Our Meiselman Journey: Part 9 – Furniture and Decor: Furnishing Our Meiselman Home

Where to Find the Perfect Pieces

Once the construction dust settled and the pool was finally finished, Susan and I faced a new challenge: furnishing our restored Meiselman home. We had a beautiful, empty shell with terrazzo floors, custom cabinets, and freshly painted walls in museum white. Now we needed furniture that would honor the midcentury modern aesthetic while creating spaces we actually wanted to live in.

This turned out to be one of the most enjoyable aspects of our entire restoration journey.

Our Philosophy: Authentic but Not Dogmatic

Before we started shopping, we established our approach. We didn’t want our home to feel like a museum or a movie set from 1965. We wanted it to feel authentic to the period while being comfortable and functional for contemporary life, and taking into account that it would be used as a short-term vacation rental property.

This meant mixing vintage pieces with new productions, combining iconic designs with less famous but equally beautiful furniture, and being willing to include contemporary pieces if they felt right in the space. The goal wasn’t perfect period authenticity—it was creating a home that honored midcentury modern design principles while reflecting our personal taste and budget.

We also recognized that furnishing a midcentury modern home is fundamentally different from furnishing a traditional home. These houses were designed with specific furniture in mind: low-slung sofas that wouldn’t block sight lines, sleek case goods that emphasized horizontal lines, chairs with sculptural forms that functioned as art objects. The wrong furniture—too tall, too ornate, too plush, too heavy—can completely undermine the architecture.

Starting with Research

We spent months studying photos of well-furnished midcentury homes, visiting showrooms in Chicago and during our trips to Palm Springs. We got into learning more about the designers and manufacturers whose work defined the era: Herman Miller, Knoll, Eames, Saarinen, Bertoia, Wegner, Nelson.

We learned how to distinguish between authentic vintage pieces and modern reproductions, to spot quality construction versus cheap knockoffs, and to understand why certain pieces command premium prices while others are more budget friendly.

We also learned that Palm Springs is a treasure trove for midcentury modern furniture. The city’s concentration of midcentury homes has created a robust market of vintage dealers, consignment shops, and modern furniture stores that understand the aesthetic.

The Hunt: Where We Found Our Furniture

Our furniture came from a mix of sources, each with its own advantages and challenges.

Vintage dealers and specialty shops provided our most distinctive pieces. Stores like Modernway Vintage, Boomerang for Modern, and a La MOD offered carefully curated selections of authentic midcentury furniture. These shops are more expensive than consignment stores, but the quality is vetted and the pieces are often museum-worthy.

Consignment shops offered better values on quality pieces. Palm Springs Consignment & Gallery in Cathedral City became a regular stop—their 15,000-square-foot showroom constantly rotates inventory, and we found several excellent pieces including our dining table and outdoor furniture. Misty’s Consignments in Rancho Mirage is one of our favorites and operates on a scheduled markdown system, meaning prices drop the longer items remain on the floor. Patience can yield significant savings. We purchased our sofa, living room chairs, and dining table from Misty’s.

Multi-dealer vintage malls like Sunny Dunes Antique Mall and Antique Galleries of Palm Springs are overwhelming in the best way—thousands of square feet of furniture, décor, and accessories from multiple dealers under one roof. You need time to dig through everything, but the treasures are there. We found our bedroom nightstands, several lamps, and countless accessories at these locations.

Modern reproduction retailers filled gaps where vintage pieces weren’t practical or available. Stores like West Elm, Amazon, and Wayfair, carry many good quality midcentury modern replicas. We used West Elm for the furniture in all our bedrooms and Wayfair for most of our outdoor pieces, where weather durability mattered more than vintage authenticity.

Estate sales and private sellers yielded some of our best finds at the best prices. We monitored estate sale listings religiously and attended several sales in Palm Springs neighborhoods. Competition can be fierce—serious collectors line up before doors open—but the values are unbeatable. We found our living room coffee table and several pieces of artwork this way.

Online sources complemented our local hunting. We used Facebook Marketplace to find some high-end vintage pieces that we couldn’t find locally.  The 5′ x 5′ Andy Warhol screen print with four portraits of Marylin Monroe that dominates our living room came from Facebook Marketplace, as did our living room credenza and dining room chairs.  The Noguchi coffer table replica came from Wayfair as did all of our outdoor furniture.  Many of the lights in our home came from Amazon.

