As I photograph domestic interiors decades past their prime (they were new in the 1950s/60s/70s), I’m constantly searching out primary source material like old decorating books and interior design magazines as well as watching TV shows like I Love Lucy, Bewitched and The Brady Bunch to study how people put together their living spaces back then. I even collect sample books (linoleum and carpet) and rolls of wallpaper as a means of understanding the era through a tactile form.

What’s even better is when I find vernacular images of interiors, photos of actual lived-in spaces versus Hollywood sets or the magazines’ well-manicured rooms that emphasis design over function. Flickr user Charm and Poise posted a unique set of slides, taken of her childhood home in 1974.

She says this about the set: “My dad took these pictures for some kind of home owner’s insurance thing. We’d been in this house for two years at this point. It’s funny how odd and barren everything looks. As if we ran out of the house unexpectedly and left all our worldly possessions behind. ”

I’ve posted my 3 favorite slides here, you can see the rest on her Flickr page.