a wonderful weekend visiting dear friends in the Twin Cities, when it comes to Mid Century Modern, it became clear that there are levels of incorporating it into home decor.

When it comes to mid century modern, I find myself squarely in the champagne tastes on a beer budget end of the spectrum.  There were so many beautiful, completely refinished  pieces to be had across Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

Yet due to my budget conscious/frugal/affordable/bargain hunter nature, there was no way I could bring myself to purchase the beautifully remastered and restored pieces.

What’s a girl to do? Daydream about the smoothly sanded end tables that still smelled of fresh varnish. I got lucky and ended up travelling home with an amazing piece that I do love for it’s character and potential for greatness (pictured in the graphic above). More to come on how we incorporate MCM into our home.

My favorite stores for Mid Century  Modern pieces from this shopping adventure in the Twin Cities:

  • MidModMen+Friends – very amazing pieces of furniture, lovingly restored. Funky and cool artwork, decor and accessories. What would it take to be counted among their +Friends? #Goals
  • Blue Bicycle Vintage – a variety of pieces, some in amazing condition and some needing a little TLC (and reasonably priced accordingly). This is where I scored the nightstand pictured in this post. Bonus – located in a pocket of several similar vintage and resale stores for furniture, decor, kitsch and ephemera.
  • Turquoise Vintage – this is the type of place I could literally get lost in for hours. Too much amazingness. Colorful 1960’s and 1970’s kitsch all the way. Loads of decor and kitchen items. Will definitely be checking this place out again.
  • Junket Tossed & Found – when we drove up and saw a jalopy pickup truck with their logo on the side, I knew we were in for a treat. Another store in the Minnehaha Mile (plus, it’s fun to pronounce). Quirky screen printed designs on thrifted items. Neatly organized ephemera that a multimedia artist would dream about. In another post, I’ll share some photos of the many materials that would make for very interesting creative projects.

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