The 1937 Office takes shape.

[thunderw21]

Sharp house, Fletch, and that desk with accessories was a steal. You're not the only one who shops at Antique Ames.

I'm glad you were able to save the house, I drive by it once in a while when I'm over in Ames. Nice work on it.

Cheers

 

[Story]

Datamancer (an FL member) cooked up this art deco keyboard -

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/04/datamancer-goes/

Doc Datamancer is at it again — only this time he’s thrown out the steampunk and built this lovely Art Deco keyboard. The Datamancer Deco Keyboard was built to order for indie movie theater and rental store Cinema 16:9 in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania.

 

[J. M. Stovall]

That would be a DieselPunk keyboard for sure!

 

[Dr Doran]

Fletch, it's gorgeous.

 

[ladybrettashley]

Wow, your offices are great! I especially love the map's secret =)

I'm pretty excited that the office is coming together in our house, so i thought i'd put up some photos. Plus, it will probably never be clean again!

It's definitely a work in progress (there is a banker's lamp making its way here now), so i'd love to know what y'all think, or if you have any suggestions. We got the desk on the left (mine) for free from my girlfriend's parents. It was kind of falling apart in their garage, but it took very little work to make it solid again. Obviously, i didn't try to repair the top drawer; i've decided that it is more useful as a letter-writing nook. You can see my typewriter in there; i'm a bit in love with it - but i suppose that's more of an office supplies thing.

Anyhow, we just found the right-hand desk (hers) on craigslist this weekend! The matchyness was too good to pass up. The next step is built-in bookshelves on the wall to the left! Hopefully... =)

Oh! And the chair on the left was made by her granddad! He made violins, too (and many other things, but that's what we have).

 

[Mike in Seattle]

Anyhow, we just found the right-hand desk (hers) on craigslist this weekend! The matchyness was too good to pass up.

Suggestion - flip the desks (put the right on the left, and left on the right) and then move them a little to the left. That way you both can look out the window while working, instead of one looking at the wall.

 

[Shangas]

**Points at Fletch's first photo**

Parker Duofold two-bander & Sheaffer Balance marbled green!

Two of my favourite fountain pens! Don't they just make great writers?

 

[cco23i]

OUTSTANDING ALL!! Here is the one we set up for our bomber fantasy camp.

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b12/cco23i/Billsoffice2.jpg
http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b12/cco23i/Billsoffice1.jpg

And the students being "processed in".

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b12/cco23i/Kaisphoto.jpg

Of course, here's mine while on the flightline.

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b12/cco23i/Scottdesk.jpg

 

[Fletch]

**Points at Fletch's first photo**

Parker Duofold two-bander & Sheaffer Balance marbled green!

Two of my favourite fountain pens! Don't they just make great writers?

It's the writing makes the writer, but yes, they're great.
The Duo is actually a repro given me on my graduation from college, for which I have both FP nib and rollerball.
The Sheaffer was my grandfather's, engraved and presented to him in 1933 when elected to city office.

 

[Forgotten Man]

The office in the 1937 House that is - located upstairs, inside the four-paned windows in the linked pic.

Click to enlarge
This is something I'd been planning for some time, ever since I saw this nifty oak desk at our local antique mall. I went back this weekend and not only was the desk still there, but a closely matching oak office chair was up on the second floor - and a highly appropriate gooseneck lamp and phone, both in working order.

Click to enlarge
Cost for everything: $275. I think I made out, considering very little search time or shoe leather were involved - the stuff practically fell into my lap.

Ma Bell's workhorse - the iconic Henry Dreyfuss-designed Western Electric 302. It's a 1937 design, but this particular example is circa 1950, with the plastic housing, F1 handset, and No. 6 dial - the one that makes a satisfying whirrr, not the much-prized ratchet sound. (I've been studying up - the phone hobby is strictly for obsessives that way.)

The dial card is a Photoshop from several hi-res .jpegs located at the Telephone Archive site. CEdar 2 is our actual exchange, listed as such from the beginning of direct dial in 1955 till 1960, when it was relisted as 232.

The ultimate goal of the 1937 Office is to reclaim space once belonging to a small bedroom, whose wall was demolished to create a single large master bedroom. My dresser, clothes tree and other articles will be pushed back into the sleeping area.

Added to the office will be:
- my school materials, in the built-in shelving (original to the house; the added doors are in the style of our other original cabinets)
- my 21" flat panel monitor and black MacBook
- vintage ephemera, some Iowa-related, for the walls
- a low bookcase to the other side of the built-ins
- a suitable period clock, table radio, and waste paper basket (I'm considering a large Hiland Potato Chip canister)

Well, this is taking shape! You did well to get all those goodies for that price! I must say, I’ve been wanting to have a home office for quite a wile. Some day I’ll have the room for doing just that when I own my own home. For now, I have something that is just not correct in what I preach… lol but, it’s ok.

I wouldn’t disturb your wonderful start with any modern office desk monsters like a PC. When I get me space for a home office, the PC I’ll have will be a laptop job that folds up and can kick to a closet and it can sit there till I need it. I hope to have a basement and a little office behind a old door with smoked glass that I can have in gold type “PRIVATE” and have the PC for doin’ photo shop stuff down there. lol

Keep your eyes on ebay, there’s lots of good office stuff that comes up on there also antique shops can be good too. When looking for office trinkets like a stapler and so on, if you find you can’t find the correct ones for 1937, you may want to get something a little earlier then later. Always a better way to go seeing most offices back then would have had plenty of older tools layin’ around.

I’m excited to see what else you get for your office! Also, a tip is to watch period movies that have lots of office scenes in them… that way you’ll get a pretty good idea of what else you may need if you don’t already… oh, don’t forget the Arrowhead water cooler!

 

[MikeBravo]

Brilliant!!

Suggestion - flip the desks (put the right on the left, and left on the right) and then move them a little to the left. That way you both can look out the window while working, instead of one looking at the wall.

It just takes a fresh eye to come up with a brilliant solution for a problem someone else didn't even know existed!