Ultra Swank - Retro Adventures

Design • advertising • interior • architecture

Elvis’ Palm Springs Honeymoon Home for Sale

Elvis Presley fans rejoice! The ultimate Elvis pad is now up for sale in sunny Palm Springs, California – complete with Rock ‘n’ Roll memorabilia. In 1962, Look Magazine featured the estate calling it the “House of Tomorrow” due to its forward-thinking decor. Oh, and Lisa Marie was most likely conceived here. In 1966 this historic mid-century house was leased to Elvis Presley and Priscilla...

Mid-Century Desert Hideaways – Two Palm Springs Hotels

Forget your worries for a while and travel back in time to a place where iconic Mid-Century design and architecture can still be enjoyed and gloriously relived. Located in the famous desert utopia of Palm Springs in California, the Orbit In and the Horizon Hotel boast a chic vintage presence combined with ultra-mod amenities worthy of the most à la mode contemporary hotel. Enjoy drinks by the...

Confessions of a Wannabe Scandinavian
Written by Patricia Greenwood in Interior

Confessions of a Wannabe Scandinavian

Okay, I’ll admit it. While many in America have a pre-occupation for everything Irish, I have a pre-occupation for everything Scandinavian. Perhaps it began as an undergrad student during British Lit I when I was introduced to the Viking tale “Beowulf,” story of a fearless Geat leader from Geatland, now part of modern day Sweden. Perhaps it was years of tormenting high school students with...

A British 1930s Time Capsule in Full Swing

Like many of us, you’ve probably wished you lived in another decade and era. Perhaps you are in love with La Belle Èpoque, Art Deco, Modernism or anything in-between. In Woody Allen’s movie “Midnight in Paris”, the protagonist explores his love with nostalgia, thinking that the past is better than the current. Aaron Whiteside, feels exactly the same way. Located in a semi-detached house in...

A Perspective on Brutalism Architecture

It’s funny how viewing an object can trigger long forgotten memories. Such is the case of the brutalist style wall hanging purchased recently for my vintage shop. Created by Finesse Originals during the 70s, it features a fiberglass rendering of a fisherman pulling his net from the water. The strong jagged lines of the fisherman along with the rugged and dark backdrop of the hanging...

1965 Thunderbird Couch by Flexsteel
Written by Patricia Greenwood in Design

1965 Thunderbird Couch by Flexsteel

As a seller of vintage goods, I am fortunate to come upon some wonderful relics of our Mid-Century Modern era, a short lived but incredibly artistic and innovative time period. Many of the companies that produced these goods are no longer in existence, but there is one furniture company that has stood the test of time. That company is Flexsteel out of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Flexsteel,...

Modern Retro Futuristic Illustrations

Matthew Lyons is a talented British born designer with a love for simplistic retro futuristic designs that pays tribute to the mid century illustrations of artists such as Charles Schridde. Along with the illustrations, Matthew have also worked on a handful of faux movie title screens from the past that looks intriguing. His work would no doubt work very well as prints for any retro styled...

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