Dave and Frances bought a wonderful single-owner 1938 home last year, and have just finished up some modest yet gorgeous updates to their kitchen. The most dramatic improvement: Marmoleum linoleum for both the floor and countertop, edged in stainless steel. Dave writes:
Hi Pam,
Just thought I’d drop you a note. Thanks to inspiration from your site, we just recently, i.e. in the last 24 hours, finished rejuvenating the kitchen in our 1938 house. It didn’t take much, the cabinets were in great shape and the 1958 GE range looks brand new (we’re only the second owners of the house), but the very neutral vinyl floors and formica had to go. We replaced the floor with a medium blue Marmoleum with a dark blue stripe and did the countertops with the same dark blue Marmoleum and the same stainless steel edging you did your countertops with. We finished off with a new Kohler sink with hudee ring.
Dave continues:We’ve been in the house for right about a year. We outgrew our 900 sq ft 1931 brick house by the time our twin boys turned one and casually started trolling the real estate sites. We knew we wanted another brick house and were fond of the late 20′s through early 40′s architectures. We found this one at about 10 p.m. one night and I promptly drove over that night to check out the neighborhood. This house was about 2 miles west, right in the neighborhood we were most hoping to find something…. We put in a contingent offer and our old house sold the same day it was listed! This house is about 1,700 sq. ft. excluding the unfinished basement.
We bought it from a lady whose dad originally built the house and she had been living in it since she was 12. I even found a copy of the building permit in the basement dated 1939 with her dad’s name on it. We love it when old houses look old and have their original elements so needless to say we instantly fell in love with this house. My wife took a slight bit of convincing since the exterior architecture has a bit less whimsical character than our old house. Being late 30′s, it seemed to be gaining some of the minimalist traditional lines as opposed to the revival era cottage/tudor look of our early 30′s old house. The house was in impeccable shape. Prior to us moving in, the original owner had just removed red shag carpet covering the red oak hardwoods and douglas fir softwoods (upstairs).
I believe the only real non-original elements were kitchen floors and countertops and the light fixtures save for a fantastic deco chandelier in the dining room. We’ve gone through and replaced the non-original light fixtures with a combination of vintage and reproduction. We also replaced the switch plates and outlet plates with NOS brown bakelite plates, but many of the original brown bakelite tumbler switches are still installed and working. We haven’t taken many pictures of the inside of the house since we moved in, but I posted the staged real estate pics from last year if you would like to see them.
You can tell that the stove desperately needs a big white and chrome Big Chill fridge next to it, I’m still trying to convince my wife of that though… (Even so,) you’ll see my wife decided to get in on the whole retro thing with an attempt to recreate one of the campy vintage ads
If you’re interested, here are the particulars for the rejuve:
- Marmoleum field color: “Sparkling Lake”, this seemed almost identical to the color in the Armstrong ad
- Marmoleum stripe and countertop color: “Deep Ocean”, this too seemed nearly identical
- James at Nielsen Bros. Flooring (Seattle) did the install work (James was very patient when it came time to do the metal trim)
- Light over the Fridge: Rejuvenation “Atlantic” fixture with “Streamline 8 inch Opal” shade
- Light over the Dinette: Rejuvenation “Arcadia” fixture with ”Streamline 8 inch Opal” shade
- Kohler Triton Facet (K-7776) and Kohler Triton Cross Handles (K-16012-3)
- Kohler Bakersfield White Sink (K-5834) — I found out the hudee ring is sold separately.. (K-6599)
- Stainless steel edging from New York Metals — One nice hint, too. Wherever I ended up with cracks in the mitered corners and whatnot, I used silver/gray gutter sealant as a filler. It blends in fairly nicely with the stainless. Soldering would probably be best, but this was far easier.
- We got inspiration for the color palette from a 1941 armstrong ad I found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/americanvintagehome/3331401646/
I asked Dave in our email exchange whether he had considered Bradbury and Bradbury’s 1940s wallpaper line. He responded:
It’s funny you mention the wallpaper. I was just showing my wife some of the deco wallpaper on their site last night. You can’t see it in any of the photos, but as you leave the kitchen toward the hallway and head out the back door, there is a wall about 6 feet long covered with some wallpaper from the 70′s. Some of their wallpaper there would be perfect.
