What makes something timeless?

And why are so many of these things from the era of Mid Century Modern? Plus my top 5 timeless designs.

Better Home: Better Health with Michelle Ogundehin — helping you to harness the power of home for health, healing and happiness.

I believe that good design springs from a response to the context in which it is created — in other words, it reflects or reacts to the zeitgeist. However, truly great design, and therefore in my opinion timeless design, responds exclusively to the need to solve a problem; whether that is to sit in comfort or to be able to pour tea without drips.

But to really understand why some things become eternally venerated on the podium of timelessness, and many do not, it helps to consider the opposite fate — built-in obsolescence.

Regrettably, the idea that something could be designed deliberately to fail, seems acutely symptomatic of the fast pace of contemporary life. It is the very essence of the take-make-waste approach; the siren call of the constant upgrade exploiting a perceived need to do everything faster or differently in some way. It is a lure to consume based on embedding the notion that what you have already is outmoded. Therefore to stay on-top, if not to stay meaningful, you must immediately switch up to the new and improved latest edition.

What tosh.