Mid-Century Modern Desks To Turn Writers Into Bestsellers

You decide to walk through the rain to get here.

You’ve been feeling apathetic for a while now and thought walking in the downpour would generate a false misery for a few hours.

The more physically, mentally and emotionally troubled you are, the better your writing is meant to get.

That’s how it works. You think.

The novel was meant to be easy but it’s quite the opposite.

Zero flow.

Plenty of white page.

Something isn’t working in your living room. Your current setup is too… comfortable.

Sitting on the sofa in your underwear all day doesn’t correlate with getting work done and you’ve decided it’s time to sort your life out and buy a desk that suits your lifestyle.

Deciding to do so is the first step but, unfortunately, the easiest.

Now you actually need to choose one.

You emailed Rooms Solutions earlier in the week to try and get a slot at the Designdeck – it’s been non-stop since it opened.

All you know is that it’s a Hologram room like the one you’ve watched on Star Trek, this one’s just for interior design though.

Must control the strange thoughts.

The Designdeck morphs into whatever room is needed at the time so occupants can understand how home decor fits together.

There was one slot in the schedule left and you chomped it up like the aggressive Snapping Turtle you are.

You can see the sign from the street now.

It’s glowing and you’re drawn to it like a moth to a flame.

Turning the handle, you walk in. It’s a well-lit room, cozy with leather sofas and a towel thrown in your face before you can take anymore in.

The receptionist is very concerned about watermarks on the wood flooring. She has a smile on her face but there’s no playing around here.

You agreeably wipe yourself down and observe the rest of the room.

There’s a fire, of course there’s a fire. And premium elevator music.

A pen is handed to you and you write your name down in the ledger. I walk out to greet you like a long lost brother.

Read More: Recommended Cherry Desks

I’ve never seen someone so pleased to come to the Designdeck to look at desks, but here you are. I ask you to follow me and we make our way up the stairs.

“Before we continue I need your help. I know you want to look at desks but let’s narrow it down, shall we? What sort of desks?”

“I’ve been hearing a lot about mid-century modern recently. I thought I’d see what the desks look like in that style as I’ve been trying to write a book from my sofa. It’s not going well.”

“A great choice. Let’s not waste any more time, you’ve got a masterpiece to write.”

We enter the hologram-filled room, I let you go first to get the full effect.

It’s a vast room and it’s bright white.

You’re disorientated at first, but that’s normal. The Designdeck starts like this, it enjoys messing with newcomer’s minds.

I signal it to bring up a full mid-century modern living room. Before I teach you about desks I need to run through the basics on the mid-century design style.

Before your eyes is a living room fit for a king or queen, or a President.

Mid-century modern living rooms are fresh. Every piece of furniture is on legs so the air is free to circulate and the light can bounce freely.

Even the sofas.

I gently tap one of its legs with my foot to emphasize my point.

You won’t find sharp edges in mind-century modern, organic lines are present throughout.

The smile you had earlier just doubled. You like what you see.

This is the type of decor that’ll help you write your bestseller, epiphanies will be bouncing off the walls.

Now that the mid-century modern style has clicked in your brain, it’s time to show you your first mid-century desk.

Ok, the first one if you please.

Ahh. What a beaty. Designdeck, you’ve done it again.

You tell me you’ve fallen in love.

I say me too.

There are probably laws against marrying inanimate objects so we must continue.

You walk up to it and run you hands across the desktop.

“It’s walnut”, I call out from behind you, but you’re in a trance.

Wrapping your knuckles lightly on the wood you ask me when it was made.

I tell you the 1960s by the manufacturer Johnson Carper.

The organic lines that I told you were present in mid-century modern designs are clear to see on the desk in front of you.

The drawers have concave curvatures and the joinery is dovetailed – a sign of quality. No ornamentation; minimalist so you concentrate on the important parts. The legs are tapered too.

Accordingly to my notes this Johnson Carper mid-century modern desk is exactly:

• 46″ in length
• 17.75″ in depth
• 30″ in height

I need to know.

“Can you see yourself buying a desk such as this?”

“100%”

The heart craves what it can’t have.

