The 1960S Home

The 1960s was a sustained period of economic growth, consumer spending and stable employment. Britons who had grown up during the privations of the 1940s and 1950s could now confidently enjoy the benefits of affluence and innovation, and they decorated their homes with bold wallpaper, designer furniture and space-age lamps. Here, Paul Evans looks at the colourful styles and fashions in domestic housing and interiors between 1960 and 1970, ranging from the soaring tower blocks that many now consider eyesores, to the open-plan detached homes of the middle classes. This period has received increasing attention in recent years, usually focused on progressive and exclusive design, but the author moves beyond this to describe and illustrate the furniture and furnishings of the 'average' home.