The Design Collective Group, Inc.
  • Welcome Home
  • Who .
    • Contact Us.
  • In My Humble Opinion
  • What .
  • When .
  • Where .
  • Why .
  • How .
  • Portfolio .
    • Living Spaces
    • Kitchen Spaces
    • Bedroom Spaces
    • Bathroom Spaces
    • Club Design
    • Office Design
    • Other Spaces
    • Recents Spaces
  • Get This Guide
  • Providence Project
  • Condo Project
  • S+J-PSP
  • La Quinta Project
  • R+J - Rancho Mirage
  • An Artful Home Project
  • Testimonials + Awards
  • Client Access
  • mitchscott
  • Project Portfolio
  • thompsonhardesty
  • Alta-PSP
  • Phillips
  • Bella Cara Way Residence
  • SilverSands
  • johnstevecabana
  • DunnCapitalFinal
  • NickCash-PSP
  • 3D Renderings
  • Makie Residence
  • Sun City Palm Desert
  • 67 Canejo Circle Residence
  • Citrus Renovation
  • WardGade
  • M Bathroom @ Citrus Country Club
  • TrilogyCMCDesignConcepts
  • PCA-Interior Finishes
  • Ledesma Residence
  • DKJ-MonteSereno
  • AM-PSP
  • Olivier MBath
  • Ritchie Great Room
  • DKJ-PSP
  • DKJ-DEN
  • ORPS-PreliminaryConcepts
  • ORPS-La Palma Revisions v1.5a
  • NC Amado v3
  • Hermosa PSP

The 70's Was A Time Of Radical Change

7/7/2014

3 Comments

 
Picture
By Michael A. Thomas, FASID, CAPS
As the 76 million Baby Boomers being to approach their retirement, many will look back on decades gone by and remember the "good times." For them, and yes for all, there are those moments that one just can't forget.... mile-markers in time.... like our first true love, the first car, the first real job, maybe it was the first house you bought with a 30-year mortgage ( a commitment at the time which seemed like it would last forever. )

But especially for Boomers, there were many kinds of mile-markers during the 1970s. It was a time of change and huge social evolution. They were blazing trails and burning bridges,... sometimes at the same time. American novelist Tom Wolfe labeled the 1970s as “the Me Decade" and based this on the Boomer's newfound preoccupation with their own self-discovery and self-awareness.

Picture
RADICAL CHANGE SOON BECAME THE NORM

Here are some examples of how times have changed and how the times changed the lives of the Baby Boomer.

Trendy home design during the early 1970s was considered "mod."  Bright citrus colors replaced the classic1960's "boring beige" and "tired taupe." Chippendale cherry wood chairs and tables were tossed aside and replaced with seating and counters made from Lucite and Formica. While vertical slat and mini-slat blinds had been around but they become very popular during this era.  Big prints and big plants filled our rooms. 

During this time, dishwashers were considered a real luxury and microwave ovens still seemed something from outer space. While we had color TV, there were only a handful of stations where I lived to choose from and only a few TV shows were in color. And depending on where you lived, TV stations signed off at midnight after playing the National Anthem.   

If you wanted to listen to specific music artist, there were vinyl records. You could buy about 14 songs on vinyl for about $ 5.99. ( My first was Carol King's Tapestry and I still have it.)  Today, CD discs are "out,"  iTunes is "in" and vinyl is returning to favor.  Wait, ... what happened there?  This was also a time before fax machines, desk top computers, voice, emails and cell phones. It makes you wonder how we ever communicated with one another? 

Early Boomers were some of the first to raise concerns about the destruction of the planet's resources. Studies and reports released about air, land and water pollution led to marches, demonstrations and sit-ins which helped to give birth to the "sustainable" movement. We know it today as "green design," a popular trend in building that has become a standard design component. 

And speaking of giving birth, the Boomer generation was the first generation that thought it was perfectly fine to have a baby and then get married.  And in July, 1978, the first test-tube baby was born which proved that you didn't even need a uterus to have one.  Amazing, eh?  

WE GIVE THANKS TO THOSE RADICAL BOOMERS 

Those crazy years provided many milestones and memories for Boomers.  Those years shaped who they were, what they believed, how they lived and what they became impacted our culture. 

So you say you're a Boomer but can't remember back then? Perhaps you weren't even born yet?  
Take a peak at what it was like in 1974 and see how things have changed,... or have they really? 