I need to strike while the iron’s hot and tell the Designdeck to switch the Johnson Carper desk for another. My goal is to ride the wave of europhia you’re experiencing and, if I can, heighten it further.

The Johnson Carper fades into an Alma.

I tell you to try and lift it.

You crouch down, back straight, and grip your fingers under one of the compartments.

It doesn’t budge.

The only way I can tell you’re trying is because of the crimson color you’ve turned and the veins on your face growing so large they’ve become sentient.

These desks are solid. They’re extremely well made and, in the 1960s, if you were given one at work then you were part of the management team or a distinguished employee.

They’re made of hardwood with walnut veneer.

“If you really want to keep everything retro, one of the compartments’ proper function is to hold a type writer.”

“But that means the novel will take even longer.”

“Good Point. You’re having enough trouble as it is.”

It’s time for one more of the classics.

Lane’s Acclaim desk.

The Hologram swaps the two desks.

Lane was the manufacturer and Acclaim is the name of the line of furniture that this desk belonged to.

Acclaim began in 1959, it’s difficult to find items in great condition but if you do then you’re best to secure it, I say.

The big draw at the time of manufacturing was the bridge between traditional North American designs and the new era of mid-century modern furniture.

Lane built these pieces using walnut and lighter colored fruitwood with dovetail inlays.

“Feel how smooth the joint is”

You reach out and carress my elbow.

Not what I meant, but these things happen.

I take your hand away and place it back onto the desk and you agree that the dovetailing is out of this world.

It’s a sign of excellent craftmanship, real care and attention to detail are needed to maintain an indistinguishable joint from the rest of the desk’s surface.

“Oh yeah, and these are the classic mid-century modern soft edges you were talking about.”

Correct.

I wasn’t lying.

Where can you buy vintage mid-century modern furniture from?

You want to know where you can buy this furniture, it’s clear the items I’ve just shown you aren’t made today.

It’s a great question.

There are a few places but you need to be fast and you need to constantly be on the look out.

The first one might surprise you if you haven’t been on it before.

I tell you to give me your phone. I guess the pin correctly first time and show you the screen for dramatic effect.

Facebook Marketplace.

It’s a section of Facebook that people upload items that they want to sell and you seal the deal on Facebook Messenger.

A lot of mid-century modern desks are bought and sold on there for reasonable prices. You need to check regularly though as they go quickly.

Cities have more choice but higher prices, the same with everything really.

Another marketplace is called 1stdibs.

This is the highend destination for antique seekers, you need plenty of cash in the bank if you want to buy most of the items on there.

I ask you if you have a lot of money and you tell me to mind my own business.

Where can you buy contemporary mid-century modern furniture?

I’ve shown you some vintage mid-century modern desks and you’re impressed with what you’ve seen.

As I’ve explained to you, the issue is sourcing the desks.

Finding them can be tricky and even when you look in the right places, luck is needed for you to be looking at the right times.

I want to show you some manufacturers who are creating impressive pieces of furniture that you can buy today.

Habitables is a furniture manufacturer with some incredible mid-century modern-inspired desks, the quality of outstanding.

Manuel is the owner and replies to people within 24 hours.

The lights dim and an exquisite new desk emerges.

“I love the smooth edges and tapered legs”, you tell me.

It’s a fantastic piece and highly reviewed by people have bought the desk themselves.

I tell you it’s made of solid walnut with carved holes at the front for the drawers. Mid-century modern furniture never featured ornamentation and was kept minimal.

“Take a closer look”

We both arch down in unison and gaze at the grain some more.

The Black American Walnut is covered in a matte acrylic varnish and on top of that, a natural wood oil to protect against you staining the desk after you knock your coffee over when you get a wave of inspiration to write the next chapter.

When you write your book on this desk the words are going to leak from every orifice.

Initially, this may be frightening, but when you get your book to your editor in double-quick time you’ll learn to love it.

You want to know if it’s easy to assemble.

It is.

It comes assembled and all you need to do is screw the legs in.

Made in Spain, the shipping to the United States is free.

It’s everything you’ve been searching for.

Before you go…

Thanks for making it all the way to the bottom.

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