- Jun 4, 2020
- 2 min read

HOME TOUR: authentic mid-century modern in mint condition

The design era is having a shining moment, and this fully authentic, beautifully preserved 1965 Pasadena home shows why.

photography by Cameron Carothers/Carothers Photo; Glendale, CA

I find it fascinating how trends catch on, and when they do, my curiosity immediately piques and has me wondering how they started in the first place. Take Tik Tok for example. One person does the "Wipe it Down Challenge" and the next thing you know, thousands are doing it and millions are liking it and it spreads like wildfire - burning out of control until the next big thing extinguishes it.

But it's different with design styles. They have more staying power and even when they do eventually fade off into the sunset, they have a miraculous way of re-emerging, often decades or centuries later, and I welcome them with open arms (unless we're talking about my early childhood Staten Island home and its velvet Elvis paintings and ghastly red shag carpet, which I hope stay in the past where they belong. No disrespect to "The King," nor my mom (whose decorating taste, incidentally, has vastly improved since then).

Mid-Century Modern has made an epic comeback and hallelujah to that. I'm very happy. Like the "yay I can throw my hair up in a scrunchie without fear of arrest by the fashion police" kind of happy.

A quick recap on the design era: furnishings with clean lines, exceptional craftsmanship, and bold colors mitigated by low-profile silhouettes, floating frames, teak wood and clear lucite. Minimalist structures comprised of flat planes, sharp angles, and abstract forms. Twentieth century legends such as Frank Lloyd Wright, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames ('Sup guys? Great to see u again!)

Yes, Mid-Century design, so dear to our hearts, is back at every turn and it's been greeted with a massive bear hug, which is precisely what makes this 3,567-square- foot, 3-bedroom/3-bath home, designed in 1965 by John F. Galbraith and exclusively situated high in the hills of the San Gabriels, such a gem.