bathrooms
Kitchens – Countertops

When folks move into new/old 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s or 1970s homes, it seems like one of the biggest and most common needs is to update materials in the kitchen that are on their last legs. In general, if you have a laminate countertop that is in good shape, I’d say: Keep it. Or [...]

I just got off the phone with George from New York Metals – purveyors of the stainless steel edging to true to 40s 50s and 60s kitchen countertops. The recent question on the table has been: How to bend my preferred “Snap-On Molding” (in photo above) for rounded edges – be they quarter-round cubbies or [...]

I have been on a tear, of late, researching laminates. Considering how Greige and Granite-y 99% of what’s out there is, I want to provide Retro Renovators with the broadest researched selection possible of designs that have a more historical, retro appeal. After I learned that Formica’s butcher block laminate has been in production since [...]

A few years ago I saw my first bathtub and shower surround tiled in with a “crazy quilt” of all different tiles, and it was love at first site. If you love color and pattern, heck, going crazy quilt means can have it all. Designer Amy Mescia — with her new company Oscar & Izzy – now [...]

Update: Almost all of these designs are now discontinued. See my up-to-date stories on all retro laminates here: Kitchen/Countertops Category. UPDATE (Oct 2011): Click over to –> this story to get an update on all three sources for boomerang laminate. The countertops I removed from the two vanities in my 1951 bathrooms were [...]










































