Living the Dream

Bringing your Mid Century Modern style ideas together doesn’t have to be a nightmare. Karen Nepacena proves that your passion can light the way.

Positive reward is a powerful thing. You hunt for that gem of a Mid Century Modern home and finally get one. Cue the enthusiast’s high. Comb the Internet and your local mid-mod shops for the perfect pieces to fill that home. Your pride and sense of accomplishment swells. Karen Nepacena took that momentum to another level when she bought her fixer-upper Eichler in Northern California and started the blog Destination Eichler to document her and her husband John’s hard work transforming and restoring that home to its mid-century splendor.

wood paneling in wall of MCM house with desk area and yellow floral painting — Space is often at a premium when it comes to Mid Century Modern homes. So, Nepacena has advice for anyone trying to carve out a home-office space. “You can help define different zones in a shared space by using rugs, accent walls and décor—anything that will set off or signal a shift in setting,” she writes.

It wasn’t long before Nepacena was being recognized for her impressive work on the home. Other MCM homeowners began to ask her for advice and suggestions for their homes. Soon, she left her day job and launched full steam ahead into a boutique interior design and remodeling business where she became known as one of the few pioneering mod-centric firms helping to restore and revive Mid Century Modern houses one client at a time. And more than 150 clients later, she’s leveling up again with her new book, Mid Century Modern Style: An Approachable Guide to Inspired Rooms, created alongside her long-time photographer partner, Chris Dibble.

MCM dining room with Sputnik chandelier Blenko vases MCM credenza and upholstered dining chairs — Nepacena says to embrace upholstery and cushions. “Another classic way to channel midcentury modern design in your dining chairs is to choose ones that are upholstered, like those we used in a dining room in Los Altos, California,” she writes of this space. “The seat of the chair provides the visual interest, while the rest of the room is left relatively simple and unadorned.”

Mid Century For All

Nepacena’s unconventional path to professional interior design has made her passionate about one major thing: a great functional and stylish mod home can be carved out for anyone. “Transforming or updating a space doesn’t always have to mean a large-scale renovation or big budget. Maybe you are looking for small ways to infuse that mid-century feel into your home without a big overhaul,” she writes in the first chapter. “In some cases, it could be as simple as swapping one material for another or finding just the right vintage retro clock to make your space more mid-mod. Mixing in MCM-inspired colors, patterns, textures and treasured objects can take a space from just a room with four walls to an environment that evokes comfort and joy.”

open plan living room with sectional sofa and brick fireplace — Nepacena advocates for sustainable shopping, such as opting for vintage when you can, which is what her clients in Los Altos, California, did by selecting this Adrian Pearsall sofa, which received new cushions and was reupholstered in a vibrant fabric to give it another generation of use. “In today’s world full of mass-produced furniture and décor, I believe that choosing sustainable options whenever possible is more important than ever,” the author writes. “Fortunately, much like when it comes to adding mid-mod touches to your home, it only takes a few approachable guideposts and ideas to help reduce your carbon footprint.”

Indeed, Nepacena writes the book from the perspective that you can create a period-appropriate design scheme that works for your household—and it doesn’t have to require a major budget. In her subsequent chapters, she not only arms readers with a user-friendly primer on MCM architecture and history, she often includes frequently asked questions from her readers over the years as well as tips for DIY approaches and reuse ideas to keep costs down.

This home has its original wood paneling. “A more accessible way to bring the warmth of natural wood to your living room, like the original paneling in this home, is to opt for a slat wall instead of paneling,” the author writes. “You can create gorgeous slat walls with individual slats or premade panels made to look like individual slats—or you can trick everyone with a realistic wood panel or slat wallpaper.”

wall hangings in MCM home styled by Nepacena — Nepacena’s work is often about infusing a space with personal style. A great way she does this is through art. “Midcentury modern artwork includes a variety of mediums and styles, but a few key themes include abstract art, geometric patterns, sculptural and organic shapes, and influences from the Bauhaus movement, which centered around the principle of form following function,” she writes.

Interior Design Basics

Part of the path to approachability that the author paves is through helpful diagrams and sidebars that explain everything from room arrangements and lighting categories to retro patterns and classic MCM color palettes.

Subsequent chapters go room by room, starting with the exterior, with Nepacena breaking down her go-to design principles to help readers tackle everything from furniture placement and focal points to décor and accents. For those ready for bigger projects, she details her advice for choosing things like tile backsplashes and even artwork. Last, but not least, she also addresses everyday design challenges such as designing with kids or pets in mind, or creating a home office that works just as effectively as is it stylish.

MCM kitchen featured in Nepacena's MCM style book — “When working with clients on a mid century-inspired kitchen design, we try to strike a balance between incorporating similar materials from the era and making sure to keep modern-day functionality and practicality top of mind,” the author writes.

Midcentury Modern Style book by Nepacena — Mid Century Modern Style: An Approachable Guide to Inspired Rooms by Karen Nepacena, photography by Chris Dibble, published by Gibbs Smith, gibbs-smith.com; © 2023.

Get the book over at gibbs-smith.com or on amazon.

See more of Karen Nepacena’s home here. And of course, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube for more Atomic Ranch articles, house tours, and ideas!