Many thanks to reader Dana Kay for spotting this 1955 time capsule house in Tulsa, Oklahoma. What is that material on the wall of the living room adjacent to the kitchen — the material also on the kitchen cabinet???
Also, as you are going through the slide shows — take note of the way this “shelf lighting” — is that what it’s called? — is installed.
Squinch: The integrated window valence — that looks like the same wood as is on the walls — with pinch pleats tucked behind — also is genius. See the rounded stone (brick) fireplace…. all the original vintage wallpaper… gorgeous original window treatments… awesome time capsule bathrooms. Overall: Great time capsule kitchen… great bathrooms, living room, Do you want to own a gorgeous time capsule house in Tulsa, Oklahoma? Here it is!
Wow! what an amazing house!! I really hope that whomever buys this place appreciates it and wants to keep it as is. It should be a crime to want to renovate this place to non existance. The wood design reminds me of my grandmas modern bedroom furniture. it was like a laminate kind of marble/wood textured look. And I know they made laminate sheet rock and wall boards. My bathroom walls have the same type of laminate on them that is like a cream color with a gold fleck and atomic starburst pattern. But I was truely in awe with this place! I love how the curtains sit behind a window type soffit and the fireplace is truely amazing. And the plaid wallpaper reminds me of betty drapers kitchen on mad men. LOL. Thank you for giving me something truely interesting to see and read on a very sleepless and restless night/morning! Great way to jump start saturday with more youngstown cabinet installation.
Hi Pam! In our mid century home in Glencoe Ontario, we have two rooms with the mystery walls.The walls are made of textured wood panelling. One wall was natural, the other was a metallic wash of some type. You really cant sand the finish or you will lose the texture. After three coats of primer, my painted both rooms, and the textured panelling has been preserved. Love your site hope this was a help.
What do they mean “One owner home with great potential”?? You can tell this homeowner took great pride in their custom built home. It looks as fabulous in 2012 as I am sure it did in 1955…. 57 years ago!! I wouldn’t do ANYTHING to change it…!
I hope who ever buys it appreciates this special house and fills it with all sorts of vintage furniture!
Gorgeous home! That kitchen is just perfect! Is that lighting up behind the lattice soffit? So much detail and all to perfection!
Is that kitchen period to 1955? The gold theme and the cabinet door style seem much more late 60′s early 70′s to me.
Love the large rooms, fireplace and patio area. What a steal for that price!
You could be right, it could be later. The wallpaper throughout the house, too…
I also think the kitchen looks a little out of place/date. It’s probably the least favorite part of the home for me. However, I love, love, love everything else! Think of all the great entertaining we could do on that patio! Could also make good use of the 3-car garage.
That patio is sooo Oklahoma/Texas! It reminds me of the one from the party scene at the home of the character played by Thelma Ritter in the movie “Lucy Gallant.” (I don’t remember who played her husband. He was a wildcatter who struck it rich.)
The movie is loosely based on the rise of Texas oil towns and how they begat stores like Nieman Marcus.
We’ve always called it “trough lighting”, Pam. My grandparent’s lake house had it. It’s a really nice effect at night… very soothing.
Thanks, Lee. “Trough lighting” it is.
Also, you guys have to go on google maps and look at it from the air… amazing!
It was called “cove lighting” in the real estate business and lighting trade. it used to be considered a wonderful feature of a room. no one would ever name a desirable feature “trough lighting”.
The architectural term is “cove lighting” – still used extensively in upscale homes and casinos!!
How swanky! Huge potential. I love the kitchen.
Looks like that might be formica on the kitchen island and wall. I think maybe the island was added in the 1960s, and maybe they had to open that wall to do it, especially if the island has an electrical outlet.
I’m in love with that fireplace! I love how it curves and ends with the indoor stone planter. Such gorgeous details in this house. I hope the new owners cherish it and don’t gut everything in order to “update” it, i.e. granite and stainless steel everywhere. (Not that there’s anything necessarily wrong with granite and stainless steel, but y’all know what I’m saying. In every one of those real estate shows I watch on Hulu, the potential homeowners walk in, wrinkle their noses and say “I was really hoping for granite countertops and stainless steel appliances”.)
This house is ringing a bell with me. I seem to remember some kind of “Formica Dream Home” someplace in the Midwest. Could this be it?
Are you thinking of the Wilson home in Temple, Texas? Mr. Wilson was founder of Wilsonart and his home is now a museum.
What a fabulous mid-century house! Crossing my fingers that the people who eventually purchase it, have enough sense not to remodel it. It deserves to be filled with vintage items and enjoyed for what it is. And I am a Tulsa girl too! I would love to go take a look at this one. Hmmm…wondering if there might be an open house….;)
Too bad I live in Oklahoma City instead of Tulsa, since I’m in the market for a house. There are actually a few of these “time capsule” houses in OKC. I have been specifically looking for something built in the ’50s, 60′s or 70′s with all the old features left intact and doesn’t need to much work to things like heating and cooling or the roof. Unfortunately, a lot of previous owners of these homes strip them of all their character because they feel they look dated. The trick is to find one left largely “as-is.”
