Category Archives: Mid-century

Lucy’s LA lamps in Sinatra Movie

table-lamps
On of a pair of table lamps on the Hollywood set of I Love Lucy

A pair of table lamps similar to Lucy’s LA  lamps appear in the moview A Hole in the Head (1959) starring Framk Sinatra and Edward G Robinson. The are seen at either ends of a green sofa. Screen captures below. The neo-classical column lamps in the hollywood regency style have gilt details.aholeinthehead-franksinatra59 aholeinthehead-59-lamps

Lucy’s Gilt Vanity Mirror


An ornate gilt standing mirror is often seen on the mantel in the I Love Lucy living room. The easel mirror has a gilt finished scrolled style similar to the one below. The mirror is occasionally used as a prop when Lucy checks her out her new hat etc. In an early episode a different  mirror was used when Lucy tried ro read  the imprint of  note  Ricky had written.

This mirror is larger than the one on the show but in a similar style.

lucysmantel

Also seen in the photo is the Bolstad print and mid-century statue we looked at previously  –  picture from my instagram page.

Look for gilt easel mirrors on eBay

The Ricardo’s Framed Military Prints

Framed Cavalry Prints on I Love Lucy

Several small framed decorative prints can be seen on the living room walls of the I Love Lucy set. A set of cavalry sword men appear on the wall next to the fireplace and also on the back wall on either side of the larger Utrillo picture.

military-prints
Mounted Cavalry Prints seen on eBay

These prints  framed by Borghese are not identical  to those pictured in the screen grab above but they are from the same series of cavalry prints derived from an antique publication of broad sword exercises by Thomas Stephens.framed-prints-i-love-lucy

Thomas Stephens Broadsword exercises seen on eBay
Thomas Stephens Broadsword exercises seen on eBay

1950’s Tripod Lamp

Tripod lamp on the shelf in the bedroom set of I Love Lucy
Tripod lamp on the shelf in the bedroom set of I Love Lucy

I dont have an exact match yet for the Ricardo’s bedside tripod lamps but similar atomic style tripod cylinder lamps can be found online to create a similar look. Below is an example of a mid century tripod lamp with fibreglass shade  on eBay this week:

Vintage tripod lamp on eBay
Vintage tripod lamp on eBay -click picture for details on the vendor site

Restoration Project: I Love Lucy inspired Coffee Grinder

Lucy Ricardo's Coffee Mill/Grinder
Lucy Ricardo’s Coffee Mill/Grinder

A shabby vintage B.O Garantie coffee grinder is restored to resemble the coffee grinder seen in the I Love lucy Kitchen.

Comparison of B.O.Garantie grinder with an unmarked grinder like the one on I Love Lucy
1.  A shabby B.O.Garantie grinder right is found  that matches the shape of a vintage grinder like the one on I Love Lucy (left)

The unrestored grinder seen above on the right is compared to a vintage unmarked coffee grinder that matches the one seen on I Love Lucy.

Following are the before and after photos of the restoration.

Before and after restoration of B. O Garantie Coffee Grinder
2. Before and after restoration of B. O Garantie Coffee Grinder Credit: Rickster
restored-grinder
3. Before and After – metalwork restored and woodwork resurfaced and repainted , with a  new hand painted ivy motif. Credit: Rickster

As seen in the before and after pictures the shabby metal components  are shining again and new paintwork  seals off the old surface and gives it new life.  As a final touch an ivy motif  is hand painted on the front – inspired by the original coffee grinder as seen on I Love Lucy.

Related posts:

Resources:

Coffee Grinder to Restore

B.O Garantie Coffe Grinder on eBay
B.O Garantie Coffe Grinder on eBay

On ebay this week there is a B.O. Garantie coffe grinder (CLICK HERE to see it on eBay) that could be restored to look like the coffee grinder on I Love Lucy which we looked at in a previous post The B.O. Garantie grinder is the only other one I have seen that exactly matches the shape of the coffee grinder on the I Love Lucy  show as seen below in a previous side by side comparison.

Previous omparison of a similar B.O.Garantie grinder with an unmarked grinder like the one on I Love Lucy
Comparison of B.O.Garantie grinder (right) with an unmarked grinder like the one on I Love Lucy(left)

It would need to be stripped and repainted /varnished  and an ivy leaf decal painted/applied to the front to get the same look as the one on the show. See previous post for more details:
http://www.50slucy.com/lucy-ricardos-coffee-grinder.html

Site updates: Lucy’s Rooster Figurine – signed M.K.


Previous post updated with new informaton regarding the signature on a match for Lucy’s Rooster figurine at http://www.50slucy.com/lucys-rooster-figurine.html  The same mold is seen both signed and unsigned and was used by Kay Finch but the closest pair I found with markings like those seen on the show has  “M.K.” on the base

M. K. signature on base.
M. K. signature on base.

Find Rooster and Hen figurines on eBay

Borghese Framed Fashion Lady Print as seen on I Love Lucy

Pair of Borghese oval fashion prints on I Love Lucy
Pair of Borghese oval fashion prints on I Love Lucy
Oval Framed Borghese Fashion Lady Print
Oval Framed Borghese Fashion Lady Print

This Borghese chalkware/plaster framed fashion print matches one of a pair of oval pictures seen on the chimney breast in the Ricardo’s livingroom of their first apartment.
Listed on eBay HERE

Happy New Year!

Art books and more from Lucy Becomes a Sculptress

Lucy in the Art Shop in "Lucy Becomes a Sculptress"
Lucy in the Art Shop in “Lucy Becomes a Sculptress”

Happy New Year!

Found some fun art books that were in the background from the episode, Lucy Becomes Sculptress and wanted to share them.
pastelsdogs
artists-model
paintonchina

art-book-anatomy

artbooktextiles

A publicity photo shows Lucille painting at home:

Getty archive
Getty archive

http://www.housebeautiful.com/design-inspiration/celebrity-homes/a3983/lucille-ball-home/