Style Guide: How to Achieve Mid-Century Modern Style

Between Mad Men and, more recently, Wandavision, the entertainment world has ushered the classic mid-century modern style back into vogue. And what’s not to like? The look is all minimalism, clean lines, and natural finishes. A mid-century modern design can help you showcase a spotless, well-kept operation – with the added bonus of giving your space just the right amount of retro, old-school beauty parlor feel.  

Here’s our guide to nailing that mid-century modern feel.  

So where does it come from?

Mid-century modern is inspired by the style in – you guessed it – the middle of the 1900s. The exact endpoints vary, but we’re generally talking 1930s to the 1960s. It made its comeback in the late 2000s after Mad Men aired – but if we’re being honest, it never really went out of style. 

The style is considered a classic, and it prioritizes functionality and natural shapes. Mid-century modern design is marked by contemporary, almost futuristic characteristics: clean, straight lines, with accent curves to add character and dimension to the space; big windows to incorporate natural light; natural wood finishes and intentional use of metallics and other modern materials, like glass, vinyl, plexiglass, and plastic. 

Minimalism & Nature

One of the biggest hallmarks of mid-century modern is minimalism. While clutter can shrink a big space down, more spartan furnishings can really open it up. There are two reasons for that: first, mid-century modern is all about functionality. Basically, everything that goes in the space should serve a purpose. 

But that doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with it! This brings us to reason two: the style is meant to make a space feel open, airy, and one with nature and those natural materials we talked about earlier. And fewer items means you can really showcase those pieces you do include in the space. 

Accent curves

You’ve probably noticed by now that another central tenet of mid-century modern design includes lots of straight lines – with a few well-placed sweeping curves to add dimension to the space. That can be achieved in any number of ways: a big circular mirror, an arcing receptionists’ desk, or even the egg-shaped chairs that were so iconic of the time period. 

Now that you’re ready to nail mid-century modern in your own salon, shop our collection here.