“We have a lot of one-of-a-kind vintage pieces that you’ll never see again once they’re gone,” says Modern Home 2 owner Mark Davis. “On each visit, it’s going to look very different.”
PHOTOGRAPHS BY NATE ABBOTT
If Modern Home 2’s glowing new storefront along South Palm Canyon Drive has caught your eye at night, circle back during the day for vintage-infused inspiration and practical ideas for your own living environments.
The recently opened counterpart to the Modern Home showroom — also in the Sun Center but focused on wall tile, flooring, carpet, and decorative hardware — rounds out a one-stop design experience with furniture, fabrics, wallpaper, art, rugs, and lighting, “When you walk into a space and you feel good but you’re not sure why, it’s a matter of cohesiveness,” says owner Mark Davis. Scan the showroom and you’ll see what he means. Metallics, for example, weave silvers, golds, and bronzes into vignettes showcasing midcentury pieces.
In rethinking your own spaces, Davis says, come up with a concept or mood, an overall feel for the space. Then, let Modern Home 2 play the muse. Bring your wish list — or your designer — to help pull everything together.
Here are his top tips.
LEAD WITH LIGHT
Lighting should never be an after-thought. “Lighting is so important, but a lot of people don’t think about it until the end. I am not a fan of overhead can lighting. I would much rather walk into a room that has beautiful ambient lighting. Plus, fixtures can be pieces of art,” Davis says, mentioning sculptural sconces or a geometric chandelier that relates to the wallpaper pattern. Whether you work the room around a color, a wall covering, or a dramatic chair, how you light it should be an early consideration.
TREAT YOUR
WALLS RIGHT
“Real art, not mass-produced or reproductions, makes a high-level impact on the design of any interior,” Davis notes. His passion for midcentury expressionism, modernism, and abstraction makes shopping for vintage artwork easy. “When you mix paintings, wall sculpture, and maybe a beautiful piece of black-and-white photography with a new piece of furniture, you create a space that’s unique.” For a wilder look, layer a pattern underneath after browsing the hundreds of wallpaper books.
FURNISH & ACCESSORIZE
The evolving vignettes display a harmonious brand of modernism using techniques and items Davis finds to be ahead of the curve. If you have a sofa or find a winner among the showroom’s vintage and contemporary furniture, the fabric section offers no shortage of textures, colors, and patterns to recover it. And while a pair of rare Herman Miller side tables with built-in lamps and planters might stretch the budget, you’ll love living with them, Davis ensures. “When people buy disposable furniture, it ends up in a landfill a few years later when they buy something else. By the time they’ve done that three times, they could have bought the most incredible vintage piece that has been preserved since the 1950s or ’60s that will probably continue to increase in value. And they would've been able to enjoy it for all those years. Thinking long term always pays off.”
Modern Home 2 owner Mark Davis becomes part of a vignette featuring David Hicks wallpaper, a new contemporary sofa, and vintage artwork.