This week’s spotlight on busy-bee-retro-bloggers and other relevant home design news starts with nickarmadillo of Mid-Century Midwest, who finally got his vintage sputnik light installed. Nick lives in St. Louis, a midcentury treasure trove, and bought this “for a song” last year at an estate sale. Nick, we all completely understand it when you write,
I <3 this chandelier! I mean I REALLY LOVE it. If marriage to inanimate objects was legal in the state of Missouri, I’d be writing my vows right now.
Continue on for news from Retro Roadmap… Midcentury Reno… No Pattern Required… Retro Ranch Revamp… Mr. Modtomic… and Uncle Atom.
Also in the news:
- Mod Betty or Retro Roadmap recently visited Tupperware HQ in Orlando. Over on her blog, I also learned that there is a PBS documentary about Tupperware running on Feb. 14. The preview makes it look a hoot. Must see. Thanks, Betty.
- Over on No Pattern Required, Sara installed retro VCT floor tiles in her mom’s condo. It looks great. She also talks about the need to apply sealer. As I vaguely recollect from my install: You’re supposed to wait a few days or two weeks or something like that, then seal. If you don’t seal, you get scratches. Hey, how’s this for a tip: Consult with the manufacturer. Thanks, Sara, Good Daughter.
- Cori over at Midcentury Reno got the outdoor bullet lights installed. They look great — all midcentury modern like. Cori: Amen!
- Kate has an excellent tutorial on installing Ikea Kvartal panel curtains over on her blog, Retro Ranch Revamp. That photo of your Dear Husband is hilarious, Kate. And you: Workin’ hard!
- Mr. Modtomic found Eric Buck barstools. I never heard of these before, Mr. M knows way more than me, and oh my, they are indeed something. I like how he paid the people more than they were asking for. Respect the karma.
- Uncle Atom shares a hot tip — and awesome eye candy — about The Community Forklift in Hyattsville, Maryland, which seems to be a hotspot to find salvage vintage stoves, metal kitchen cabinets and oh my, look at some of those laminate countertops. Thank you, Uncle.
Thank you, all!
Wow! Love the wealth of information in this post Pam ! Thank You!
The sputnik light in Nick’s house is great, but I’d kill for those dining room chairs !
Hey!….Is that Broyhill Brasilia dining room furniture? WOW!
Thanks Pam! Just to let you know, our sealer did not go on until probably 2 months after the tiles were installed, so definitely enough time to let those tiles set up.
I am seriously considering the vct tiles for my kitchen. So, you glue them down, wait the appropriate amount of time, then apply a sealer. What then? What is the long term care and feeding of these floors?
I’ve done several stories on this, Lynne. See Kitchens/Floors. Yes, you need to strip and reseal occasionally… I also again underscore, see each manufacturer’s instructions…
In the house I grew up in in Maryland, it originally had the streaked-style tile flooring in the kitchen. I remember that Mom would be on her knees waxing ( I think she was waxing) the floor every so often. What was funny was to see the dog go sliding across the floor if he went too fast! MOm got mad at him for scratching the wax!
Great Sputnik Light. I read this at my table, looked at the china cabinet, then looked up, and saw an identical cabinet sitting in my kitchen!!! Too funny!
I hope the Tupperware documentary is broadcast in Canada– it looks like a hoot!
That sputnik light looks great! I was shopping for lighting for my mom’s kitchen remodel this week, and I noticed Target is selling a version of a sputnik. Mom decided she wanted a flush mount fixture, but this could be a good option if you’re looking for a new sputnik, especially if you wait for one of Target’s inevitable sales.
http://www.target.com/p/Pulsar-Ceiling-Lamp-Chrome/-/A-13793982#?lnk=sc_qi_detailbutton
Whoa, I so did not need to see that! So tempting.
Seriously, though, thanks for the link.
Nice! That Target fixture is too cool but…whoa…it’s kinda pricey!
Love the Broyhill!
Wow! Never thought I’d be featured on a big-time blog like Retro Renovation. Thanks for the big ups Pam! People seem to be really interested in the dining set too. While it looks very similar to Broyhill Brasilia, it’s actually a Kent Coffey Perspecta (though I do have a Brasilia gentlemen’s chest hidden in there as well).
Community Forklift is an awesome store! In addition to the metal cabinets and vintage appliances they also have a large selection of colored bathroom fixtures. Their prices on the plumbing stock are reasonable too!
Thanks for the love Pam
BlueJay is correct, there are a lot of pastel bathroom fixtures at the Community Forklift, and the prices on those did look good.
Chiming in to say thanks for sharing the Tupperware love! And waving hello to fellow Retro blogger Uncle Atom who totally has inspired me to add vintage travel decals to the window of our Serro Scotty trailer!
I’m so jealous I can barely type. My Holy Grail is a sputnik fixture. Yours is a beauty.
That’s one gorgeous dining room. What’s in your china cabinet?
Thanks for the compliments! That’s a Kent Coffey Perspecta, as are the dining table and chairs.
You are so welcome!! I was wondering what do you have inside that beautiful china cabinet? Hard to see from photo.
Thanks again!
We’ve got a little collection of Troyan pottery in there. It isn’t really mid-century modern, but I love the colors and pattern.
Here’s an example:
http://greengopost.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/IMG_0585.jpg
Thanks, Nick. It really seems to work well, regardless.
Beautiful pottery. Thanks again.
Thanks Pam!
Hopefully your link to my IKEA Kvartal Cutain how-to will help even more frustrated installers find my helpful tutorial!
Darn those IKEA instructions! 
Pam — Do you really sell the different faceplates for the Dishmaster? Or are they available only from the company? Getting ready to install one, but I may have misread one of your captions …
Great everything here! Thanks!
Call the company direct — they have them. The faceplates are super cool!
Just wanted to take a moment to say Hi Pam and say thanks again, this time for showcasing my Eric Buck Barstools Find posting (sorry so late!), and thank you to everybody who’s come by to check them out!
Thank YOU, Mr. M, for continuing to provide a delightful stream of blog posts!