Fantastic work, Dave and Frances — the linoleum with the contrasting trim is fantastic, the countertop looks great, and you know I love that Kohler sink. Clearly, you show how making just some minor updates made to fundamentally sound original features can make for a charming (and not too expensive) renovation that makes the house truly feel like your own. I do have two questions I forgot to ask: I was under the impression that today’s linoleum in not particularly recommended for countertops. What were you told about this issue? Also, did you have to adjust the size of the countertop substrate material in order to accommodate the increased thickness of the linoleum vs. laminate? Thank you so much for sharing — this story will be very popular with readers whose homes or styles tend more toward 1940s sweetness than 1950s atomic.
Just say ‘no’ to vessel sinks, concrete countertops and bamboo floors 
A simpler but equally celebrated 1938 kitchen 
Animal crackers – useless but wonderful – from Mary-Frances 
Become a fan
What I wouldn’t give to have that kitchen! I want to go hug it.
Your living room is just screaming for a retro tupperware party, btw.
I should doubly clarify: The shots of the other rooms are from when the house was for sale. Furniture etc. are not Dave and Frances’.
Would love to do the stainless edging in our kitchen. No one around here (Oak Ridge, TN) knows how to do it and I’m a bit afraid to tackle it myself. Bummer! Dave and Frances everything looks great! I’m also amazed how clean that basement is!!
What a great space. I prefer the modern kitchens of the fifties and sixties, but having been in many of these kitchens from the thirties, I find them to be quite nice as a workspace. Thank you for sharing their story. I am glad that these homes are being preserved.
Frances, love the dress/shoes/hairstyle! You’re perfect for your house.
Dave, the quality of construction and materials is evident in the photographs. A beautiful house indeed. Your choice of flooring shows considerable thought and great taste. I’m particularly smitten by your electric range. What a beauty! May I ask, what is the model no.?
Just beautiful! I have a huge soft spot for kitchens of this era. Your new Marmoleum floors look great, I’ve been wanting to do the same type of flooring in our kitchen. I’ve been trying to convince hubz, so this post gives me extra ammunition, heh heh. The stainless edging is also stunning – great work, great house, and boy what a view!
Please find out about the linoleum for the countertops and let us know. I’ve been wanting to do this in my craft room as a work surface. I suppose it wouldn’t matter too much since I won’t be preparing food there, but still would like to know what the manufacturers are saying.
Such a beautiful job on the kitchen! The whole house is fantastic and it’s easy to tell that it’s been well taken care of. Why, you could eat off of that basement floor! And the view from your front yard there is amazing. Congratulations on your new home!
Beautiful! I hope you spend MANY happy years in your new home.
Can I suggest that you get yourself one of those clear counter-savers? I find that Marmoleum “dents” very easily due to its’ nature…but well worth the look.
Give me a 1930′s kitchen anyday! They are usually designed for WORK. Later kitchens tend to be designed for LOOK.
Pam…it is always unstated….but are we able to ask about how much $$$ folks spend on these projects? It would give some of us a ballpark figure-Especially the countertops. Thanks.
Gavin, I don’t think I want to ask for costs unless folks contribute that up front. I think it can really vary region-to-region and even within a region. Also, these kinds of projects can have so many factors involved – rarely does “one number” capture the complexity. Finally, what seems inexpensive for one person, seems expensive to another, and then I am left to moderate/edit “oh i can’t believe you spent that” comments – I’ve seen it before and it stresses me out. So, no.
Wow, what an amazing view! I love all the work you’ve done, and it seems that the bathroom(s) would make for another awesome blog post! Congratulations on your new (old) home!
Thanks all for the wonderful comments. Some answers to the questions…
Regarding the linoleum on the countertop, I spent a fair bit of time googling for instances of people using linoleum on countertops, but didn’t ask Forbo specifically. The guys at Nielsen Bros didn’t look at me too strangely when I asked for it to be installed there though. I talked to James the installer a bit about it and he just suggested avoiding standing water for prolonged periods of time. I also put a couple extra coats of finish on it to give it a little extra protection (the marmoleum comes pre-finished from the factory). Other than that, I suppose we’ll just wait and see. I don’t *think* there is much difference between the linoleum from 60-70 years ago versus now, since there aren’t many ingredients in it to begin with. One thing I didn’t expect is that the texture of the linoleum on the countertop is very warm. I had never noticed the texture on the floor, but you do on the countertop.
