Pole Dancing

Every mid-century home should have a pole. A tension-pole lamp that is. You can't slide down it like a fireman, or dance around it like a stripper entertainer, but it does a magnificent job a standing in the corner and providing lots of era-appropriate light. 

It is hard to find any specific information on exactly when tension-pole lamps made the scene. Our research suggests that they appeared in the 50s and were ubiquitous in the 60s and phased out in the early 70s. Unless you have a designer one it is even harder to tell when the one you own was manufactured. 

Some common traits of all include: floor to ceiling contact with the top portion being spring-tensioned like a pogo stick, three adjustable lamps with shades that are coned shaped (cones typically in the 60s and 70s while globes seemed more common in the 50s), and a polished metal or fake wood finish with real wood knobs on the lamps. 

We found one at a retro store a few months back, but it had round wicker globes on it, not the atomic-style, cone-like lamp covers. We made the right decision by holding out until we found the one we need to accentuate our mid-century living room. One nearly identical to the one in Tom's living room in the 60s. You can see it in all of its mid-century, atomic splendor in the photo. One 21st century update though: CFL bulbs....it's for the environment you know.