I called my friend in a tense moment of uncertainty. "It's in excellent condition but should I buy it?" I had not been in touch with 'John' for sometime and I knew from my Facebook eavesdropping that he was out of town. I was counting on our 25 years plus of knowing each other that he would at least answer the phone. You see John knows mid-century furniture design and I don't.

My husband and I were having some time out together celebrating our 12 th wedding anniversary with a bit of furniture shopping for the new home we just bought. It is our first purchased home. We found ourselves in Mod Livin on East Colfax after some tragic viewing of furniture at various second-hand stores also along Colfax. Entering Mod Livin was like a breath of fresh air!

On our way to the bargain basement, I became overwhelmed with a sense of purpose with how my new living room was going to look and what kind of furniture it was going to house. Mid-century/Danish inspired design with a bit of Colorado Contemporary thrown in (don't ask me what that is...I am still figuring it out but it sounds good!). After contemplating some pieces and cocking eyebrows at others (bamboo tiki furniture anyone??) we wondered back upstairs and there it was: hidden away in a corner stood the champagne Heywood-Wakefield dining room set with credenza and hutch; gorgeous. I stroked the table top and marveled at the workmanship. I enquired as to its age...over 50 years old. It had been part of an estate that was being sold off by the relatives. I told my husband, I have to have this. He smiled and raised his eyebrows. This was not on the 'wish list'.

We settled on the Paul McCobb end table with a chair also by McCobb. Now, don't get me wrong. I had no idea until two weeks ago who any of these people were except I am forgetting to share something. My husband is a man of few words so when he speaks, I listen. He expressed a liking to a very unusual couch we came across at a friend's house. My friend has been selling off parts of his parent's estate over a year or so and we were there to view a few dressers. We saw this curvy green and wood couch but he was not sure he wanted to sell it. I tried to do some research on it and concluded it was inspired by if not designed by Vladimir Kagan. I tried to buy it but he said his daughter wanted it. Lucky daughter. The journey I took on the internet during my research about that couch began my education of mid-century designed furniture. I also looked up my Kroehler dresser that I had bought at a garage sale in the Denver Virginia Village neighborhood. The names started flying out: Herman Miller, Florence Knoll, Norman Cherner, Isamu Noguchi, Eames, Eero Saarinen, Alvar Alto, Arne Jacobsen, oh my! There is so much more than these known designer names, like McCobb, but I am still a beginner.

I did not see Heywood-Wakefield. Now, they still make furniture. In fact, they make almost all the pieces I bought. Oh, yeah, sorry to ruin the punch line, I did buy the furniture but after much consulting with friends who say things like "you should not break up the set, you have to buy it all" or text me things like "Buy it!" (that was 'John' from earlier). My husband said something like "you know what our finances are like, if you think we can do it, go ahead" - now you know why I married him! Back to the furniture: it's a work of art, truly. Sitting on my newly acquired craigslist mid-century couch I admired the curves of the table legs and thetapering of the chairs legsto a point like ballerina's legs; the architectural reference of line and form; the marriage of strength and elegance. I am hooked!

For more about mid-century design on-line and locally check these out:

August 28th-30th is the Modernism Show, not to be missed and you know I will be there!
www.denvermodernism.com
www.modlivin.com
www.shopnines.com (they just left their 26 th and Walnut site but check out their website for updates and images of furniture. The bonus with these charming folks is that they refinish furniture and know their stuff; they will be at the Modernism expo)
www.kirklandmuseum.org (also at Modernism expo)
www.heywood-wakefield.com
www.knoll.com
www.modnorthwest.com