As far as the substrate, we did have to replace the decking for two reasons. It was two thick to fit the stainless edging plus the linoleum and also because the sink hole was two big to fit the new sink. I ended up using a sheet of 23/32 and 19/32 plywood sandwiched together but generally found plywood thicknesses very inconsistent.
I don’t have the model number for the stove handy but will get it tonight. I’m recently confident it is 1958 because I just found a serial number decoder online.
Regarding the linoleum: Whenever you buy a new material there are manufacturers’ “specifications” – meaning applications that they recommend and warrant it for. That’s where to check. When I was doing my bathrooms, I recall checking Marmoleum specifications, and it was not specified for bathroom floors and from that, I assume it was not specified for countertops. That said, I tend to think the only issue is regarding the warranty — if the product fails, they will likely not replace it because you used it in an application not specified/warranted. I certainly have seen and heard of others who have used this material on countertops…. Note: My discussion re specs and warranties today is meant in the context of something ‘innocuous’ like linoleum. Other stuff — such as exterior doors or doors between an interior room and attached garage, as just two examples, I am sure there are many many more that you need to think through — may be subject to building code issues. I am not an expert on this – this is from my personal experience, and why I suggest, yes, you’ve heard it before: Consult with pro’s.
Nice job on the kitchen! I used linoleum on my kitchen floors, counters and backsplash when I redid my kitchen. Never heard anything from the seller or installer about lino not being specified for counters. I think, as you note, Dave, that water is the issue here. I wipe my counters down after doing anything and I don’t let water stand on them. I did a dark green floor with a yellow contrast stripe and matching yellow counters/splashes.
As to the Big Chill, I really recommend trolling Craigs List or local used appliance dealers for a good, clean, vintage fridge. The non-defrosting ones are more efficient than anything new and the scale is more appropriate for the smaller spaces in our kitchens. If you really need extra space, a new or second-hand newer fridge in the basement can work. I have a 1947 Frigidaire in my kitchen. I replaced a new unit with this one and it instantly felt right in the space in my 1939 house. It’s quiet and works like a charm. I see units on Craigs List here in Connecticut for prices well under $500 on a pretty regular basis. I also have a 1956 double oven range. The 40″ units were pretty standard then and quite often the space exists in old kitchens or a “fill-in” cabinet can be removed. I would never go back to a 30″ range!
By the way, nice vacuum coffee pot. A great touch and – in my opinion – the best way to brew coffee.
Congrats on a beautiful kitchen. Enjoy many good meals there!
A beautiful family in a wonderful house!
I certainly understand…I only asked to help some of us “daydreamers”. Kind’a gives me something to live for….
I want more info on where you got the Hudee Ring and which Kohler sink you used. I just put my order in for a 5×12 sheet of Formica Vivvarr white and it should be in next week. Then the trip up to NewYork Metals for the chrome edging.
Joe – the info on the Kohler sink is in the post. Kohler still offers this — see my blue nav bar “Find PRODUCTS” for retro-style sinks identified to date.
I love the kitchen, very nice indeed and even though the furniture was for staging, the living room is a spectacular room!
It all looks very nice. The blue floor and counter-top look beautiful and one of those wallpapers Pam showed us would look fantastic! Looks like a cute house – should be fun decorating to taste. Can’t get over how CLEAN that basement looks!!!
i have a question for the owner . . . did you use the same marmoleum on the counter as on the floor? just wondering if there’s a different product from marmoleum for the counter.
ellen: We used the same marmoleum on the counter as we used for the stripe on the floor. It is “Deep Ocean”
What a wonderful and beautifully understated renovation! I was looking through the pictures and saw the “before” picture of the kitchen (only I didn’t realize it was the before-kitchen). I thought: how unfortunate the floor choice was. Then I realized what I was seeing – the transformation was amazing!
BTW, Rejuvenation’s Portland store has linoleum counters that appear to be working and wearing really well. We were told by our linoleum installer (an old-timer) that linoleum preceded laminate as a countertop treatment and is totally period-appropriate.
