1950s laminate - Wilsonart provides some history
Mid Mod Pam on Sep 09 2008 at 8:00 am | Filed under: countertops
As follow up to my post yesterday - with a round up of all the laminates for bathroom counters that are on my radar today - I also recently found this great little history of laminate in the 1950s, from Wilsonart. Click through to read the complete story, but here are a few highlights:
- Laminate was so popular in the 50s, that a chrome-and-metal dinette cost four-times more than a wood dinette.
- Plastic laminate was desirable for its impermeability - easy to clean up.
- Another reason for the bright, exuberant colors of the 50s: Colors were rationed in the 40s during the war, when the color du jour was battleship gray.
- Speckled laminate — also known as lame’ — was made with real glitter, which was invented in the 30s.
- Marble and wood-grain were popular - with many choices still available today.
