One of our best stories yet! Christopher and Francisco send this wonderful email and photos:Pam,I have enjoyed your blog for so long. It is an endless source of inspiration in the restoration of our Philadelphia row home. Soon after we moved in, we met our neighbor Nora, an 89 year old widow with a passion for clothes, make-up, and MCM. Her home is immaculate. The kitchen, probably remodeled in the 60’s, has beautiful pink formica counters, wood cabinets, a Caloric wall oven, and a secret wall compartment for the paper towels.
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Nora’s favorite color is pink and her husband’s was blue. He remodeled a former bedroom into a large master bath using both colors. Nora is one of thirteen children. She grew up in the three bedroom house across the street. “The bathroom was the size of a phone booth,” Nora always says. Her husband Pete made sure she had the bathroom of her dreams.
We have many more pictures of Nora’s home and our own remodel. I look forward to sharing these with you. We love our pink bathroom and our retro kitchen. We are currently refinishing a set of metal Geneva wall cabinets and putting a new shine on our light blue 1950’s VCT floor tile. It is a pleasure to share this with you. Thank you so much.
– Christopher and Francisco
To view slide show, click on the first thumbnail, and move forward or back via the arrows below each image.
Thank YOU, Christopher & Francisco. I can’t even express how happy this story makes me. One of the things I love the best THE best THE BEST about our mid century homes is the fact that their original owners are still around to tell us their stories … and to share with us their immense gratitude at having these homes — even the smallest among them. Tell Nora, thank you so much for sharing her story with us! And my GOSH, she looks fantastic. See how that pink bounces off your skin and makes you all glowy? Or — in this case — I think the glow is coming from the inside. 🙂
vintage_vantage says
I must preface this by first saying I cherish my family…
But if she needs any more children/grandchildren, I’d be happy to step up. Too much fun in one kitchen!
Tut says
Those copper or rose gold canisters (hard to tell the actual color with so much pink reflecting off of them:) are @$%&ing amazing. And yeah, that oven is totally cool. The little hexagon shapes are so period perfect. Anybody else notice a similar design in the hotel room Don and his kids stayed in in the last Mad Men of the season? I’d kill for that room.
Annie B. says
Oh, Nora! Please adopt me. I promise to be good!!
tammyCA says
I love pink, too. Although, I don’t have a pink tile bathroom (envious) I have to have the color somewhere in my home – luckily, hubby doesn’t object to pink walls in master bdrm. Very neat of Christopher and Francisco and Nora to share the MCM love…and, Nora looks fab, too!
Ya know, several years ago I had a really cool dream…one of those dreams that just come out of nowhere and so vivid…I was in Sally Rogers apartment — the character from the 60s Dick Van Dyke show — but, this apartment was so much better than the t.v. one. All pink, pastel, soft and fluffy and bachelor girl decor and totally the 50s early 60s era…and the bathroom was the best part. Man, I wish I could get that dream back again. lol. I wonder if that is what triggered my collecting items that would fit perfectly?
karen says
Beautiful home…and owner! Thanks for sharing.
jkaye says
So many wonderful details in Nora’s home. My favorite might be the lighted medicine cabinet. Thanks to all involved in sharing the details on this delightful owner and her delightful house.
Pippi says
She looks fantastic and her house is amazing. I live in Philly, too, and am so excited to see people appreciating these beautiful vintage styles and colors. It’s such a shame when it all gets torn out and replaced with boring sheetrock and home depot junk. Go Christopher & Francisco, and go Nora!
Rob says
What a wonderful, wonderful home! How nice of you Norma to share it with us, you give us all motivation, inspiration & appreciation for this wonderfulk period that these homes were built in. You have exquisite taste & what ever you are eating or how you have lived, keep it up!!!!
Thanks again!
50sgal says
This story made me smile. Although I am actually not this woman’s age, my project has made me feel such a connect to this generation, that to know a woman from that time has kept her home in that style just feels so good. Thank you for this, it has made my day. To feel the aesthetics from this generation are finally receiving credit for their wonderful combination of form following function, is great
What a darling woman and I adore those cabinets in wood. And that her gold flecked counter tops are also in pink, just lovely. And I am rather envious of her spare room convert to a bathroom. I love pale blue and pink and wondered what the combo in a bath would look like. To see someone of that era did so and with such a great result makes me want to give it a try myself. I wonder what the original shower curtain fabric was like, I wonder if she has any photos of it?
Thank you again.
Maryanna says
I think the pink/blue formica with gold flecks is probably my favorite thing about this house. Well, and the telephone in the bathroom, too! Thanks for sharing Nora and her home with us. 🙂