That’s true, Jane. And it’s warmer to the touch, which I appreciate more than I ever would have thought when working in the kitchen.
Love it!
I also used marmoleum on my counters and am curious as to what product Dave used to add extra coats of “finish” ?
I love your house it is gorgeous…BUT….your stove is from circa 1968 NOT 1958 GE used a totally different control panel in 1958. Another giveaway that the stove is from the late 60′s or early 70′s is the fact that the burners are controlled by rotary knobs and not pushbuttons…all 1958 GE ranges had pushbuttons that controlled the burners (that was feature GE used from the early 50′s to the late 60′s) . Also if your oven is a P7 self cleaning oven it was made after late 1963 which is when GE introduced that feature. By the way for a fridge you may want to look at antiqueappliances.com you can get a restored fridge for the from the 30′s right thru the 50′s and that would look cooler than a Big Chill fridge and would acxtually cost less to operate. Yes it is true the older fridges do not suck up as much power as even todays enrgy star ones do of course the trade off is you have to defrost a frezzer every couple of months or so but I think it is worth it myself. But still IK think yoiur house and kitchen are awesome
I found a picture of a 1958 GE 30 inch range…the 40 ich version would have had the same syle control panel as this stove though. Here is a link to the picture.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.plan59.com/images/JPGs/ge_1958_keyboard_01.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.plan59.com/arc/200706.htm&usg=__DlbBpsFApkl1-B4ko2pBW2mHcSA=&h=215&w=300&sz=66&hl=en&start=16&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=XqvjckBQN8rLQM:&tbnh=83&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3D1958%2Bge%2Brange%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26tbs%3Disch:1
Yeah!!
Gavin Hasting/Patrick Coffey tagteam!!!!
You and I are gonna be great friends…..
Love, love, LOVE the results–I’m transported back to my great-aunt’s blue-and-white kitchen.
Also, I KNEW it had to be Seattle, just from the color of the sky in that shot.
Sunny days are our best-kept secret, aren’t they? Ballard, represent!
I knew it was Seattle too, from the landscaping, the style of the house and especially that second picture with the view of Puget Sound. I might even have driven past that particular house. It sure looks familiar. Magnolia? Crown Hill? Anyway, it’s beautiful, and I’m glad you’ve found one that hadn’t been “updated” and flipped during the bubble.
When I was searching for my house, I started looking on the internet, and wanted to weep every time I saw pictures of a house for sale with the original kitchen and bathroom destroyed.
Granite counter tops. GAH!
Jamie: Forbo makes a marmoleum finish. I picked it up locally, but this is the stuff I used:
http://www.installerstore.com/product.php?productid=1562
As far as the age of the stove, I was pretty sure it was late 50′s based on ads that I had seen (which included dial controls). The serial number decoder pinned it as 1958, but I remember reading something about how the serial number date codes roll over every 13 years or something. That said, the outlets on the stove are 3-prong (grounded) which I don’t think became an electrical standard until the early 60′s. There is not self cleaning feature, the model number is J 4370L2WH12 and serial number is S L173917
Squee! Seattle represent, and THANK you for the installer recc, its just what i was scrolling down to ask for.
Love, LOVE the kitchen. My grandmother had linoleum countertops in yellow with the same edging. I remember it being eye level and trying to see what was up on the counter.
That being said, my eldest has those robot pjs…
Very nice! I’m torn between doing hardwoods or Marmoleum in my 1940 kitchen.
Happy Daze, I went through exactly the same dilemma. I told the hardwood guy, “Marmoleum is a 30-year floor!” He replied, “Maple is a 100-year floor.”
I think there must be something in the water here in Seattle, I did my 1924 craftsman kitchen floor in blue as well! I thought I was the only one crazy enough to do that!
I like how that turned out!
I want to do something like that on my counter tops too.
Love the vintage stove, I have a Chambers gas stove.
At bit South of Seattle, Sumner represent!
Oh and I’ve got the same Cory vacuum coffee pot! (Best coffee in the world!)
Wow, Dave and family…totally inspiring, and would look great with my blue Chamber’s stove! In my last house (100 years old), I replaced the formica countertops with armstrong linoleum. I can’t recall who told me to, but I waxed it with three coats of Johnson’s paste wax (because of the problem of standing water on lino) and it worked like a dream. Thanks so much for sharing your pics, details, and specs!!
