Broyhill Facet Furniture Info

Sometimes you just have to wait for an answer. Sometimes you have to wait a while. Two years ago I got a question about the Broyhill Premier Facet furniture; a line I knew, and still know, little about. Recently though a reader was kind enough to point me to a listing on Urban Dwellers.

Urban Dwellers confirmed my assumption that the Facet furniture line was made sometime in the 1960s, but that's where things take a twist.

"Broyhill Facet was produced for less than one year before being discontinued, as the production cost was deemed too high. Almost no pieces from this series exist; a shame, as the design is entirely independent from the popular Brasilia, Sculptra and Saga series. The dresser is fashioned from a solid hardwood base overlaid with light-toned walnut veneer."

So there's good reason that there's little info about the Broyhill Facet line floating around; Broyhill Facet furniture wasn't around very long. Hopefully as more people see the line and fall in love with it (for good reason), more information will surface too.

Hans Wegner Style Wicker Folding Chair

I went back to my childhood home recently and saw a chair that's been sitting in the basement forever. I remember it being the uncomfortable chair in the corner. (I'm not a huge wicker fan personally.)

But with older, wiser eyes I wondered if it was actually a Hans Wegner wicker folding chair. It has all of the looks, but none of the handles.

Turns out my parents don't have a hidden mid-century gem in the basement. This isn't a Hans Wegner folding chair, but it looks a lot like one and can probably be purchased for a lot less than a Wegner original. If wicker is your thing, this no-name chair might be a nice addition to the corner of your room. 

A Restor-A-Finish for Broyhill Furniture

I've used Restor-A-Finish on my Broyhill Sculptra furniture and many times since then. If you to want make some mid-century furniture look better, it's the way to go in my book.

During one of my recent (and frequent) trips to Home Depot, I overheard an employee recommend using a shade lighter of Restor-A-Finish than the wood you're putting it on, and to never ever go darker. Like paint, it's easier to start light and then go over it a second time with something slightly darker.

It's advice echoed by Mr. Modtomic, who suggests Golden Oak Restor-A-Finish for walnut furniture (like Broyhill Sculptra furniture).

The lighter shade fills in any damage, but doesn't highlight it. When you go too dark, all you see are the scratches. So here's my tip from the pros: Start lighter and go darker only if it still looks bad.

Another New Desk at Late Night with Seth Meyers

I've mentioned the evolving Late Night with Seth Meyers set and desk, and a reader recently pointed out that they tore the whole thing down and started from scratch. New backdrop, new desk, new chairs, new everything.

The desk is a solid modern piece with some metal flourishes and looks like a desk from a Conan set, which is a good thing. I think Conan had some of the best talk show sets out there. The guest chairs look like something out of a Pottery Barn catalog. But, Seth kept some of the mid-century look with a Eames Aluminum Group Executive chair for himself.

It looks more like classic talk show set, especially with the city skyline background. Seth actually addressed the change on the show. As much as the internet may have hated the old set (I guess I was one of the few who liked it), they can't hate on his backstage design.

Answers about Baxton Studio Furniture

Three years ago I wrote about Baxton Studio and their inexpensive mid-century modern furniture. Sure they're knock offs, but I still believe that not everyone needs to own an original. That said, it does feel a little wrong to buy a knock off (to me), but from what I know about industrial design rights Baxton Studio is totally within their rights.

With knock offs always comes the question of quality. Three years ago, there's wasn't really any reviews of Baxton Studio furniture. Since a few years have passed, there's more info on the internet (mainly on Reddit and Amazon. And the culmination of info seems to be "not bad for the price." You're not getting the quality of designer furniture, but you're getting the look for a lot less and the furniture isn't going to break underneath you.

So, if you're looking for some cheap mid-century modern furniture, Baxton Studio might be worth looking into.

Mid-Century Furniture Auction in Austin

Part of my weekend was spent bidding at the Austin Auction Gallery's "Italian and Danish Mid-Century Modern" auction. I was lucky enough to be be the high bidder on two items: This Danish rosewood wall unit

And this Italian mahogany mid-century modern bed.

The wall unit will go in the dining room (instead of installing a series of shelves) and the bed will go in the kid's room as a big-kid bed.

You could have opened your own vintage store with all the mid-century furniture on sale this weekend, and most of the items went for much less than I would have expected. (We got great deals on both of our pieces.) Although, all of the sideboards and buffets fetched a pretty penny. I guess a few of my Vintage Views interviewees were right when they said, people always need something to put their TV on.

Charlie Brown on Mid-Century Furniture

I never thought Charlie Brown thought much about mid-century furniture, but this 1953 comic proves otherwise. He's clearly forgotten about the old and moved in with the midcentury. And who can blame him when that midcentury includes an Eames molded plywood lounge chair, a Barwa lounger, a butterfly chair, some mid-century art on the wall, a pole lamp and tiki inspired drapes?

Late Night with Seth Meyers Desk and Chair

I like to think that mid-century furniture works anywhere. The clean lines, the rich wood tones, the beautiful legs. But the evolution of the Late Night with Seth Meyers set proves that's not the case.

The first Late Night with Seth Meyers desk was a classic example of a mid-century desk, but it was weird to see Seth roll around in his chair under the desk. And speaking of chairs, they had a gorgeous mid-century modern guest chair, but I think they ordered the children's size. 

Take 2: Seth got a solid desk so you couldn't see his feet dangling and his chair got an upgrade. They also upgraded to the adult size guest chair. But guests still looked a little uncomfortable.

So it was time to roll in the big plush chairs. And now it looks like a classic TV talk show set. And it looks a lot better. I guess late night shows are just a place that mid-century furniture doesn't work, which is weird because a lot of late night shows have a mid-century undertone and feel to them.

Mid-Century Modern Furniture at Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen

There are plenty reasons to visit Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen if you're ever in Paris: mid-century travel brochures, a Futuro house, mid-century furniture, more mid-century furniture and mid-century modern furniture. If you do go, plan of spending a least a few hours there. We spent about four hours looking and shopping and didn't even scratch the surface. My guess is if you wanted to do the whole thing, it would take days.

Here are the last of my photo collection from Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen:

Mid-Century Modern Furniture in Paris

Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen is a huge flea market made up of a collection of smaller flea markets. We spent most of our time in Marché Paul Bert, Marché Serpette and Marché Dauphine. If you're looking for mid-century furniture, Marché Paul Bert is the place to go. Marché Dauphine is where we bought souvenirs that we could fit in our suitcase; it has a lot of smaller vintage items I don't think you could find anywhere else in Paris.

Most of these photos come from Marché Paul Bert:

More Mid-Century Furniture from Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen

The Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen is both and indoor and outdoor flea market. The nicer stuff seems to be inside, although the stuff outside is still amazing. Here are some more of the finds at Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen.