Meet Maribeth, her darling daughter — and their 1977 contemporary / ranch house in Tennessee. Maribeth has seized the opportunity and given this house, an original time capsule, a fresh dose of 21st century flair. And yes, avocado appliances! Not only did Maribeth embrace them, she engineered a neighborhood swap to get a matching vintage dishwasher, too. Maribeth writes:
Dear Pam,
I have finally finished my 70′s (1977) ranch house renovation….
We had corresponded a couple of months ago about my avocado kitchen redo, but I wanted to get as much of the rest of the house finished as possible before I put up more pictures.
The "before" kitchen. Maribeth explains: " The original plan was to paint them. But once the counters were removed we realized that they were not in very good shape and should be replaced."
The appliances are original to the house, (even the trash compactor and central vacuum still worked great!) but the cabinets had to be replaced. The original layout was retained. Other than that, we replaced the wall-to-wall carpet with cork and replaced some of the “updated” lighting that came with the house when we purchased it last spring.
I wanted to furnish with a mix of 50′s through 70′s furniture. As anyone moving into the house in the 1970′s would probably have a similar collection. Most of it came from Craigslist and local vintage stores. My living room Kroehler sofa and chair was like brand new. The original owner never let anyone sit on it except for very special occasions.
The shades? Maribeth says: "The two hanging lights came from moonshine shades http://www.moonshineshades.com/. I love their stuff."
Thanks so much for taking the time to look at my pictures and for your compliments — it is especially meaningful coming from you as your site had been the source of so much of my inspiration. We bought this house last winter… Since I was all the way up in coastal Maine, I had to do all of my house hunting on the internet. We had narrowed our search down to about 20 homes to visit in person the following week (only a few of which were ranch homes) when I saw this house pop up on a real estate site.
A double avocado stove! Just like the one we had when I was a kid. It was love at first site and I had already picked it to be my house. (If the realtor had featured those tiki door knobs, I might have purchased it over the internet.) So we did the obligatory looking at all the other homes but I knew this was the one. Huge open floor plan, Brady Bunch double entry doors, original appliances, even a pink mini tub and shower all in a nice, suburban neighborhood of similar designed homes. Sold!
It’s funny to think that the things that sold me on the house were the very things that probably turned off a multitude of potential buyers before me. In front of the beautiful stone wall and fireplace was an old, cracked wood stove and fire board covering the entire opening. I had no idea what I would find inside but it turned out they were hiding one gorgeous fireplace.
Maribeth on painted MDF cabinets: "I had a cabinet maker come in and make a template from the existing cabinets with a few improvements. He then crafted them in the shop from MDF... He painted them very well. The entire kitchen PLUS the laundry cabinets were less than $6,000. And this is a really big kitchen." I have been really happy with them, so far. Cost wise, its definitely a good way to go."
As for the kitchen, we had the cabinets recreated in MDF and painted, which turned out to be really economical. I splurged on the glass tile because I wanted to bring in the avocado and orange tones to make the appliances look deliberate and not as though I was saving my pennies for some shiny new stainless pieces someday. I dragged a like new avocado fridge down with me from Maine. (Some of the used appliance salespersons thought I was joking when I called to ask them if they had any avocado appliances.)
The only appliance missing was the dishwasher. Well, there was one but it was new. Imagine! What were these people thinking? Luckily, my 1970′s neighborhood has many of the original owners still residing in it and I found someone willing to swap their harvest gold whirlpool for my newer one. I’m planning to paint it avocado at some point.
Furnishing the home was lots of fun. We sold every last thing in Maine so that we could start over in true design of the house’s era. Amazingly, the mid-century trend has not caught on here yet and I’m finding beautiful pieces that people are selling at prices too good to be true.
But the really fun part has been in the details, or what my husband calls my “props”. The Britannica encylopedias and Reader’s digest books on the bookshelf, avocado and orange rotary phones, retro alarm clocks and ashtrays- even though we don’t smoke. I want it to feel completely authentic.
