Yep...I know my kiddos will not want most of our things. But that is okay...because Hubby and I enjoy them NOW while we are ALIVE!!!
In the final analysis, KC's quote says it all. I just bought an 1860s etagere that (to me) is drop-dead beautiful, but no child, niece, or nephew wants it (or for that matter, any of our Victorian stuff) now. But yeah, we love them and we'll live with them enriching our lives as long as humanly possible.
I think the article is pretty brutal, and essentially correct. I believe there will be irony down the road as well. The same 30-somethings that don't want the mass-produced (though often well-built) 30s and 40s mahogany Duncan Phyfe stuff will live to experience the same thing when their grandchildren don't want their 60s soulless, mass-produced Knoll sofas. In fact, I think the expiration date on that stuff will arrive sooner than 30 years from now.
As to the youngest consumers buying Ikea or Ashley, not only is that stuff soulless, but they'll be lucky if it even lasts 20 years. There will be no question of giving it to somebody down the line, because the furniture will disintegrate long before that.
The article did not talk about Victorian, though that's taken a big hit as well. But because it has style(s), and because most of our 150-year old pieces can easily last another 150 years, perhaps there's the possibility that it can recover some day.