• In 1974: It was all about long hair
• Now 2014: It is just longing for hair

1974: Always looking for the perfect high
2014: The perfect high yield mutual fund

1974: Can't want for that "weekend KEG"
2014: Needing an EKG next week

1974: Acid rock was so "down"
2014: Acid reflux is so "up"

1974: Moving to Calif. because it's cool
2014: Moving to Calif. because it's warm

1974: Growing pot
2014: Growing pot belly

1974: Rolling Stones was so in
2014: Kidney Stones have to come out

1974: Popping pills, smoking joints
2014: Now it is just popping joints

1974: Going to the Disco Saturday nights
2014: Going to Costco Saturday mornings

1974: Killer weed every weekend
2014: Now its weed killer every weekend

1974: Hoping for a BMW
2014: Now just longing for a BM

1974: Going to a new, hip joint was hot
2014: Receiving a new hip joint is not

1974: Passing the drivers' test
2014: Passing the vision test 


1974: How we loved the Grateful Dead
2014: Now we're just grateful we're not



And finally.... in 1974: we were saying "Whatever." 
But now its 2014,... and we're saying "Depends."

  
So if you're a Boomer, what's changed for you? What do you remember? 

3 Comments
Cindy Mayer
7/8/2014 01:44:08 am

Very clever post. I remember as a boomer things like Polaroid cameras, Magnum PI and going to see a movie on the big screen... except we called it the Drive In. And my parents home was exactly like you described it. Lots of yellow and lime green trellis foil wall paper. oh my... somethings just shouldn't be remembered. Thanks.

Reply
Jonny Johansen
7/8/2014 02:56:06 am

I am a younger baby boomer, born in 1963 but i remember all that stuff you wrote about. My mom's house was decked out with all the greatest and best appliances including a harvest gold sink. She still set up dinner in the real dining room every evening and called up in from the outdoors when it was time to "wash up." The thing I remember about the design of her house was that it was a split level and my bedroom was up on the higher floor. You just don't see too many split levels any more but sure was a great house to run up and down the short flights of stairs. thanks for writing this. good stuff.

Reply
Robert James, Jr.
7/8/2014 03:10:03 am

What I remember about the 1970s was the sex, drugs and rock and roll. Actually not so much the sex. And really not much about the drugs, ... mainly some pot but it was sure all about the ROCK AND ROLL. I am going to be 71 this year and I still have my vinyl LPs of Three Dog Night and the Rolling Stones. Anyone wanna boogie down tonight?

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Michael A. Thomas, FASID interior designer in Phoenix and Scottsdale, AZ
    ................................................. • Michael A. Thomas, CAPS, FASID is a passionate interior designer that constantly examines the impact design has on the human experience.
    Michael is an award winning interior designer based in Palm Desert, CA. He is a  Professional Member of the American Society of Interior Designers and a member of the ASID College of Fellows.  

    As a Certified Aging In Place Specialist, he creates smart looking spaces that are safe and secure and create homes for a lifetime.

    And with thirty plus years in the profession, he has honed his humor, elevated his passion for design and sharpened his wit to not take anything too seriously except his design work. 
    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Archives

    June 2024
    November 2022
    May 2022
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    June 2019
    September 2018
    March 2018
    October 2017
    August 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    October 2016
    August 2016
    April 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    June 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    May 2012
    February 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2007

    Categories

    All
    Aging In Place
    Baby Boomers
    Case Study 101
    Design Trends
    Frank Lloyd Wright
    Interior Design
    Kitchen
    Remodeling
    Taliesin West

    RSS Feed

©1996 ~ 2025 The Design Collective Group, Inc. • All Rights Reserved •
​Voice: 760 - 322 - 3784  
 All Photos, Images + Text Are Copyrighted + Cannot Be Used Without First Obtaining Permission.  -- 2025.
  • Welcome Home
  • Who .
    • Contact Us.
  • In My Humble Opinion
  • What .
  • When .
  • Where .
  • Why .
  • How .
  • Portfolio .
    • Living Spaces
    • Kitchen Spaces
    • Bedroom Spaces
    • Bathroom Spaces
    • Club Design
    • Office Design
    • Other Spaces
    • Recents Spaces
  • Get This Guide
  • Providence Project
  • Condo Project
  • S+J-PSP
  • La Quinta Project
  • R+J - Rancho Mirage
  • An Artful Home Project
  • Testimonials + Awards
  • Client Access
  • mitchscott
  • Project Portfolio
  • thompsonhardesty
  • Alta-PSP
  • Phillips
  • Bella Cara Way Residence
  • SilverSands
  • johnstevecabana
  • DunnCapitalFinal
  • NickCash-PSP
  • 3D Renderings
  • Makie Residence
  • Sun City Palm Desert
  • 67 Canejo Circle Residence
  • Citrus Renovation
  • WardGade
  • M Bathroom @ Citrus Country Club
  • TrilogyCMCDesignConcepts
  • PCA-Interior Finishes
  • Ledesma Residence
  • DKJ-MonteSereno
  • AM-PSP
  • Olivier MBath
  • Ritchie Great Room
  • DKJ-PSP
  • DKJ-DEN
  • ORPS-PreliminaryConcepts
  • ORPS-La Palma Revisions v1.5a
  • NC Amado v3
  • Hermosa PSP