Even our parrotlet Pepe perches on a playhouse made from a 1950′s TV stand. I must have had some subconscious love of the 1970′s even before we bought the house because, in unpacking, I was amazed at how much avocado and burnt orange bake ware and bowls I had accumulated over the years. Several years ago, I lived in a 1972 Airstream Sovereign (a literal time capsule) and I had kept most of my tiki paraphernalia from it which is scattered around the house.
We are in the process of transforming the plain concrete slab in the backyard and hope to have it done by the spring. It will feature a low sitting wall and 5×7 pool with a 3 foot tiki fountain all backed by a wall of bamboo. I’m stumped on the type of patio furniture to use, though, so I am hoping to get some advice from you and your readers when the time comes to furnish it.
Re the Sputnik, which replaces a boxy fluorescent: "The kitchen had a big fluorescent light that was removed and the hole patched and the sputnik was hung in the center. I was concerned that it would not be enough light but it has been more than enough. We have it on a dimmer."
Anyway, that is the story of our flat roofed, so-ugly-its-kinda-not, late seventies ranch house. I hope your readers enjoy looking at it and I am looking forward to seeing the feedback. Helpful hints and advice is always appreciated!
Thanks again!
Cheers,
Maribeth
Maribeth, your house is such an inspiration — there is no question, you have a great touch. And what a lovely, memorable environment you are creating for your daughter to grow up. Patio furniture? Vintage Woodward, of course. Now that you have the vibes out, the retro decorating gods will send some your way, for sure. Tiny Cinderella tub — it’s of the variety here (these were made by a number of manufacturers, not just Kohler, and small, too.) And you have a Cinderella to go in it! Also, don’t let any magazines come after you for your story, okay? I’m going to pitch it, if that’s all right with you. Your home is picture perfect, a great story. Many thanks.
Meanwhile, readers, you can see a few more photos over on Maribeths flickr stream here.
15 pages of Brady Bunch house colors – 1969 
5 retro mailboxes for a ranch house 
Jsnugbear paints his ranch house 
Become a fan
Fabulous house! The tiki doorknobs & backplates are the coolest I’ve ever seen. I like the mix of 50s-70s, which blends well in a house from that period. And as a Tennessee native, I’m curious to know in which city this house is. Thanks for sharing, Maribeth!
Maribeth,
I just LOVE what you have done with your house. It looks absolutely awesome especially all the details of the decor.
Maribeth,
Love your place! The tile backsplash in the kitchen really pulls it all together.
I like your furnishings and light fixtures also. Congrats on combining such a great mix of stuff!
Maribeth
I love the tile backspash!!! It definetly pulls your kitchen together and gives it a 21st century touch!
Maribeth!
Love your house and especially all of your furniture!
And a tip on your dishwasher as we had one almost identical, most of those from that time period have changeable panels for the front, you can take off the metal framing edge pieces and then slide out the panel and ours had five other colors to choose from, including avocodo, yellow, brown, white and black!
Love, love love your living room furniture! Great job!
Milster
Wow Maribeth! Love your house, love your style. The Tiki Doors and the dining room table…swoon! And the cork floors look fabulous. What kind are they? Congratulations!
I love everything about this kitchen and this house! What a nice open floor plan. The cabinets came out great and the back splash is perfect. And I have that avocado bowl set (I received it as a wedding shower present).
I love your bed frame, as well.
Beautiful home. Love the accessories. What good taste. Those living room curtains are fantastic.
Absolutely lovely! I, too, would love more information about your floors. Are they original or did you put them in? Amazing work. Just amazing.
Our house is a similar vintage (1972) and has some of the same “issues,” although possibly to a lesser degree since it’s a more traditional faux-Tudor style (our furniture is mostly dark antiques, which are not Seventies contemporary but look very much at home in the house). We have a central vacuum and we also had an intercom/radio system, though neither are functional any more.
While I’ll admit that the Seventies were not my favorite decade, this just reinforces my suspicion that people shouldn’t fight their home’s natural inclinations too much. This house looks SO MUCH better reveling in its mid-century-ness than do a lot of the houses in my neighborhood that have been forcibly updated.
