To most of us, retro furniture is the kitchen set of the 1950s. Think chrome legs, a Formica table top and shiny vinyl on the chairs, often in red and white or teal and white, although yellow, green and other colors were popular, too.

Those pieces remain hot with today’s buyers looking to recapture the look of mid-20th-century America. Two local used furniture outlets — Nest in downtown Rockford and ShareStuff in the former Colonial Village Mall — say the old chrome tables and chairs sell almost as soon as they get them on the floor.

AMY J. CORRENTI | ROCKFORDWOMAN.COM
Retro buyers looking for the “modern” designs of the ’60s — the chrome and leather or plastic contemporary pieces — might try Ingrassia Interior Elements in Rockford, where this table and chair were on display Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009.

But there’s more to the retro look. At Ingrassia Interior Elements, many retro buyers are looking for the “modern” designs of the ’60s, the chrome and leather or plastic contemporary pieces pioneered by furniture designers like Charles and Ray Eames and Herman Miller.

Rockford interior designers say many customers, young and older, still savor the retro look.

“Some people like the natural, clean, airy look of those blond wood pieces from the ’50s and ’60s,” said Ron Brooks, a designer at Ingrassia. “They prefer that to the dark espresso you see so much today.”

Retro, added Brooks, brings to mind a simpler time, when life brought fewer hassles. At least, that’s how it seems in retrospect. Many people keep at least a couple of pieces of retro around, often things they got from their parents or older relatives.

“When I do house calls, I see a lot of retro pieces, many of them passed down. It’s nostalgia,” he said.

Cindy Molosz, a designer at Interiors in Rockford, says “retro seems to appeal to all ages and intrigues the younger set. Of course, to them it’s new.”

Retro, said Brooks, typically refers to furnishings that were popular in the 1950s through the 1980s. By his definition, that includes the Danish Modern that was oh so “in” in the 1960s.

Retro satisfies buyers of all income levels. You can get the chrome and Formica kitchen set for several hundred dollars, or less, depending on condition, at places like Nest, ShareStuff or other used furniture outlets. Or you can spend $4,000 for a new Eames chair produced by the
Herman Miller company. A new knockoff will cost about half that much, or you can get lucky and run into one at a garage sale for a couple of bucks.

There are modern-day reproductions of all things retro. It’s not always easy to discern what’s new and what’s vintage, but Vern Furney, who owns Nest with his wife, Cyndi, offers a tip.

“See if it says where it was made,“ he advised. “If it says ‘Made in the USA,‘ chances are it’s been around awhile.”

Like many retro fanciers, the Furneys get a kick out of searching for the real thing. Estate sales and garage sales are good places to look. One customer recently told Cyndi she picked up some valuable Eames chairs for $1 a piece at a rummage sale.

The Furneys are always on the hunt, because they turn their merchandise over frequently.

“Our goal is to get it in and move it out, as long as we make a little money on it,” Cyndi said. “We want people to know we always have new pieces.”

Retro items at Nest one recent day included a yellow chrome and Formica kitchen set, hideaway sofabeds, coffee and end tables in retro and Danish Modern, a metal ice bucket with penguins formed on the sides made by West Bend, chairs with RCA Victor printed on the back (the really valuable ones, said Cyndi, have the RCA dog on them, too), Melamine dishes, ashtrays, lava lamps, hanging lamps and table lamps, shadowboxes, a phone chair, banana split dishes, wall hangings and sconces, canister sets and many things Coca-Cola.

Prices ranged from a couple of bucks for ashtrays to $300 for the sofa beds.

ShareStuff Furniture, which directs all profits to Sharefest to fix up Rockford schools, had two retro rolling kitchen chairs. Their era was easily identified as the ’50s or ’60 by their mustard yellow covering.

There was also a chrome and Formica kitchen set, already marked with a “sold” sign, a 1940s-era console Philco radio and phonograph, and a Voice of Music console with an 8-track player and phono.

The donors threw in some old 8-track tapes, so a buyer could add retro sound to the retro look.

The artists included Henry Mancini, Dean Martin, Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline and Connie Francis.
 

Avocado green is a popular retro color, followed by mustard yellow and cominations of black, white and red, along with purple and hot pink. This table is available at the Nest in downtown Rockford.

The Nest in downtown Rockford sells used furniture, including retro lamps.

Vintage chairs featuring the RCA logo are on display at the Nest in downtown Rockford.

 
The Nest offers chairs, tables, accessories and more that feature colors and looks that first became popular decades ago.

Look for chairs, like this one from Ingrassia Interior Elements in Rockford, that are in bright colors for a retro look.

One of the retro chair offerings at Ingrassia Interior Elements in Rockford.

One of the retro chair offerings at Ingrassia Interior Elements in Rockford.
 

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