Retro Renovation » paint

Christine’s salt-n-pepper pink bathroom

pam kueber — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:00:44 +0000

It is actually quite amazing to see the diversity of pink bathrooms. Case in point today: Christine’s pink bathroom — which features light pink on the wall tile, carnation pink for the bullnose and tub/shower surround, and look close (after the jump), the field tile has little salt ‘n pepper flecks. I love those. The granny smith apple green paint that Christine chose to set off her pink is wonderful. Why — this bathroom is so Lilly Pulitzer (Fall ‘09 dress, left) — so TODAY. One more thing happy thing, her comment: “When we first looked at the house I told my husband that we’d only have to live with it for a couple years. Well, after finding your websites and hearing stories of other who love their pink bathrooms, I’ve come to love it.”

Christine writes:

Hi,

Last fall, actually 4 o’clock the day before Thanksgiving, my husband and I bought our first home, a 1925 bungalow-style house in Worcester, Mass. Well, the people who owned this house in the 1950s did a major renovation… turning it into a true 1950s style home.

The room that still has most of its 50’s charm is the pink bathroom. When we first looked at the house I told my husband that we’d only have to live with it for a couple years. Well, after finding your websites and hearing stories of other who love their pink bathrooms, I’ve come to love it.

The bathroom has all of the 50s features, minus a cheap faucet that we will replace at some point. As you can see in the pictures, there is no wallpaper on the walls. There was a really large, floral pattern that looked like it was out of the Golden Girls house! So I peeled it and painted the walls green, since I absolutely love pink and green anything!

I made the shower curtain and window curtains from a tablecloth from William Sonoma, and used a pink bath rug over the linoleum sheet flooring (which will need to be replaced, as it’s starting to come up in some corners.)

Even though I’d love a 1920s style bathroom in my 1920s home, I love my pink bathroom even more!

Christine

Christine, your use of a tablecloth – very ingenious. Your color balance – terrific. The bathroom – delightful. Thank you so much for sharing!

One thing I will say, though, is that while I think the pink tile is from the postwar era — I think that your sink, tub, toilet and mirror could well be original.

Yourr style of sink was very common earlier in the century. It is classic Deco, and it is still made (in porcelain) – I featured it here.

I also love this 4″ lavatory faucet for you (in chrome). I recently learned that the faucet is made by Sign of the Crab – the full catalog can be found here – if you decide what you want, you can shop for the best value.

So, Christine, I think you may well have your 1925 bathroom – married to 1950s tile.

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60-page vintage Sherwin-Williams paint and style guide

pam kueber — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 10:01:31 +0000

Flickr friend Java1888 is just the best. He found a 1941 paint brochure — 60 pages long — from Sherwin-Williams, and has posted the whole thing on his flickr photostream. These kinds are guides are treasure troves of inspiration about how to decorate historic homes. In this case, you can get lots of ideas for paint colors for a 1930s or 1940s house — including interior paint color schemes and decor, and exterior paint color combinations and landscaping, too. To get to Java’s lineup, click directly on either the large photo or the thumbnail — then go to the 60-item set in the right-hand column. Many thanks, J!

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Jsnugbear paints his ranch house

pam kueber — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 08:00:32 +0000

READER JSNUGBEAR adds his paint colors for a ranch house to our growing list of real-life reader stories. In addition, he has been a great reporter and taken lots of before, during, and after photos that show the transformation. Jsnugbear aka John also gets to show off his vintage cloth awnings, I am jealous. Above: A shot of the house, completed. And, do I spy with my little eye: Don Featherstone flamingoes to celebrate a major major item crossed off the “to do” list?

John writes:

I recently had 2 sides of my home painted. Here are a few pics to share with your readers per your request for renovation pics and stories. I included a before pic so you can see what it looked like when I bought it in Oct 2007.

Above and left: Original look when I bought home in Oct 2007. Not bad but I personally don’t like shutters especially on either side of the front door!! Neighbors couldn’t remember last time it had been painted. Needless to say they LOVE me!!!! I love the original door. Hope to paint that as well.The inside of door is natural wood but the exterior has already been painted.

Above: West side primed and ready for paint.

Above: South side needed lots of primer!!!

Above and left: Front before trim painted and awnings put back up. Looks much cleaner and MCM without the shutters!! I … removed one of the exterior lights by the door as it originally only had one.

Above and left: South side. The awnings make SUCH a difference in the summer. I rarely use air conditioning and only in my bedroom at night. I love the natural breezes that flow thru the house.

