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postwar homes – “modern” and “modest” alike.
I'm Pam Kueber, your mid mod mad guide. Read more
Now … our final entry in the Found Objects Found Art Contest. Judi aka Sumac Sue”s tribute to those days when there were only three network TV stations – so we played games…
This is our final contest entry – I think. If I missed you, please email me, retrorenovation at gmail dot com. And get ready: Voting starts Sunday.
I continue to be on the hunt for readers who are looking for less expensive wallpaper for their mid century ranch, cape, colonial, bungalow and split level homes. This means: Wallpapers from the sweet cheerful 40s…to the atomic 50s…to the mod generation 60s…and all the stylistic tangents in between. For example, the more I’m into all of this the more I realize: We are a traditional nation. Small tone-on-tone prints are very suitable for your retro renovation, too!
Today: 33 choices with a little of everything described above from Seabrook’s Carey Lind Mahogany Collection. These are “today” wallpapers but I like a number of them for several reasons. One of my most exciting finds is the paper above. See the ‘slubs’? And those dogwood blooms? A very typical barkcloth look! I can definitely see this paper in a pink bathroom — for those of you who want to ‘tone down’ the pink… it would also look great in a in a foyer, bedroom or office. Click through for additional selections and a complete gallery of other nice choices. Heck yeah there is more →
Peggy sends this live example of a recessed Ling-Temco dishwasher – how cool! Remember this original post of a Ling-Temco ad from 1961? Heck yeah there is more →
If you are looking for a vintage style refrigerator, the folks at Big Chill now have two sizes. I kind of like the look of the new, little one – it is more in the scale of what I’ve seen on true examples from the 40s and early 50s in particular. And they certainly do have the rainbow of retro colors covered. Heck yeah there is more →
Tom’s entry in our Found Object Found Art contest is our final one – I think!
This is our final contest entry – I think. If I missed you, please email me, retrorenovation at gmail dot com. And get ready: Voting starts Sunday.
The Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo, California, provides all kinds of inspiration on how to give your bedroom some crazy retro flair. Today, I feature some of my favorite rooms – chosen for their delicious use of wallpaper.
Ruth’s Geneva kitchen, pink bathroom, peach bathroom, Tennessee granite fireplace — everything in her 1957 Michigan home — are just fantastic. I thought that I had more Geneva metal cabinets in one place than anyone, but Ruth sets a new record. And look at it: A curvacious island… marble counter topped baking area … original range exhaust fan … and more. Ruth did replace the kitchen floor – so you also can ogle her design and see if it might be right for you. I think it’s terrific – the scale is just right and the soft gray and blue have just the right ‘coolness’ to go with the lovely light blue Geneva cabinets.
Read on for Ruth’s story…16 photos…and a link to more on her flickr stream…And when you’re done be sure to check out her new blog: No Pattern Required. Heck yeah there is more →
Since I wrote this post so long ago – here it is again, in case you’ve never seen these! Originally published Nov. 24, 2007
Okay, I want a humongous TV just like the next person, but frankly, I think I want one of these awesome Predicta models more. These are faithful reproductions — not exact, but faithful — of the original Philco Predictas and there are 8 models — 4 tabletop, 4 on integrated bases. Telstar, the company that makes them, uses all-new parts, these are state-of-today’s art TVs.
I’m personally partial to the Holiday tabletop model, which is pictured here. The thought of lounging in bed… taking a pretend sick day when it’s all cold and snowy outside… and watching reruns of the Colbert Report (don’t you think he looks like a 50s guy, with that hair?) on my own little Predicta… ah, what bliss. Website: Predicta.com
Here’s a wonderful vintage oddity — a woddity – that I learned about yesterday: The witty “egghead” ceramics designed by LaGardo Tackett and marketed by Playboy and Esquire magazines as bedside storage for condoms back in the swinging 60s. A witty woddity: An egg. To hold condoms. Get it? And “Think”, before you… err, leap, I [...]
I am super fascinated by the archaic features and fixtures of midcentury houses…. Things that have been superseded by something more modern, or which simply faded from fashion. Quick! We better get them on the blog fast, so’s we don’t forget them. Stuff like hudee rings, and push-button plumbing, and appliance centers, and today: Dovecotes [...]
Okay, I really only bring this up because there seem to be SO MANY COINCIDENCES among readers of this blog. Like, Femme1 is also the granddaughter of Pennsylvania coal miners. Steel kitchen cabinets show up from readers just as I am about to do a post. We all eat corn on the cob using the [...]
Hannah scored big time on ebay recently with this New Old Stock swag light kit — 42 little glass balls combine to create a dazzling grape cluster light. Just imagine the thrill. Hannah, who paid $54 for this treasure, writes: Hi Pam, I’m sorta excited about you showcasing my grape lamp kit! My 15 minutes of fame [...]
ALWAYS ON THE LOOKOUT for something we’ve never seen before, I was ecstatic to find this “Tappan Ultraflo push-button plumbing” innovation. It was featured in a copy of Popular Mechanics (Sept. 1963) that I picked up at Ron’s place last week. According to the story, mysterious unseen solenoids mix the temp magically so you never [...]
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