mid-century home Archives - MidMod Midwest

AI is NOT Your Mid-Century Design Friend

35 min readYou may already use AI to get input on many areas of your life. And you may feel like the convenience outweigh its many negatives. Maybe. But here where we talk about making right choices for your home, let me assure you, you will not get good advice or even peace of mind about your design options by asking AI.

To paraphrase a meme I saw recently, Hey, y’all don’t ask ChatGPT. Make friends with a nerd.

And I am so, so happy to be your mid-century design and remodeling nerd.

I’ve been irked by AI for a while. It seems like it is over promising and under delivering. And I’m always kind of on the lookout for more information to corroborate my opinion.

The Washington Post recently ran a top of the page headline piece titled something like, “Can AI Do Your Job?” The very first example they gave was, can it do the job of an architect or a designer. And the short answer is, “nope.”

On their very first example they asked it to create a digital floor plan based on a hand drawn floor plan. And it was literally just supposed to recreate a hand drawn sketch as a digital floor plan. The human version was very tidy and annotated with dimensions. The chat version? Just a bunch of rooms labeled. AND with a bizarre relocation of spaces, including a bathroom surrounded on three sides by corridors. Certainly not a useful replica and in no way an improvement.

Why is AI so bad at being a designer? And even worse at helping you plan a remodel for your mid-century home? I have thoughts.

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Mid-Century Furniture you can aspire to

What makes mid-century furniture so great, and what pieces of mid-century furniture – specifically – might you want to hunt down for your house? Let’s talk about finding the perfect vintage item, saving up for the perfect iconic chair, and when you just want to go “mid-century” instead of mid-century.

Adding Insulation to Your Mid-Century House

27 min readIs your house too chilly in winter or too toasty in summer? Let’s explore improving your home’s energy efficiency, without compromising its mid-century charm, by adding insulation.

Mid-century homes weren’t built with modern insulation standards in mind. Many of our homes leak heat in cold climates or let in too much warmth in hot ones.

The good news is that these homes often have excellent air seals thanks to plaster walls and old-growth materials, which provide a solid foundation for energy improvements.

Easy Wins for Cozy Living

If you’re looking to make your home more comfortable without a major remodel, start with the low-hanging fruit:

Attic Insulation: One of the simplest ways to improve energy efficiency.
Basement Sealing: Insulating rim joists can make a big difference with minimal effort.
Air Sealing: Check around windows, doors, and outlets to prevent drafts.

These are straightforward projects that you can tackle yourself or with professional help.