From Mid-Century to Modern

The words mid-century modern usually make me cringe, thoughts of nasty brown wood, scratchy orange upholstery and cats (don't ask) pop into my head, but lately I've been seeing a lot of my favorite designers and retailers putting a modern spin on the this understated retro style.  Chelsea Textiles debuted its new range of Mid-Century inspired fabrics and furniture at Maison & Objet 2012, the clean lines and subtle, muted colors balance perfectly with today’s interiors and I can't help but notice Danish influence behind Jason Wu's new furniture line for Canvas Home...even West Elm is getting in on the time warp with this super chic nightstand.  All of these pieces are great but why spend a fortune on reproduction when you could buy a relatively inexpensive vintage piece on eBay and make it your own? 

I've been obsessing over this black & white Madeline Weinrib suzani mid-century Scandinavian foot stool for quite some time - those brass sabots had me at hello - so last night purchased my very own stool on eBay for $30!  The blue fabric isn't my cup of tea, so the stool needs to be reupholstered, stat! The wood legs also need to go, the brown does nothing to show off the lovely brass sabots (new favorite word). Pictured above are the fabrics and paints I'm considering. Part of me thinks I should go neutral but a bigger part of me thinks this is a great opportunity to do something fun. How's a girl to decide?  With your help, of course.  Which look do you love?

textured wool / lush lamb / wild leopard