I am updating this Retro Renovation “Classic” post for Tiel, her husband, and all readers looking for classic 50s and 60s metal countertop edging. Trust me – this is the real deal:
My husband hunted down the only place left — in Astoria, Queens — that still made the exact stainless steel edging on 50s and 60s countertops. Our countertop installers installed this very easily and successfully on our new laminate countertops.
Go to newyorkmetal.com to order this. Here are the exact pieces that you need:
1. Stainless steel “snap-on” edging – 1-5/8″:
2. For the top of the backsplash #SS801A in 1″ profile:
Same PROFILE as the countertop edge, but in 1″.
3. There are several products to help you do the little piece that goes in between these two where they meet at 90-degree angles:
Re the cove: This is the one I used, but there are other designs that also look like they would do the trick just fine.
4. Note, my experience was that there was a gulp! core shipping charge – because the edging comes in 12′ strips, it must go freight. Well worth it, in the long run (no pun intended)!
Here are close ups of how this stuff comes together.
Again, where to get stainless steel kitchen countertop edging, like I used in my kitchen:
Debra says
We are getting ready to replace our kitchen & laundry room counters with laminate & metal edging! Thank you for the wealth of information you supply. When all the rest of the reno world wants granite and marble etc. your encoragement to stay true to the mid century vibe is appreciated! Does anyone know of a local supplier for the metal edging in the Houston, TX area? Thanks again Pam!
Lisa says
Hi, I’m in the midst of my kitchen reno for our midcentury home. Did you find a place that will do the stainless steel edging in Houston? Thanks for any input you could give me.
Peg says
As I hunt for vintage/retro fixtures for my mid-1950s rustic ranch house, I’ve happily found myself at your site several times. Although the previous owners maintained the house very well, I’m lucky they did little redecoration in the last 35 years, so there are a lot of fixtures in pristine condition from the ’50s-’70s that I’ve kept and am working around (people comment on the cool ’50s reproduction handles on the kitchen cabinets; the handles and cabinets are original). I’m hunting for retro laminate for my kitchen countertops, ideally boomerang; otherwise, I’ll probably go with Pionite Suede in Orville or Summer Heat Wave. A local distributor thinks she may be able to get some coral boomerang for me, so fingers crossed!
Meanwhile, a comment about metal edging for vintage/retro countertops. We sold my parents’ mid-1950s house a few years ago, which still had a lot of original fixtures, including boomerang countertops in the kitchen and bathroom (white with pink and gray in the kitchen, white with pink and green in the bathroom). They had metal edging in the crease between the countertop and backsplash; however, the front of the counters and top of the backsplashes were edged with laminate, not metal. Just wanted to mention this because, depending on the style of house (this one was a California-style ranch house), it could also be historically accurate to do the laminate edging instead of metal.
Of course, if I had known I’d buy a mid-’50s ranch house myself a few years later (after growing up in a ’50s ranch house, I wanted a Cape Cod), I would’ve pulled out the boomerang counters and used them myself; however, they were a big selling point for the buyers, so I guess everything worked out as it was supposed to.
pam kueber says
Welcome, Peg. What fun it sounds like you are having! Send me pics when you are ready for prime time. I trust you have seen all my posts about potential laminates in Kitchens / Countertops category.
Deborah says
OH! Thank you for this information. I am in the beginning stages of a renovation of my late 1950’s St. Charles kitchen with “bittersweet” colored cabinets and gold fleck laminate. The stainless steel edging (and I have a LOT of it) was one of my biggest worries!
pam kueber says
WOW! Bittersweet St. Charles — I would LOVE to see that set! Will send you an email, Deborah.
Lauryn says
Hi Pam. Thanks so much for all the great information on your website … I found you while looking for information on cracked ice laminates. I have two questions regarding the stainless steel edging. Our house is from 1939 and we are trying to keep the spirit of the time period intact (it still has the original cabinets!) while increasing the (very tiny) kitchen’s functionality. Would that type of stainless steel edging have been used in the late 30s? We have chosen a “retro” satin nickel hardware from Hickory Hardware that matches the tone of the more subdued paint colors from that era and my second concern is whether the satin nickel hardware would look strange or out of place with the stainless steel edging. (We are somewhat attached to the hardware as it looks gorgeous with the paint we have chosen.) And I suppose while I’m at, what are your thoughts on a linoleum countertop vs. the cracked ice, in regards to the era of the kitchen?
pam kueber says
See this post, 1938 kitchen: https://retrorenovation.com/2010/03/17/linoleum-floors-and-countertops-brighten-up-dave-frances-1938-kitchen/
I also have identified a dark blue laminate that looks just like linoleum – check Kitchen/Countertops.