Your house looks incredibly gorgeous and liveable at the same time–an impressive feat! I especially love the flooring, the tiki doorknobs, and the fold-down ironing board closet. Great tip on the MDF cabinets too. Congratulations!!!
You might ask around in the forums on automaticwasher.org to see if anyone has an advocato dishwasher for you, or perhaps just the right color face panel for yours.
Another option for patio furniture is 70′s era Brown Jordan. Really high quality stuff with timeless appeal.
WOW!!!! Thrilling and to die for!
Great house! I too would love to hear more about your cork floors. They look great. My wife and I have been wanting cork for awhile but I was unsure where to get it and how to go about installing it. Did you do it yourself? I would love to hear as much as you’re willing to say about it.
I was just in this home and it is BEAUTIFUL.. Maribeth know what she wanted and stayed focused. It took me back to a time I loved. Thank you for sharing all the wonderful pictures. You did a GREAT job. “CONGRADULATIONS” I’m very proud of you.
Gwen
What can I say, I`m very proud of the job you did on your new “retro” home. When we visited a couple of weeks ago, I felt like I walked into a time warp. (A new house from the `70`s). The best part for me, is that you handled the whole job yourself, hiring and supervising subcontractors as needed. I`m very proud of you.
Dad (retired residential contractor)
What a cool house…definitely Brady-esque, with a touch of I Love Lucy in the Kroehler furniture. What really fascinates me is that dishwasher. Any Harvest Gold dishwasher must be at least 30 years old. Does it still work? We haven’t had a dishwasher last over 10 years. Ever.
Regarding appliance colors, my wife and I remodeled our kitchen last year. We were not going for a mid-century look exactly, but we knew what we wanted. We wanted bisque-colored appliances. We met great resistance from the kitchen designer, the contractor and the appliance salespeople: No bisque- stainless for resale. We held our ground (after all, we were paying for it) and got our bisque applicances. Imagine if we had suggested avacado…
Fantastic! I love the kitchen, fireplace, and the hi-fi. And I especially love the front doors.
One glorious house! I’m so envious of your sputnik chandelier. Using a sputnik in the kitchen is a great idea. I’m with Pam on the vintage Woodard patio furniture…..you can’t beat its style or era-authenticity.
You should get some aluminum patio chiars! (NO NOT LAWN CHAIRS) but the kind that you put cushions on! that way you could use the fabrics to brig your Alvacado and Orange into the back yard! I’ll see if I can find some pictures…
Really fantastic! I love that avocado green mixing bowl in the picture with you and your daughter in the kitchen– my mom had some just like them back in the late 70s/early 80s, when I was growing up. All the furniture really works together, and inspiration for me because we have a very similar open floor plan in our house (unfortunately, though, we’ll need to take out a wall to have the kitchen be part of that openess).
I’m really interested in how you managed all of your renovations with a young child about… we have 3 daughters, ages 5, almost 3, and 7 months, and I just don’t see how it’s possible. Any tips?
That is the EXACT Zenith stereo that I want. The exact model. I love the furnishings here.
I am in love!
WOW! I really don’t know what else to say but, this is the dream kitchen I have always wanted! It looks great along with the rest of the house. I too am a BIG Brady Bunch fan and loved the decor of that era.
Your house looks fantastic. I second the sentiment that a big part of that is respecting and celebrating what your house was supposed to be, rather than forcing it to be something else. The touches you have added really compliment and enhance its natural 70′s feeling.
The details always get me. Someone obviously thought about and choose amazing door knobs, when they could have just used plain ones. That little extra bit of love and pride and humor is still there, reaching out to every guest in your home. Incredible.
Nice job. I really like your kitchen; the brown and avocado go very well together.
It is perfection!
And I really like the fact that you are such a good editor with your decoration!
My only suggestion:
I would really like to see some sculpted broadloom area carpets (maybe in gold?) somewhere in the area by the hi-fi.
