There are a few enduring vintage furniture trends, like the Murano mushroom lamp and Ettore Sottsass’s Ultrafragola mirror, that seem to only see exponential, hockey-stick popularity on the internet. These trends can be met with some resistance, too, out of cost-prohibitiveness (the seemingly ubiquitous mirror fetches $10,000) and sometimes out of a hesitation to copy and paste a trend into your home, no matter how appealing you find a bulbous, fungi-shaped original. On the occasion of our second-hand-focused week, I scoured Etsy and a few other sources for vintage furniture to find the most fun, trend-adjacent alternatives, riffing off the formal elements of the wavy mirror and the stout yet voluptuous lamp.
For added intrigue, I also asked Cat Snodgrass of Bi-Rite Studio, a design store specializing in 20th-century furniture and objects, if she has a hunch regarding what the next “it” piece of design will be. And she does: Snodgrass thinks you’re about to see Robert Mallet-Stevens Model 222 chairs everywhere, so consider this your running start.
“No other chair says ‘chic’ to me like the 222—they were first fabricated in France in the ’20s, but were in production throughout the 20th century, so your chances of finding them at an affordable price are pretty good,” Snodgrass tells me. “The design strikes this wonderful balance of simplicity, while still having a ton of graphic visual impact. I’ve been championing these for years—they’re truly a personal favorite of mine—and they’re just now starting to have their moment among some forward-thinking interior designers and curators.”
Snodgrass suggests that the 222 chairs are one way to approximate the ambiance of a Sottsass interior without springing for the mirror: “They were even a favorite of Ettore Sottsass, and he often used them in his interior commissions. Plus they’re such a simple design that they suit practically any interior style—just change the color!”
Below, I tried to operate like a slightly more nuanced algorithm and find a few new points of entry to put your own spin on the great furniture trends of the Instagram era.
If you’re coveting the Murano Mushroom Lamp…
A balloon-shaped ceiling light:
A Murano glass lamp by Massimo Vignelli for Vistosi:
A blue glass blown pendant light:
A mushroom lamp that looks like it’s wearing a Dutch hat:
A spunkier take on the mushroom lamp:
A fungal sconce!:
Or an eggplant lamp:
A couple of highly saturated options:
A ceiling fixture to replace your nipple light:
No one you know is going to have lamps like these:
If you love the look of Murano glasses, you’re going to want to know about this Etsy shop:
Some Memphis-like goods to fill the Ultrafragola-mirror-sized hole in your heart…
Glare Goods rescues discarded and dusty mirrors, and upcycles them into curvy things of beauty.
Bi-Rite has been manufacturing its own Capsule mirrors, bordered with satin lacquered wood.
A curvy mirror made-to-order:
A vintage braided mirror with a nice shape from the ‘80s:
This Etsy shop is chock full of mirrors that come in unexpected shapes and sizes:
A multi use clock and mirror:
If you like your candles like you like your mirrors—wavy:
Memphis-style candlesticks, ceiling lights, and teapots:
A set of Heller melamine dinnerware by Massimo Vignelli:
Glow Geometric refinishes parsons tables in Memphis-inspired color palettes:
If you’re ready for the Robert Mallet-Stevens Model 222 chairs…
They’re available via Bi-Rite.
Feature Images via Bi-Rite.
