"Mad Men" Office Trouble!

[Weston]

So I've been trying to design my office to a Mad Men theme as much as possible (still can't ditch the computer, too valuable!). My search for vintage stuff for the 60's era desk is tough! I'm painting my own modern art, so that's made easier, but finding vintage office supplies is not going so well, especially after I got beat on eBay for the perfect lot by 50 cents! Grrr!

One thing that confounds me is that most of the "mandatory equipment" is simply gone - quick calls to the office supply places around town revealed blotter pads and desk sets simply couldn't be had any longer. Mercifully we have an older supply store here in town that I picked up the very basics of office life from, but just try finding one of those killer pencil sharpeners that's huge and corded!

Anyone got any luck with some deadstock suppliers, or anyone else going for this look?

 

[tonyb]

That sleek mid-century look is hot, hot, hot right now, thanks at least in part to that hit TV series. (And perhaps in larger part to a demographic bulge; a large fraction of the population has gotten to an age of feeling nostalgic over the styles and trappings of its now-distant youth, and they now have the financial resources to acquire pieces of it.) For instance, a genuine 1950s/'60s pole lamp you couldn't give away 10 or 15 years ago might fetch a couple hundred bucks today.

Where abouts are you, Weston? Larger cities typically offer wider varieties of just about everything, but the prices are in most cases higher than what you might pay in a more remote locale. For me, no trip to the sticks is complete without visits to the thrift stores and junktique shops. I've found it much likelier to find good deals on those little treasures "out there," where the competition is usually sparcer and less affluent.

 

[Weston]

I'm out in a small town where anything from the 60s would go for a song - the trouble is finding it! There's four steelcase chairs sitting outside a rec center in town that I stare at every time I drive by - some day I want to find the owner and offer him cash for them. They literally sit outside!!

I have a local place that sells whatever comes out of odd storage units, but no major finds there in awhile - still dying for my giant wallet busting vintage Steelcase furniture lot. I'd buy the worktable, any chairs and whatever else I could scrounge, but no joy so far.

 

[Weston]

Actually, great update! Found a pair of 60's Gunlocke chairs for $45, along with finding a second hand store that sells 50's-60's furniture for whatever they can get. Walked out with three chairs (including a vintage chrome and naugahyde 50's chair) for $55. Things are looking up! Now to finish my abstract art canvas...

 

[tonyb]

Pictures, Draper, pictures!

 

[listenone]

an old fashioned radio?

 

[IsaacRN]

You can still pick up blotter paper and blotters. www.gouletpens.com has them. But I agree, that many classic things are hard to come by. I would love a vintage radio myself.

 

[Weston]

The office is getting there...I loathe posting pics before it's all perfect. My office chair is modern, but looks slightly vintage and I'm wanting to replace it soon. Going for some more vintage office supplies soon, need to add artwork and then reduce the number of framed items and finish my copy of the painting I'm doing that hangs in Draper's office. It's not an exact copy by any stretch, but it will be in the same vein. Maybe I should post pics of components?

 

[tonyb]

I can understand your reluctance to post pictures of your project before it's finished, but really now, will it ever truly be "finished"? Will it ever cease changing because it has reached a state of perfection?

Of course not!

Should you post pictures of the pieces you've assembled to date?

Yes, by all means.

 

[Lily Powers]

Check with your local city and county government offices. They are notoriously tight-fisted with money and you'd be surprised at the great old furniture they have. When departments get new furniture (cubicles! whoo hoo!) that old stuff gets farmed out to the warehouses where it's frequently sold, auctioned or just given away. Another suggestion: http://www.freecycle.org/, where you can pick up all sorts of things for free.

 

[Weston]

Hmm. You may have a valid point. I can show off the pieces I do have, and the sections that are complete. I'll see about taking a camera to the office soon.

 

[Weston]

Hey, massive successful find! Put out a call on Facebook for a green Selectric II typewriter, and a friend delivered! Working it up to use it day to day now. Pics to come!