by pam kueber on June 9, 2009
CERAMIC TILE is a totally appropriate and authentic material for midcentury bathrooms — and for kitchens, too. I’ve had several readers ask about this over the past few months – so this post is long overdue. Q. Why don’t I focus on tile countertops as much as laminate? Hmm. A. I think it’s because my two bathroom vanities both had laminate so I’m stuck in that mindset. Second, we talked about it when we renovated the bathroom, but my husband really hates tile countertops – says it’s too hard to keep the grout clean. Although: Bronwyn and Greg’s vintage original bathroom sink looks pretty darned good. Dig the green and color combination! Also, this must be tile countertop week – because we featured Jane’s new bathroom vanity yesterday, too. Jane, why did you choose tile. Any tips? Heck yeah there is more…
by pam kueber on March 12, 2009
Last week we looked at Cindy’s beautiful Holyoke, Mass., home – photos I took last summer. Today – we get to see the updates that she made to her bathroom vanity and tile floor and shower over the winter – she replaced the laminate on the bathroom vanity in a lighter ‘beigewood” shade, and also retiled her floor and shower stall. Cindy’s updates are incredibly well done – she has a great eye for detail and I know that she labored over each little decision…. Great inspiration and ideas, I am sure, to many retro renovators looking for a way to update their tired bathroom vanities, in particular.
Heck yeah there is more…
by pam kueber on October 11, 2008
by Pam Kueber on November 14, 2007
I’ve written before about mixing countertop surfaces in your 40s 50s or 60s kitchen. But I recently came across these great photos and thought they would be very helpful. The photos show:
- How to lower cabinetry to create a place to roll out your pie dough (of course). Put a slab of marble here — it’s best to keep dough cold.
- The addition of a sheet of stainless steel next to the stove on which to set hot pots. I did this — and it really is terrific from a functional standpoint. I use it every single day. The stainless steel is getting scratched up, but that just gives it patina.
- And, the use of butcher block to break up a long run of laminate. You can actually chop on this, or not. I don’t, it’s all for show – and it looks great.
Finally, considering creating ‘nooks’ of a variety of sorts throughout your kitchen. I put a separate 27″ base and wall cabinet to the right of my fridge. I keep my ‘coffee station’ here.
We also set two 18″ drawer cabinets together near the mudroom to house the telephone and all our family paperwork. We have a 36″ wall cabinets above as well.
In a nut: Create little vignettes throughout the kitchen, there a tons of ideas…I’ll continue to feature more from my vintage kitchen archives.
