An office for the mature and sophisticated Mod

The title should suggest more of a goal than the actual result. Me, mature? Maybe not. Sophisticated? I like to pretend that I am! But I certainly like to think outside the box and this is the end result of my vivid imagination.

When you want to add a touch of Mod to your decor, a room doesn't need to be filled with targets, Union Jack's and posters of Keith Moon. Unless you still live in your parent's basement. You can still show your Mod affiliations without turning it into a cliché. Subtlety and a keen eye for the finer details is the name of the game.

That is what I attempted to do when I converted my former bedroom into an office. To see what  became of my new bedroom, have a look at this post. Objective Mature and Sophisticated Mod is now in progress. The challenge for me is always to restrain myself. I tend to go overboard. Luckily, I have the perfect wife. She gives me carte blanche on all things decor related but she'll put on the brakes when we start missing space.

In an industrial loft, can you think of anything better then a tanker desk to help you plan world domination? Total cost of this one? Around 20$ for paint supplies to redo the desktop. The metal desk was found abandoned behind a Second World War era warehouse. A little elbow grease to wax it and remove the snails stuck to the bottom and here you have it.

The budget was instead put in this original vintage padded Eames office chair.

A red rotary phone is the only possible means of communication that can get you a direct line with the President. I might be busy hatching up plans to conquer the world but I always have time to chat with the Prez.

This Tron-Tek answering machine is indispensable when I want to make sure not to miss a phone call from my Angels.

What Mod doesn't need a good ol' fashion steamer truck for his suits when traveling across the Atlantic on a passenger liner? See! This is where the "sophisticated" part kicks in.  This particular model was usually tailor made for the business man because of an interesting feature. The grey storage compartment seen in this photo can serve as extra storage for the shoes and can also be turned into a briefcase or used as a writing desk when resting on your lap. 

I find it very practical to store some of my favorite suits and the small drawers are the perfect size for socks.

This old Canadian postal box has been conveniently converted to a clothes hamper. Drop your dirty Fred Perry's in the chute and collect them at the bottom when you're ready for a wash!

I covered the exiting closet doors with steel plates with rivets in order to recreate the type of fire doors you would find in a lot of factories of the era. The door to the room is a reclaimed 2 panel wooden door that I sanded down and re-stained. I took the top panel out and replaced it with a rippled opaque window. I then hired an artisan that has been doing commercial hand lettering for the past 40+ years. I had him paint "Entrepôt Chocolat" (Chocolate Warehouse) on the glass since the building had served as a cookie factory for more than a century. Period hardware completed the look of the door.

On the left of the door, I installed a 50s era X-Ray viewer that I use to display travel photos that I transfer to acetate. The beauty of this idea is that you can change photos in a pinch for next to nothing. It also doubles as mood lighting that manages to bring out the wonderful colours of the photos. Under it, there's a rack that holds boxes of overflow 45 records. I'm sure that many Mods out there can relate.

On the walls, you'll find some of my favorite collectibles and art. This piece of movie memorabilia will never leave my home. Show me one Mod that hasn't, at one point in his life, secretly wished that he was in James Bond's immaculate shoes. This genuine movie prop was part of the set of The World Is Not Enough. It's one of the 4 Top Secret files seen on screen when 007 receives his orders. Like any typical office file, you can clearly see who took it out last. You guessed it, it was JB himself. When I bought it, it came with 3 letters, one from Money Penny, one from M and one from Q. My favorite is by far the letter from Q. He warns 007 to be careful with the new BMW and directs him to bring it back in one piece. I plan to frame that one separately one day.

This CIA classified file was part of the The Bourne Supremacy movie set. Not as unique as the James Bond prop, it did come with a photo of Jason Bourne in it.

This limited edition serigraph of renown artist Shag is another of my prized possessions. I find it fits very well with my spy theme memorabilia. You can read all about this print in this post.

To take advantage of the almost 13' high ceilings of the loft, I had to find something large that would fill the space. This London bus destination blind, that I bought online, is the perfect solution. Again, a nod to Mod without being overly obvious. On it, you'll find some of my favorite and most recognizable spots like King's Cross, Camden Town and Abbey Road.

On the opposite wall, a painting that depicts the obsession of many Mods and above it, a nondescript vintage guitar that I bought at a garage sale for 35$.

A pair of mid-century modern wall sconces adorn the outside wall. If you're looking to decorate your walls on a budget with cool images, may I suggest these vinyl album frames that you can find without too much effort. I like to change the album from time to time.

This is it, fellow Mods. I hope this post will serve as inspiration to spice things up on the home decor front. I want to thank Katia Provencher for taking some of the professional looking photos, like the first two. Want to hire her? You are but one click away.