Home type: Side-by-side duplex Location: Minneapolis, MN Style: Mid-century Modest Bedrooms: 2 Square feet:1,500

Tara found this curvy mid-century sofa on Facebook Marketplace and had reupholstered in tangerine. It was made in 1958 by Mill City Furniture. Photo by Jon Carnes

It isn’t hard to imagine a woman from the 1950s with her hair curled, lipstick flawless, high heels clicking, and a pressed gingham dress pouring martinis and laughing with her girlfriends at Kitty’s Time Machine, an Airbnb located in Southeast Minneapolis.

It’s this idea that inspired Tara Boedecker to restore the 1957 home to a style she describes as “mid-century modest.”

“I just thought it was fun—an era of such vibrance and kitsch. People are still alive who remember growing up with that stuff,” says Tara. “It’s the idea of looking at that stuff, and instead of saying it’s old and ugly and granny—you imagine when granny was young and hot and had the coolest house and had her friends over all the time and things were new and pretty.”

The project started in 2022, when Tara convinced her husband, Ross, they should buy a rental property. He thought they’d do long term rentals, but Tara already had bigger, bolder plans. 

They bought the side-by-side duplex, which was dark and dated. In the smaller unit, the wood floors needed refinishing. The drop ceiling in the basement was ugly and dirty. The tile in the basement was stained, and the shower was just a concrete floor with a drain. 

The main bedroom has a collection of Paint by Numbers paintings and matching MCM nightstands, along with many other period correct details. Photos by Jon Carnes

But Tara saw the potential. The upstairs bathroom had original pink tile on the walls and the floors. The stone fireplaces in the living room and basement were original and in great shape. 

The main floor bathroom has the original pink tile, which was in excellent condition. Photo by Jon Carnes

The larger side would be the long-term rental, but the smaller unit would become an Airbnb pulled from Tara’s kitschy, mid-century dreams. The only problem was, Tara had never renovated a home before. 

More fabulous pink tile and a vintage hair dryer. Photo by Jon Carnes

“My husband wasn’t as enthusiastic about the idea. It was funny, I had different friends and relatives looking at it before we did anything. They’re like, ‘Are you sure about this? Do you know what you’re getting yourself into?’” says Tara, laughing. “I said, ‘I can do it.’”

Tara and Ross had a friend who was retired and had handyman skills. Tara asked him to help. Since Tara works for herself—as an independent insurance agent—she dedicated herself to the project, too. What she lacked in experience, she made up for in enthusiasm and vision.

The kitchen is filled with vintage pieces, including the formica kitchen table and pink vinyl chairs. Tara painted the cabinets and installed the colorful, checkerboard floors. Photo by Jon Carnes

She ripped up the vinyl floors in the kitchen and painted the kitchen cabinets white and mint green. She installed luxury vinyl tile floors in a checkerboard pattern. She could only find yellow and white tiles at Home Depot, so she special ordered the teal tiles from local flooring store. She painted the walls a bright white and sunny yellow.

Tara has added all colored appliances in the mid-century modern style, which she found used. Photo by Jon Carnes

She scoured Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist for appliances and found a Big Chill range, hood, and dishwasher in mint green and a Northstar fridge in yellow. The colors were perfect for her mid-century renovation.

Tara has added vintage cookbooks form the time period along with dishes and other kitchenware. Photo by Jon Carnes

Tara also settled on a theme for the Airbnb: Kitty’s Time Machine. When asked what inspired her, she says, “I like cats. I consider myself a crazy cat lady. I just love the look of those iconic, midcentury, skinny black cats. And I thought, what could be kitschier than a bunch of cats everywhere?”

Gravel art piece on the fireplace in the living room. Photo by Jon Carnes

The cats are everywhere. They appear in every room, including paint-by-numbers paintings in the main bedroom, a gravel art piece on the living room fireplace, the Game of Cat and Mouse in the game room, a Kit-Cat Klock in the basement, various statues and tchotchkes throughout, and cat sponges in the kitchen.

This kitty artwork is particularly unhinged. Photo by Jon Carnes

Tara and her friend refinished the wood floors on the main floor. She hung mid-century-themed wallpaper from Spoonflower in the living room and another mid-century wallpaper with cats in one of the bedrooms. Tara refers to this bedroom as the “kid’s bedroom” because it has two twin beds with matching plaid bedspreads. 

The “kids’ bedroom” has twin beds and pictures from the “Return Journey” sculpture in Bracket Field Park in Minneapolis. The 35-foot space rocket was installed as play equipment in 1962, celebrating America’s entry into the space race, and then reconfigured as a sculpture. Photos by Jon Carnes

In the basement, she removed the drop ceiling, painted the exposed wood white, and hung string lights all over the ceiling to further brighten the space. She painted the wood-paneled walls a pale blue. 

When asked about lessons she learned from all the DIY, she says, “If you’re willing to put the sweat equity into it, you can get it done a lot faster and a lot cheaper than with a contractor,” says Tara. “With the help of my friend, we refinished the space in 3 months.”

Tara had this tv cabinet custom-made to fit a modern, flat screen T.V. Photo by Jon Carnes

Tara also found the curvy mid-century sofa on Facebook Marketplace. It was made in 1958 by Mill City Furniture, a now defunct Minneapolis furniture maker. She had it reupholstered in tangerine. The turquoise swivel chair is from the 1960s and was made by Homecrest, an outdoor furniture brand still based in Wadena, MN. She had the T.V. cabinet custom built—to house a modern T.V.—by AstroVintageWood on Etsy.

Nearly all the furnishings and décor are from 1957 to the mid-1960s. Even the magazines on the coffee table and the books on the midcentury buffet are from that time. 

Even the magazines are rom 1957 to the mid-1960. Photo by Jon Carnes

Her attention to detail is meticulous, and whenever she can, she uses vintage pieces from Minnesota. The pennants on the wall in the basement are from Minnesota sports teams that existed during that period. 

The basement has vintage pennants, foosball table, and many other games to keep guests entertained. Photos by Jon Carnes

The basement has two rooms dedicated to games and a small powder room. There’s a vintage foosball table, ping pong table, darts, a record player with period-correct records, and vintage games, including Twister and Cooties, which were invented in Minnesota. And the pièce de résistance, a vintage pinball machine, is one of Tara’s favorite items in Kitty’s Time Machine.

The other room in the basement is filled with vintage games and a record player. Photos by Jon Carnes

“I saw the pinball machine on Facebook Marketplace, and even getting it here was hilarious. I bought it, but the house wasn’t ready yet,” says Tara. “I didn’t want to put it in our storage unit because it was too cold. A friend kept it in her living room for 3 months and cheered me on the entire time.” It took several more friends to eventually move it to the basement.”

A friend stored this pinball machine in her living room, and it now adds fun and delight for guests in the basement. Photo by Jon Carnes

For Tara, one of the best parts of owning Kitty’s Time Machine is showing it off and adding new (vintage) things to the space. 

“I think of it as planning a movie set, and I enjoy setting the scene, bringing in props, and being very picky about what I allow into the frame.” 

You can book Kitty’s Time Machine on Airbnb here. 

Shadowbox mirror – Facebook Marketplace

Vintage mid-century sofa – Mill City Furniture from Facebook Marketplace

Vintage teal swivel chair – Homecrest from Facebook Marketplace

Wallpaper – Spoonflower

Kitchen tiles – Home Depot and Bloomington Carpet One

Custom T.V. cabinet – AstroVintageWood on Etsy

Refrigerator- Northstar by Elmira Stoveworks

Range, hood, and dishwasher – Big Chill

Kit-Cat Klock – https://kit-cat.com