I take my above comment back. It’s not Formica-y enough. But it still looks strangely familiar to me. The only things I don’t like about it is the living room (No pizzazz whatsoever) and the wallpaper in what they refer to as the “office or fourth bedroom” (the maid’s room). I couldn’t live with that – particularly since I’d be willing to bet there was a matching bedspread at one time
I would buy this place in an instant! The thought of someone “updating” it makes me truly sick at heart.
To me the paneled walls look like plywood that has been whitewashed, or had one of those antiquing kits applied to it. My mom got one of those kits in the 1960′s and “antiqued” our kitchen’s pink GE metal cabinets.
Haha! That’s in my Dad’s neighborhood in Tulsa! I’d love to see it in person!
The planter in the den is AWESOME.
The only thing I would change – flooring.
Pull up all that carpet and enjoy the wood floors beneath, with a few well placed area rugs.
You must learn to appreciate vintage dust mites (aka carpeting).
Dude, the kitchen is the size of a regulation hockey rink. The livingroom could double as a football field. It would take a week just to vacuum one room in that house. I love vintage and all, but I need something small enough that it doesn’t take an army of servants to keep clean!
You must learn to appreciate patina (aka dust).
LOVE this house. As the owner of a time capsule, I can say there is something very soothing yet dynamic about living in something that comes already designed and complete. It is challenging to find fixes and additions that go with. As for the wall covering in the family room and breakfast nook, I think that is birch wallpaper, and it was popular in the late 60s-early 70s, so I think it was an update to the house. How wonderful it is!
Once again, you’re killing us Canadians with these awesome time capsule houses at unbelievable (for us) prices! The exterior is a dream, the patio is out of this world, and the recroom is phenomenal! And just how B-I-G are some of those rooms anyway?! Crazy-terrific.
What Michael said!
Such an amazing house at a price point that’s very retro as well.
I am madly in love with the fireplace in the family room. I can’t stop looking at it.
And the price…wow. That house here in Denver would be twice that price, easily…if not more, depending on location. Wow.
I hope someone buys it and keeps it just as it is. What a beauty!
I adore the fireplace and planter in the family room! The whole thing is magnificent!
My kids just watched the virtual tour with me, and asked if we could buy this house. My little future retro renovators…
Gorgeous house!! Question about that aqua master bath, would the granite placed on the vanity over the aqua sinks be vintage or isn’t that a more recent addition?
I think the master bath has some recent reno efforts. Those sinks under the stone countertop look modern, but at least they stuck with the color and didn’t mess up the tilework.
I commented of your FB post, but I actually went to an estate sale at this house last year (and found some great stuff!). I wish they showed pics of the master closet because it is freaking amazing! I was totally drooling over it while I was there. =D
This is a beautiful, huge house! The price point is amazing too! That fireplace wall is gorgeous.
Cool house…My maternal grandparents had that recessed lighting along the ceiling where it meets the top of the wall in the “den” (classic mid century home my grandfather designed and built). It had a dimmer dial switch we loved to play with as kids. Making the room day to night. The room also had the requisite set of South Pacific native masks and set of scroll like wall hangngs with the black background and musical instruments print, can’t recall the exact name (I now have the masks&wall hanging)….
I think it’s worth mentioning that these listing photos, like nearly all listing photos these days, are taken with an extremely wide angle lens, making rooms appear 2x the size. Granted this house is over 3K sq ft (although that may be including the attached 3 car garage), which is large by mid century modest standards, but the rooms are not as massive as they appear. A normal lens doesn’t reveal both peripheral walls on either side, and architecturally the photos don’t translate unless the lens distortion is taken into account. So, … don’t be jealous of the size, just the fireplace, etc etc. !
I cannot stand real estate listings using the wide angle shots! Things are distorted and do not give a true representation. I would be OK with one or two shots for the panoramic effect, but when every photo is wide angle…very annoying. Do the RE agents think we can’t just look at the room measurements on the listing to figure out that the living room is not 100′ x 200′? sheesh.
I’m IN LOVE!! Absolutely gorgeous. I wouldn’t change anything, except maybe that material that looks like white wood. I hope the next owner appreciates the house as is.
I just emailed a link to this to my Dad, who is a realtor in Tulsa. We had a conversation recently about “time capsule” homes, and whether they should be remodeled to be sold. He did not seem to think there was much of a market for mid-century in Tulsa, or if there would be anytime soon. I tried to convince him it was a trend that might be coming his way. I’m sure he’ll find the comments informative-what a great house!
I live in Tulsa and MCM is more popular around here than he realizes (which is a bit unfortunate for me when I’m trying to find MCM at a reasonable price!
).
