| California Home + Design

Conventional wisdom says that in hard financial times designers embrace tradition. With the fiscal cliff averted (we hope), the economy is slowly recovering, but the public is still clinging to the comfort style our grandmothers would appreciate. The good news is that, placed in a mod environment, there’s plenty of life in these classic items.

Mary Jo Bowling

Photo credit: Courtesy of Jason Lewis

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Rocking Out

If your grandmother embraced the new-fangled styles of midcentury, she likely had a rocker like this. New York designer Jason Lewis crafts modern pieces that have more than a passing nod to the Man Men era.
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Granny Seat

But if your grandmother was more old school, as mine was, she would prefer this beautiful rocker from Thonet. Nothing says comfort like a traditional rocker.
Photo credit: Courtesy RugCycle

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Ragged Out

RugCycle cuts up old rag rugs—the sort dear to granny hearts—and restiches them into something totally new, and kind of hip.
Photo credit: Courtesy Schoolhouse Electric

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The Irony

Remember sleeping in a brass or iron bed at grandmas? The designers at Schoolhouse Electric likely do, as they created this wonderful metal bed with a fresh color.