I love your house! What a wonderful space, your picture window is fab. And I adore what you’ve done with the kitchen.
We’re planning on on getting Marmoleum in our kitchen–I love your blue floor with the stripe. My husband wants a checkerboard, but I’m tempted by the stripe. He thinks it will make our small kitchen look even smaller though.
And, BTW, I do think you need a Big Chill fridge, but not a white one. How about their buttercup yellow? Would look wonderful, and go with the Armstrong color palette. I wanted a Big Chill fridge, but it wouldn’t fit in the space left by our cabinets, and we can’t afford to change them right now. So we went with an Energy Star rated 3 fridge so at least we’re saving energy.
Does anyone out there know how we can start getting this kind of thoughtful, tasteful makeover on TV? Instead of the ones where they groan over how badly your kitchen would have needed “updating”, tear out all the beautiful good stuff, and replace it all with gr-n-t–e and st–nl–ss and floor t-l-e? The three most high-maintenance finishes ever? I know because I’m a housecleaner and that’s how I spend my days.
Thanks for sharing – it’s so beautiful and I hope I can find a little one or two-owner place still out there and do the same thing. It was a very livable era for design.
oooh, yes. Dave, I want the fridge in buttercup yellow! What a beautiful idea, thank you!
oh, what a beautiful kitchen! very much like the one where i grew up. we had a stunning inlaid linoleum floor. Pop (armstrong worker) told us exactly how it was made. we just finished up our ‘new’ kitchen, ripped out the early 80s junk and bemenn in ephrata made new cupboard doors from a photo like the old house. We love people like you.
Coming in late here, but couldn’t leave without posting to say what a wonderful house, fantastic kitchen, and incredibly adorable family! Your photos have given me a few ideas for our kitchen… wheels turning!
Hi
i am purchasing marmoleum for my counter tops today!
Forbo “relaxing lagoon 3882″. I’m paying $27.00 a square yard.
i’m also calling around for installation bids. any ball park figures on a professional install on 62 square feet of counter space incl. an island
with a rounded end. just ball park.
thanks
pat
oh! and let me just say WOW!! really like your kitchen and really a confidence booster in going marmoleum. several friends and family
are dubious… but i forge ahead!
woot! but: i don’t really like the ballpark thing….prefer readers not get into this on the blog, as i suspect it varies widely by town/city/region — not to mention quality/trust. maybe: get three bids… and ask friends neighbors and relatives for referrals?
thanks for responding. good advice. i found someone who “loves to install marmoleum counter tops”
look forward to checking in on your blog to see what your up to.
warm regards
pat
Hi guys, your house looks awesome and inspires the rest of us! I see that you also used NY Metal stainless steel banding. My husband and I are wrapping up our own retro renovation and have run into some trouble while trying to install the snap-on banding (SS806). Would you mind sharing what tools you used or if you ran into any problems as well? Specifically, the thickness of the countertop (1 5/8″) is too tight for the opening of the stainless steel banding (1 1/2″), and also what did you use to miter your edges for the bends around the corners? Did you just miter the top edge and bottom edge, but leave the middle intact? Sorry for so many questions, I just want ours to look as good as you two did!
Thanks so much,
Carolyn and David in Nashville
I’m happy to report…we figured it out!! Thanks!
I know this is an old post…but I’m desperate for an answer. I too have a 1938 kitchen with the original cabinetry. My problem is that I desperately want to install a dishwasher. I know, I know…how silly of me. But handwashing dishes is a dreadful chore in my opinion, and I really appreciate the “hiding place” a dishwasher affords. So, my cabinets are a mere 20″ in depth and all dishwashers are 24″ in depth. ARGHHH!!!
Has anyone else encountered this? I want to keep my cabinets, but I want a dishwasher too. Any ideas short of a portable (yuck) model? I’m willing to replace my counter top (circa 1985) and I’m hoping we can just “bump out” the existing facing, drawers and doors with the help of a skilled carpenter and retain the glory of my little time capsule kitchen.
Thanks!
Hi. We have almost the same GE range made in the same year.
Mod. J4390L2WH Ser. FL214096
L means ’54 or ’70