The Learning Curve: What We Wish We’d Known

Take your time. We initially felt pressure to furnish the entire house quickly, but the best approach is to live in the space, understand how you use each room, and then find the perfect pieces. We love shopping for furniture and replacing the replicas with the real deal when we find the right piece and the right price.

Measure obsessively. Midcentury modern homes often have much smaller rooms than contemporary homes, so furniture can make the room feel either spacious or claustrophobic. We learned the hard way to measure not just floor space but also sight lines, window heights, and traffic patterns.

Prioritize quality over quantity. One authentic vintage credenza makes a bigger impact than a room full of cheap reproductions. We’d rather have fewer, better pieces than a house full of mediocre furniture.

Mix high and low. All of our bedroom furniture was purchased new from West Elm.  The living and dining rooms were a combination of new and old.  Our most expensive piece is our vintage Saarinen marble dining table ($1,800), and on the low end, our Noguchi coffee table costs less than $375 from Amazon. Both look perfect in our living room, and guests can’t tell which is which.

Don’t forget outdoor furniture. In Palm Springs, outdoor spaces are as important as indoor rooms. We invested significantly in quality aluminum outdoor furniture that would withstand desert sun and be comfortable enough for hours of lounging, but it didn’t cost a fortune.  Susan found a line on Wayfair, which is where we bought all of our outdoor furniture, for less than $5,000.

Build relationships with dealers. Once dealers know you’re a serious buyer with good taste, they’ll call you when special pieces come in. Several of our best finds came from dealers who remembered us and reached out when they acquired pieces that matched our aesthetic.

Palm Springs MCM Furniture Shopping Guide

Name	City	Type	Best For
Palm Springs Consignment & Gallery	Cathedral City	Consignment	Large selection, indoor/outdoor furniture
The Estate Sale Company	Palm Springs	Consignment	Large selection of  estate pieces
Misty’s Consignments	Rancho Mirage	Consignment	Great selection, good values
The Private Collection Consignment	Palm Desert	Consignment	Designer furniture, El Paseo area
Modernway Vintage	Palm Springs	MCM Vintage	Authentic 1950s-70s originals
Boomerang for Modern	Palm Springs	MCM Vintage	Designer classics, American & Scandinavian
a La MOD	Palm Springs	MCM Vintage	High-end collectible pieces
Re[x] Palm Springs (Haus of Re[x])	Palm Springs	MCM Vintage	New and vintage MCM pieces
Hedge	Palm Springs	Vintage Gallery	Eclectic mix, frequently recommended
Modmart Palm Springs	Palm Springs	MCM Retail	Period-inspired contemporary pieces
Sunny Dunes Antique Mall	Palm Springs	Vintage Mall	Large multi-dealer, extensive MCM section
Antique Galleries of Palm Springs	Palm Springs	Vintage Mall	12,000 sq ft, significant MCM inventory
MARKET MARKET	Palm Springs	Mixed Vintage	40,000 sq ft multi-dealer emporium
Christopher Anthony Ltd.	Palm Springs	Design Gallery	Curated vintage and contemporary
Ventura of Palm Springs	Palm Springs	Design/Vintage	Multiple eras including MCM
Modern Home2	Palm Springs	Modern Retail	Contemporary MCM-inspired designs
SWAG Furniture	Palm Springs	Modern Retail	Stylish modern and MCM-leaning pieces
Sunbeam Vintage	Palm Springs	MCM-Inspired	Colorful, playful MCM-inspired pieces
Bon Vivant	Palm Springs	Vintage/Décor	Retro-modern furniture and collectibles
Industry Palm Springs	Palm Springs	Modern/Design	Blends modern and MCM styles
AT HOM PS	Palm Springs	Vintage/Modern	Strong MCM-influenced furniture

The Result: A Home That Feels Right

The key is an overall vision of what you’re trying to accomplish, and then patience, persistence, and a willingness to trust your instincts about what feels right in the space. Oh, and don’t forget Facebook Marketplace. Some of our best finds have come from there!

In the next article, we’ll provide the final home tour—what our restored Meiselman looks like today, complete with before-and-after comparisons that show the transformation from a dated fixer-upper to a Desert Modern gem.