A great job.
btw- Patio furniture…ever consider Redwood? It would be easy to make….with gold, green and orange cushions.
I love this! It SO reminds me of the houses my family lived in when I was in junior high and high school! I’ll have to show my mom! Not sure she’d love it, but I sure do! And Maribeth, I’d love to see a close-up of the wall lights on the wall with all the sliding glass doors (“kitchen 1″ on flickr). They look devine!
So glad to see another person with an affinity for the avocado green. People think I’m crazy, too, but I love the color. Beautiful!
Oh! I forgot to mention I’d love to see the bathrooms too…I hope they’re just as fabulous as the rest of the house!
Oh my word, I’m obsessed. I love it!
The avocado green is perfect!
Am gasping with pleasure! She has such a talent, and the home is fantastic and fun. Thank you for sharing. Stan
Love what you’ve done with the place, Maribeth. The kitchen redo and avacado appliances/range hood look state-of-the-art 1970′s.
My fav things are your “props”. The Encylopedia Brittanica set is an act of brilliance. Such perfect camp. (not kitsch).
Really enjoyed. Thanks!
Oh wow I love her whole house (checked out her flicker) it’s absolutely amazing! Great job! Boy I wish mine was that neat and uncluttered, lol!
Just gorgeous! :O)
One word…WANT!
Gorgeous!! You put so much work into that–I never thought I’d like a 70′s house so much!!
Oh, I love brady bunch 70′s ranch houses; just like I grew up in back up in Oregon. They are actually very hard to find in the Bay Area where I live now, so many houses are older going back to Victorians. We finally found a small 1940′s “ranch bungalow” and I do love it, but I’m still jealous when I see those wide open floor plans and huge expanses of uninterrupted floor and rock walls!
Mary Beth!
I love your kitchen. I had a fettish with Avocado Green as well. My Kitchen is still that color. I love vintage Kitchens of the 50′s, 60′s and 70′s. I think that I am gonna redo mine in the next couple of months to a Turquoise. I also love Pink too.
Thank you for sharing. I adore people that have the talent to do such things.
JT
Love your house , the entry way alone is to die for. I never thought anybody could make avocado work either ,kudos there & love your style!
MariBeth, I love your style.
On design shows, I see that they are ripping out 70s stuff by the boatload, which dismays me, because the era—and its furnishings— is like comfort food for me. 70s decor is warm and cozy from my point of view.
I hope you are starting a trend.
Your house is great! It is so refreshing to see young people who appreciate all the good qualities of a vintage home. Way to go!
very nice. the rip/replace design shows should learn a little something here….
Totally groovy kitchen! The only things missing to complete the “feel” would be a set of “merry mushroom” canisters and some Corning “Spice Of Life” cookware (tons are available on Ebay). You never know, you may even be able to find a mint condition avocado green CrockPot on Ebay also (EVERY kitchen back then had one).
Maribeth:
Love the house. You probably love (if you’ve seen the show) the set design on Madmen.
Really had to e-mail you because you call the house your Brady Bunch Ranch House.
Robert Reed, the father on Brady Bunch, was a dear friend of mine and my moms. We live in Pasadena, CA as did he and much of the show (exteriors) was filmed here.
Just some trivia for your files.
Cheers and enjoy,
Reva
Ms. Kussmaul,
You really made my day. Thank you so much!
~Maribeth
maribeth —
I was 18 in 1970, and avocado is not really my thang (too many bad memories), but I do think you did a great job and obviously stayed focused! Now, for Christmas what you need is a huge artificially overflocked tree, or maybe…one made out of aluminum!
-Steph
Absolutely love it! Have you ever thought of reversing the doors on your fridge so it would open toward the sink and stove? It’s easy to do. Regarding the patio furniture how about aqua with yellow cushions on the seat? I think that’s what the Brady’s had. How about an avocado fondue set? I remember my big sister had one and I thought it was so cool! Always glad to see someone who “gets it”.
Did I mention that I’m sooooooo jealous!