• Typewriter Storage as Art. Problem Solved. Kind of.

    The lovely machines at my house are multiplying like rabbits. The problem , thus far, isn't how to get rid of them (GAD!), it's where to store these vintage beauties.

    I ran across Rebecca Horn's Blue Monday installation on the Guggenheim collection, and voila! Storage as art. I even found a blog where David Scrimshaw had a happy little storage accident - more art.

    So now I'm thinking hard about the seven or eight typewriters cozied under my bed, nesting in their cases like off-season tulip plantings. Clearly, I need a storage solution less on the hide-it-under-the-bed side and more along the lines of oooh aaaah art.

    I'm also thinking about the five typewriter cases stacked side-by-side in the bookcases, but not too much. While the effect is scarcely art, it does add a bit of ambiance - another A-word. Close enough for me. Besides, hanging 15- to 20- pound typewriters up like a string of freshly-caught bass has got to be a strain on some structurally important part of the house. I've lived in too many old houses to play fast and loose with architectural integrity, even for Art.

    It's not like I leave all my typewriters under the dust ruffle to die. I do take them out for regular spins that can last four or five days each, giving each a good run for their ribbons every single night. I write on them. A lot.

    It would be odd to turn my house into a Typewriter Guggenheim, not that there's enough space to even imagine it. I've had houses with indoor vistas, but now I'll take the storage problem over the electric bill every time. Especially lately.

    Another Terribly Good Idea might be to fill out my collection by scattering a few typewriter-related goodies here and there. Fish Nor Fowl gathered a charming group of vintage typewriter delight from Etsy, and I suspect many of these will end up on the Christmas List/in my house/not under the bed.

    7 comments → Typewriter Storage as Art. Problem Solved. Kind of.

    1. The storage ideas above are interesting, but I don't think I could do anything like that. The typewriter in the pictures look very uncomfortable in the air. I think that maybe they like to be on their feet a bit more.

      Storage IS an issue. I have just lined mine up on my wife's dresser for now, as they have been banned from the living room. Too dangerous, you see, for the living room is the habitat of the typewriter's only natural enemy, the two year old human.

    2. I'm seriously considering taking out a storage unit to hold the overflow.

      I remember seeing, ages ago, a piece about a guy who hung his portable typewriters on his living room wall and placed picture frames around them. That may be a good way for me to keep some of them out of the little person's reach in the near future. But I wouldn't dare attempt the chain of dangling standards you depict.

      Incidentally, "chain of dangling standards" is an excellent description of my work performance.

    3. Sounds like an embarrassing medical condition.

    4. I know all about the little fingers and typewriters. That's why most of mine are under the bed.

      The Perfect Grandson is kind of a Baby Huey, though, and drags the cases all over the floor. At 15 months, he's working on some serious upper body strength. TPG can't open the cases yet, so there's a little safety.

    5. Thanks so much for linking to my site. I love all your typewriter-ings.

    6. Quick question for you. Have you ever tried typewriter blogging? Where you type out your blog on a typewriter an then scan the image online? Seems like something you would be interested in and maybe it would grant an excuse to use up dome of those typewriter ribbons !

    7. Hi Amadeo! I've posted quite a few "typecasts" here and they're great fun. Take a peek at this one or this other one on vintage paper. I think this one might be one of my favorites though.

      I haven't warmed up the scanner in a while, though. It's time for a new typecast. Thanks for the reminder, and check back!

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