Just in. Couldn’t wait til tomorrow. $400. Annapolis. On Baltimore craigslist TODAY.

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When my sister Jenni (above) and I recently visited Lexington, Sumac Sue aka Judi arranged for the first stop on our neighborhood tour to be Cindy’s mid-century ranch house.

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

Pink and green trim on a 50s ranch? I was pretty sure I’d like what was inside – and was not disappointed.

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

Cindy has a vintage pink bathroom appointed in a style that transcends all eras yet stays true to its retro roots.

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

The only things that Cindy replaced in her pink bathroom were the vanity countertop, sink and faucet. She chose a neutral marble/stone laminate with pink and brown undertones for the countertop. She custom-ordered the sink from a potter she knew in Maine.

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

Her other key decorating move: A softly shaded wallpaper in a flowery design along the long wall – mated with a soft-stripe version from the same paper collection, along the shorter wall and above the shower. I can’t emphasize enough what a great choice these papers were – the colors, the intensity, the mix – all harmonize beautifully with the tile. Everything complements…and the overall effect is quite soothing and serene. If I had one suggestion for this space, it would be to add a soft valence to the window. A little, final finishing touch?

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

I also love how Cindy has integrated little images… vignettes…into the bathroom. However, this requires a true dedication to tidiness, readers!

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

The original bathroom elements also are just wonderful. Look! Pink hexagon floor tiles!

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

And see how the mirror is tiled in. I would have done this in my blue bathroom if I’d seen this example!

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

And, I’m swooning over that interesting old toilet seat. It kind of clamps down like a clam shell. Never seen one like it. Tip readers: Keep your toilet seats down! Bad feng shui to have open drains; your energy/money rushes right down them! (E.g, I think everyone flushed on Wall Street exactly at the same moment.) Bad bad bad. Also, close your bathroom doors. Especially where you have attached master baths. No mal-odors, please, into living spaces!

From Cindy’s mid century pink bathroom, Lexington, Kentucky

I know that there are many folks with 30s 40s 50s and 60s pink bathrooms who could be “okay” with the pink tiles – but don’t really want to “go retro”. Cindy’s bathroom is a great example of how to find a timeless middle ground that most importantly, reflects your personality and love.

Related post:

• 10 tips to decorate your pink bathroom

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Seems like the #1 issue for new retro renovators is: What to do with my pink bathroom? And I say: What a great problem to have! Mamie pink bathrooms — along with vintage steel kitchen cabinets and 9″x9″ vinyl tiles — are arguably my very favorite things about the era. Not that I don’t have many more.

Today, we look at the topic again – using Catherine’s 1948 bathroom as an example. If you have a pink bathroom, I have 10 recommendations for you:

1. White it out. To start. That is, paint your walls white (SW Porcelain) so that you can become one with the pink.
2. Strip your cabinetry and paint it white with the very very best paint that you can find. Honestly – excellent paint shows.
3. Wallpaper! Bradbury & Bradbury has several designs that would be fabulous in a pink or pink-and-black bathroom. Or, buy vintage, I found several examples that could work, right away. Hey: You have a pink bathroom — it’s like being a flaming redhead. You aren’t going to hide it. Go with it.
4. Coordinate your towels and shower curtains with the wallpaper, not so much the tile.
5. Flooring: American Olean Chloe in white, or white with the black dot if you have black trim, are good choices. Catherine has pink metal tiles, so if she wants to re-do the floor, I’d recommend VCT tiles or even better, sheet. Just be careful and don’t let water sit in the corners where the VCT floor meets the tub, it will rot through over time.
6. Windows: Finish these off with 2″ metal blinds, or a simple pleated or roller shade.
7. Other fixtures, like mirrors, towel bars, etc.: Keep them if you can! If you need a new sink or toilet, you are fortunate, Catherine, it’s pretty easy to match white and there’s lots of vintage stock around. For those of you with pink fixtures – be very careful before you make a new purchase to ensure the colors really match – there were many variations back in the day. A good way to test, Palm Springs Stephan has recommended, is with a paint color chip.
8. Add a bathroom exhaust fan. Put it on a separate switch with its own timer and use it!
9. If you need to replace chrome faucets, cabinet pulls and towel bars, I have a handful of what I consider the best alternatives on this site.
10. And if you need new laminate for your countertops, I have three choices for you here; there are also some basic carrera marble laminates that would be fine:

Join our cause! Save the Pink Bathrooms!

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The mid-century trend to pink seems to have come directly and irrefutably from Mamie Eisenhower, first lady from 1953 to 1961. Pink was Mamie’s favorite color. She wore a pink gown with 2,000 pink rhinestones to Ike’s inauguration. Ike sent her pink flowers every morning. Her bathroom in Gettysburg was pink down to the cotton balls. She re-decorated the private quarters in the White House in pink. So much so that reporters called it the “Pink Palace.” The color also seems to have been known as “First Lady Pink.” As a result of all this pink-think, there was probably no question that American women (and marketers) would pick up on it. It also was a color trend right in line with the exuberance of the time — and even supportive of the return of women to the home after WWII and their complete remaking of the American domestic landscape.

In fact, my own informal research from scouring marketing materials from the period indicates that pink kitchens and baths arrived solidly in ‘53, reached a total frenzy in 1957, then pretty rapidly started to fade after that, as other trends took hold. A typical adoption curve for a trend like this.

I have an aquamarine kitchen – the decorating gods sided with my husband on this decision. But I really truly wanted pink. I have to admit, a total fixation.

So much so, that: Tomorrow I am starting a very special series: More than 60 pink kitchens, rolled out over the week. A festival of pink pink pink to start the month. So be sure to check back in, to check it out.

Meanwhile: Here’s a nice story about Mamie…Photo of her at right is from the Library of Congress collection:

All About Mamie

By Jan Biles
The Capital-Journal (Topeka, Kansas)
Published Sunday, November 18, 2007

Not much is known about Mamie Doud Eisenhower.

She was a dutiful wife and mother who stood in the background as her husband, Dwight, excelled in his military career during World War II and then led the country from the Oval Office as the 34th president from 1953 to 1961.  Read the rest here from the Topeka, KS, Capitol-Journal online.

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