Lortondale (an amazing MidCentury neighborhood) has experienced a resurgence in popularity the last few years and home prices there are up. We tried to find a house there when we were in the market a few years ago and didn’t have any luck – the homes there seemed to sell as soon as they were listed. I like checking out what the Lortondale dwellers are doing – lots of “retro renovating” by painting the outside of the houses in classic 50s colors.
Also, MCM furniture here is pretty popular. It’s hard to find reasonably priced MCM furniture because the resale/dealer scene here is VERY strong and they are all over the estate sales, garage sales and Craigslist postings. It’s frustrating when the estate sale organizers are letting dealers in early to pick clean all the MCM furniture.
Well… good to hear the MCM luv — and preservation — is strong in Tulsa. Too bad for you, though, that there’s so much competition for the deals!
Check us out:
Modern Tulsa
Modern.tulsaarchitecture.com
Any realtor who thinks there isn’t a market for MCM in Tulsa isn’t paying any attention.
Swoon!!!!
Lovely! As a native Tulsan I can honestly say that Tulsa is a great place to live. We’re in the process of starting up a homestead out in the country otherwise we’d love a place like this.
Fantastic find! I want to rescue this house!
Did you notice the ceiling in the Pullman Bath?
Loooooooooove the fireplace and planter! And the built in TV! Patio….I would adore something like that! With a GE Partio Cart parked on it
http://retrorenovation.com/2011/08/27/ge-partio-cart-yes-partio-not-patio/
WOW! I know when I have not peeked at the site for a few days, something wonderful will appear. This is a sharp house – nice lines and that family room with that curvy fireplace wall and planters calls out for some large modern pieces of furniture. Yes that is called cove lighting. The owners must have been fashionable because the house obviously underwent a major redecoration in the late 60′s early 70′s. The light fixtures, kitchen decor/appliances and room wall coverings are the give-away. I would have liked to have seen the original kitchen. Paneling was the rage in the 70′s, it was the latest thing! I would sure love to hear those door chimes – I bet it had a nice melody, no shrill ding dong. I am not a fan of double entry doors – I would rather see a single door with sidelight (s). Thanks for sharing.
Could the walls possibly be Pecky Cypress……….. I remember in one of your older posts seeing this wood? Maybe?
I don’t think so…
Here in Michigan, we call that kind of lighting “soffit” lighting or “cove” lighting- often cornice boards were also recess-lit as to show off the draperies with downlight. Love this house- one just like it here sold near me for 145k. Ready to move in, too, complete with a three sided fireplace and inverted slanted curtain walls of glass going up twenty feet.
Terry C noted earlier the fact that there are MCM houses in OKC. I also found quite a number of MCM houses – each original and architecturally stunning – in OKC. The prices for homes in this vibrant and tech-savvy city floored me (I’m from San Diego). I’d like very much to post a video I took of a house in OKC some day. Y’all would be amazed!
LOVE. IT. That rounded rock wall in the entry is almost identical to one that I recently saw in an estate sale house. It had the same rounded rock wall, but the one that I saw housed a half bath, amazing! I took tons of pictures of that house, I think the people running the sale thought I was crazy. I love the detail of the older homes, why did we ever change?!
Ooooo! I will have to check for an open house since it is in my neck of the woods, less than two miles from my house. It’s too big and too costly for me, but it will be fun to see in person.
Nice.
Going to have to share this one!
I showed this listing to my husband who instantly tried to figure out how we could buy it as a second home. We haven’t even closed on the one we’re in the process of buying in Phoenix yet LOL. He loves original MCMs more than I do! Cool house!!! I hope someone buys it who will love it the way it is and not “granitize” it.
We bought this house in February of this year and are remodeling it. It’s been changed over the years and therefore is not a time capsule. Our goal was to save it from being torn down and to try to bring it back to the style and personality a mid century ranch was meant to have. It is sprawling. Historically, it was a one family home, had relay switch lighting, an intercom system (the AM radio and clock still work) and a three car garage. The paneling you see was created by sandblasting the softer wood leaving a raised texture. Originally the paneling was close to an avocado color with black accents. The kitchen was pink and black and had a suspended refrigerator. We hate that it had to be changed in any way but the cost of restoration versus the lot value of a tear down prohibits a true restoration. But, we’re confident that we can bring back its ambiance and vibe. We’ll keep you posted on the work.
Congratulations, R. Shannon! We’re so happy the house found appreciative buyers. I’ll email you personally separately. I would love to stay in touch and see what you decide to do with this house. Many thanks!!!
Might be called “cove” lighting
I have never seen a kitchen that large without the aid of a remodel! That’s huge! The other rooms are quite large as well. Good luck with the work. Enjoy your new home.
Just saw this old post. That raised grain wood paneling was used in a few houses here in Houston and R. Shannon is correct, it is sandblasted plywood. It cannot be duplicated today because the plywood they make now is not the same type/quality and would not hold up to the sandblasting treatment nor create the same effect. In one house I know of the kitchen cabinets were made with this material and the blueprints referred to it as “wedgewood.” I have never heard it referenced as such anywhere else, usually it is just referred to as sandblasted plywood.