Above: Front(west side)

Pam, I used Behr paint. Body is called Spiceberry and trim is Mojave Sunset. I tried to play the trim off the brick fireplace under carport. Its a terra cotta color rather than red brick. I tried looking into Eichler colors since I love the Eichler homes but I didn’t find one I liked. I have a Benjamin Moore store where I live so they had all the color cards for Eichler.

John

John, thank you so much for recording all this and for sharing. Have I ever mentioned that I love shingled ranches? The house looks great!

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Samantha and Dave paint their mid-century house jadeite green

pam kueber — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 08:00:01 +0000

Here’s an inspiring story from readers – Samantha and Dave – who told beige to bite the dust and instead painted their Colorado bungalow / ranch a fabulous shade of Burma Jade — jadeite green — from the Sherwin-Williams Suburban Modern palette. A note on the brick detailing on this house. By the early 50s architects and builders were looking to create a “long and low” ranch house feel on designs of every ilk. Adding a half-wall trim like the brick that runs along the front of this house — and in some cases beyond, as in this house — accentuates the horizontal, even though this house appears to be pretty much a square box. A classic classic mid-century house design trick. Click thru for Samantha’s explanation of their journey.

She writes:

Hi, Pam,

Love, love, love your web site! I am writing to tell you our experience with using the Sherwin Williams Suburban Modern palette for our home’s exterior. Our house is a 1300 square foot ranch built in 1959 There are many classic midcentury modern houses in our neighborhood–some “cooler” than others; that is, some have bolder color choices and seem to stand out.

Our house before painting was yellow with maroon trim. It has a brick facade that was originally pinkish-beige. We chose Burma Jade for the body of the house, and white for the trim. This was a classic combination according to the Sherwin Williams Suburban Modern palette. We also painted the brick facade white. When we finished, we received nice compliments from the neighbors. One woman who raised here family in the neighborhood said that it reminded her of when the neighborhood was first built. That was a big compliment, in our opinion! Some didn’t “get it.” One friend said it was an “old” color. Most people said that it went with the style of the neighborhood, so we chalked that one disparaging comment up to a matter of taste. The house looks amazing. We love the color and the fact that we don’t fit in with most of the brown and beige houses on our street.

As for taking a courageous step…..it really was. We went through many color combinations before deciding to “go bold.” Initially, we wanted to use the beige color on the Suburban Modern palette, but when we tested it on the house, it looked pinkish. Not good. So after much discussion about colors, our “final” decision was white with the trim in Burma Jade. But then….we noticed that the house kitty corner from us was white with teal trim….a little too close to what we had in mind. So, at the last minute, we switched, deciding to go bold with Burma Jade as the body color and white as the trim. We love the way it turned out, even if some don’t get it.

Thanks again for your wonderful website. I am addicted!

Samantha and Dave

Thank you, Samantha and Dave, for sharing your story. It will give courage to all of us who struggle with taking a bold step when it comes to color.

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Tiki Lisa photographs 57 ranch home exteriors in her neighborhood

pam kueber — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 08:00:52 +0000

Reader Tiki Lisa did major retro reconnaissance in her neighborhood — and photographed these 57 midcentury exteriors. She’s sharing via this slide show linked to her flickr photostream. Great exterior details here — wood trim, shutters, brick work, roof slopes, paint colors, window boxes, and more. And, I’m particularly in love with all the Cinderella ranch homes, also known as Storybook ranch homes. You live in a retro-wonderland, TL! Many thanks!

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Original Eichler paint colors for your ranch or contemporary home

pam kueber — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 08:00:59 +0000

Are you looking forward to repainting your midcentury ranch or contemporary home once the weather warms up? I recently connected with the nice folks at The Eichler Network, and saw that they have identified a palette of original exterior paint colors and accents used on Eichler homes, which were built from the late 1940s through the early 1970s.

The 11,000 homes that Joseph Eichler built in California have been very collectible, and The Eichler Network runs a website and magazine to connect Eichler homeowners with service providers specialized in helping them with sensitive updates.

This paint color research is particularly helpful – because the Eichler experts also have translated them into Benjamin Moore (BM) colors easily available today.

Eichler paint palette and other color stories
All about Joseph Eichler

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Mid century paint colors: Painting your 60s ranch home (and more) – a retro palette, courtesy Ronn

Pam Kueber — Fri, 16 May 2008 08:01:44 +0000

Fridays are shaping up (informally) to be the day we think about sprucing up our postwar jewel boxes – on the outside. Today, this terrific 60s paint palette from reader Ronn. Not only are the colors great, but the graphics of the paint chips themselves are yummy. Ronn admits, this is a treasure he keeps in his NFS (not for sale) treasure trove.

Other recent posts about painting your mid century home:

Samantha and Dave paint their mid-century house jadeite green Here’s an inspiring story from readers – Samantha and Dave...
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