2020 brought many surprises, not least of which was the awareness that everything that we grew up with and came to associate with our parents is now “mid-century” and vintage.
The Past as Commodity
Our past has become a commodity, something sought after by the young. What was once considered gauche is now cool. Like these horrible wicker rattan bamboo paper plate holders. (I must say looking at them with fresh eyes, I do appreciate them a little more.) Using them, however, was always a struggle, getting the paper plate to lay flat, the thing losing its shape and warping from moisture, and worst of all trying to keep them clean. It seems they always looked a little shoddy, out of shape, and just plain tacky!
I was pleasantly surprised to learn that my 26 year old D-I-L covets the Mid-Century Modern furniture I acquired when my mother died. I wanted the items I selected, not because I liked them, but because nobody else wanted them. And, well, they were hers. She loved them, and I loved her. I couldn’t bear to just see them discarded as meaningless.
Passing It On
My siblings took the “real” antiques. I took the leftovers. We basically gave away a Heywood-Wakefield dining room table and chair set, now highly valued. At the time that we were dispersing my mother’s things, it was a decade early for the Mid-Century rush. I suppose being on the tail end of a big family has a few perks, as the few items I kept have increased in value. Passing them on to someone who appreciates them is valuable to me.
I am adjusting to the idea of being mid-century. It’s as if we have a secret, the inside story on something of value that the young know nothing about. Kind of true of aging in general, don’t you think?
What pleasant surprises are you taking
from 2020 into 2021?
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I have those rattan plate holders and use them all the time – NOT with paper plates, but with my regular plates when I decide to eat in front of the TV. They hold my plate comfortably. I had no idea they were a throwback to mid century, because we never used them when I was growing up. I have no idea how long I have had these, but I will keep using them until they fall apart.
My parents did buy a new house in 1953 when I was 8 and we got all new furniture, so I grew up with mid-century lamps, tables, dining room set, sofas and chairs. After my parents died and we split up the household between the four of us children in 1986, no one wanted the mid-century items. I got a lot of my mother’s and grandmother’s antique pieces and have grown tired of those lately. I gave some to my youngest daughter when she moved to a new house 7 years ago, but she doesn’t want anything else and even wants to get rid of what I’ve given her. It’s hers to do with as she wishes and that doesn’t bother me because I have released them. My older daughter does not want any of the antiques at all. I have given away some paintings my great grandmother did in the late 1800’s and now have another oil painting by another great grandmother that I have taken down because it is so dark. No one wants it and I am deciding what to do with it.
These are all tough decisions, but we can’t take them with us! We’ve taken to using TV trays, another thing I thought I’d never do. My older sister and my children are horrified. But hey, they work for us. The dining room table is now apart and under a bed. I’m totally between generations! I feel the same way about older dark antiques. I have of those as well and regularly toy with the idea of painting them. I joined a furniture refinishing group on FB and it is split right down the middle on painting old pieces: paint and enjoy or don’t you dare paint! So, it’s not at all helpful. I think being able to let go of and release things back into the world for others to enjoy is a learning process that comes with doing a little at a time. That is my goal. Experiencing the sadness and then the lightness inspires us to do it again.
I use my bamboo plate holders now as plaNt coasters – re-purposed, they work fine!
Happy New Year, Dorothy!