I can come back to this maybe. Send me some pics, retrorenovation [at] gmail [dot] com.
pam kueber says
Lauryn, the other edging to consider is ribbed aluminum. That may have a less-shiny look, which you may prefer. Check NYMetals, as well as Outwater Plastics. Depending on where you live you may be able to get Outwater stock locally. I need to do a post about them.
Lauryn says
Thanks, Pam! Your website really is such a great resource, and much appreciated by folks like me. I called NYMetals to get a sample and will look into Outwater Plastics. I prefer the non-ribbed edging, just wasn’t sure if it was used much in the 30s. Love Dave and Francis’s kitchen (and house)! Many thanks again.
Bruce Curtis says
Hi there. I am the “kitchen dude” Rebecca is speaking of. I checked with metal suppliers locally in Michigan and found nothing. Outwater Plastics has the 3/4″ thick edging in their catalog- same deal- the pieces are 12′ long. I called them and they do not have the 1 5/8″ stuff.
Nice web site. Thanks for all of the useful info.
Bruce Curtis
Washtenaw Woodwrights Inc.
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Rebecca Prichard says
Thanks again Pam for all your work. This kitchen dude I am talking to said he could only find 3/4 inch, which sounds small! Now I can send him this.
pam kueber says
You’re welcome, Rebecca!
Magnaverde says
My very first post-college apartment in 1977 was in a 1940 multi-unit building that had seen better days–filthy carpet, nicotine-stained walls & not a working lightbulb in the place the night I moved in. But the place had glass block & steel casement windows–with their original pearl gray 12-foot wide steel blinds–plus terrazzo floors, St. Charles cabinets, charcoal gray Skylark laminate counters with stainless edging and the original streamlined light fixtures & hardware. And a jazzy turquoise & yellow bath with ablack & gold terrazzo floor. What was a little dirt & mold compared to all that?
So I buffed & shined and got the place looking really good, and when I moved to a bigger apartment in a Victorian house a few years later, I really hated leaving the place, so much so that, every once in a while, I dream I move back in. Which I would, except that these days I live in a different town and my old neighborhood–never very fancy–has turned pretty dicey in the last 30 years.
But last spring I went back to my old town for a funeral and naturally, I cruised past my old aprtment, and when I saw the doors were wide open, I took that as a clear sign. I couldn’t get into my old apartment, but the hallway’s terrazzo floors are still shiny & their glass block walls are intact, and when I looked around online and found a realtor’s listing for the building, I see that–even after a few decades’ worth of hard-luck tenants– the sleek kitchens & spiffy tile baths are all intact & as handsome as ever. All of which is pretty ironic, given that the brand-new countrified oak-&-almond kitchens that my newly-married pals were building when I moved into my dingy apartment were scrapped years ago. Now, having seen how well the place survived thirty years of neglect makes me miss it even more
Anyway, seeing so many people right at the point where I was, all those years ago, and more important, seeing them wanting to preserve–or recreate–what was there is really good. My friends all called me crazy. Not for moving into an ‘outdated’ dump (which anyone without a high-paying job might be forced to do) but for WANTING to do so. This is a great site.
pam kueber says
What a lovely memory, Magnaverde. Welcome.
Susan Sermoneta says
Wow – I’m looking forward to finding lots of answers on this site. I’m about to fix up my apartment kitchen – the first time I’ve ever done this kind of thing. And I want vintage formica counters and linoleum on the floor – no granite, not porcelain or ceramic.
Josette says
I can’t thank you enough for posting this. Your picture is too perfect. It is exactly what I was planning to do for the remodel of our 1965 Airstream travel trailer. I can’t wait to get it done now that I know I can get the materials I need.
Derek says
Hello,
This discussion is very helpful. I’m adding a small countertop to my kitchen and want to match the style (laminate with steel moulding). I need only about six feet (doesn’t have to be one piece) of the snap on moulding and only 18″ of the cove moulding. Does anyone have any extra that they would be willing to sell me?
-Derek
pam kueber says
Derek – you might put this question into the forum where more folks might see it: https://retrorenovation.com/forum/