LLStyle Report: Midcentury-Modern (MCM) Madness

Nowadays, the term “midcentury-modern” is so ubiquitous in interior design that it has earned its own recognizable initials—MCM—to denote any number of midcentury styles.

While many people mistake midcentury-modern design as anything designed in the mid-20th century, it actually refers to a specific style of the time, characterized by famous designer and architects like Frank Lloyd Wright, Charles and Ray Eames (creators of the iconic Eames chair), and Hans Wegner, who popularized Danish furniture design.

With interior designers and homeowners everywhere putting their own unique spins on the iconic style and picking their favorite elements to play up in a modern way, midcentury modern style has taken on a new life, with the same focus on functionality as its original form.

Key Elements of MCM Design

Not to be confused with modern design—which leans on neutral color, utilitarian fixtures, and chromatic finishes—midcentury-modern is unabashedly funky, retro and colorful. The style leans on a mix of materials, from teak and other woods to metal, glass and synthetics like vinyl.

With a focus on function, MCM design does away with any unnecessary frills or decoration, prioritizing simple, often curved lines and vibrant color to add flair, as well as wide-open floor plans that allow for natural light to flow through the space.

Examples of Midcentury Homes

Midcentury-modern style can take many different shapes (literally), from the straight, low-profile lines of Frank Lloyd Wright’s iconic “prairie style” homes to the futuristic, curved homes found in any 60s-era James Bond movie with Sean Connery. There’s perhaps no place more packed with MCM architecture than Palm Springs, California, where aspirational, futuristic design took hold in the 1960s. 

Interior designer Heather Fox worked with LL Flooring last year on a classic midcentury abode in Palm Springs, installing LL’s New England White Pine Unfinished Solid Paneling on the ceiling to compliment the home’s retro furnishings and classic terrazzo floors. With pops of color, organic accents like wood and plant life, and clean lines throughout, the home embodies 21st-century MCM design.

Read: Designer Heather Fox Creates Mid-Century Modern Oasis in Palm Springs

Ways to Bring MCM Into the Home

There are many ways to inject some retro vibes in your home, but you want to be careful not to go overboard and risk turning your home into a midcentury museum. Start by picking one accent piece, like a curved glass-top coffee table, an accent chair, or a funky midcentury wall hanging and build around that.

With MCM design, the wood takes center stage. With blonde-toned floors like the wide-plank Lake Erie White Oak Water-Resistant Distressed Engineered Hardwood or the graphic East Village Chevron Distressed Engineered Hardwood, your home can have a classic-yet-modern feel, which perfectly accents any midcentury decor you want to explore.

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In this short video, flooring installation expert Louie demonstrates a quick fix for scratches in laminate or hardwood flooring using a CalFlor Scratch Cure stain pen. Like he explains in the video, its something to try in certain cases.