Now that the holiday frenzy is kinda sorta dying down, I’m getting back in the groove with features about reader homes. Did I say “groove”? Veronica — who is closing on her first house — a 1976 contemporary — today, is already chomping at the bit to get her retro nesting under way. And, she wants our help with paint colors for this 1976 kitchen. Interestingly, this is really typical of how readers find my site: They make an offer on a new/old house… immediately begin online research on how to renovate and update it … and land right here among us, sucked into our “back-dating” retro vortex. Veronica writes:
I have recently bought my first home- a 1976 contemporary. I want my first project to be the kitchen, but on a tight budget my only option is to paint… I am having a hard time picking out paint colors. They are currently black and white but it feels too stark and cold. I want to keep a mid century mod motif- I was thinking grays and browns to match the brick red colored tiles on the floor, but I would love some ideas.
My husband and I are first time home buyers in the Albany, NY area. Relatively speaking, it did not take us too long to find our dream house- a 1970’s contemporary. I knew before we even began looking for a house that I would not buy a “cookie cutter” house. When we walked in to this house, we fell in love with the spiral staircase and the retro feel of the house.The layout is a bit awkward- the main living space (kitchen, dining, and family room) are in the walkout “basement”. The main floor is a wide open living room- the third floor holds the bedrooms and there is even a fourth floor loft area (accessible via ladder). I am very excited to add even more midcentury mod touches to this house!
thanks pam!~Veronica
Mariah says
Veronica,
Congratulations, what a great house! I can tell it struck a chord with readers based on all the comments. I know it reminds me of my childhood. I’m not sure about paint colors but when I look at the pics of the rooms I envision lots of big green house plants, bright, graphic Aztec or Afghan rugs on the floors, some smoked lucite fixtures, and lots of natural textiles. Happy decorating! Hope you share pics when you have put your touch on the place 🙂
Joe says
Mariah, don’t envision TOO long…..you may also start remembering the jonathan livingston seagull wall murals, dried seagrass in urns, shag carpeting, wet-look vinyl upholstery, polyester leisure and pant suits, and disco playing on the 8-track quadraphonic stereo. Yuck-o!!!!!!!! Once in a while, my repressed childhood memories resurface and I can still smell the pierre cardin cologne thick in the air! Meanwhile, whadya say we scan the movie channels to see if they’re broadcasting Woody Allen’s “Interiors” and “The Ice Storm” anytime soon?
pam kueber says
Hey, Joe, I think you are new, so you should know: The #1 rule of commenting on this blog is, “No one can be made to feel bad for their choices.” So, no “yuck-o’s” please… someone liked that one day not so long ago and I assure you, the stuff comes back. Hey, I still LOVE shag carpeting, as one example!
Veronica says
I forgot to mention that there is orange shag in my forth floor loft… love it! one reason i wanted to buy the house 😛
to update everyone on the kitchen: an entire day was spend cleaning the cabinets and scrubbing the pull handles. they came out even more shiny and fabulous! im still feeling the black should be painted grey,,, but will definitely listen to advise and not jump into it right away. The black part of the cabinets are in pretty rough shape and in dire need of some paint.
happy new year to all!!!
STL Mom says
I love your inspiration piece. How about painting the walls and backsplash in gray or olive and touching up the black on the cabinets? If you don’t like it, you still have a weekend or two before you move in.
It is nice to paint before you move in, especially if you use an oil-based paint on the cabinets. Oil-based will last longer and wash up better, but it really stinks and I hate to be in the house while it dries, especially in winter when the house is closed up.
Gavin Hastings says
One more comment, please:
If you have to paint something ASAP….make it the window trim in white.
I am surprised it was missed by other posters!
Veronica says
I was thinking the same thing… I think that window trim is a new addition and must be painted…
Joe says
Refer back to my post at 9:01pm on 12-29. I don’t think you should paint that trim. I keep thinking “picture frame”. Whoever designed that house deliberately left that wood “au naturel”. Remember to live with that house for a while, then things that originally don’t make sense will suddenly make sense to you. Trust me….I’ve been there, done that……and want to spare you the aggravation and expense!
Betty says
The black and white kitchen is to die for! If you MUST, paint the walls, but I think it is a fully realized room already.
Except for that floor. I would rethink that floor.
Angela Speiser says
…my advise….get a whole overall feel for the house and get the overall plan set
+find out if you like the kitchen floor which probably has the asbestos underlayment from the 70’s
+ does the floor clean up okay…sometimes those old tiles have lost their finish
+I love the dove grays with aqua/peach accents or get a great piece of fabric or artwork to decorate around
+ I was brought up in a California modern home with cherry cabinets accented with aqua/peach pegboard doors (slide style)
+Spend good money on good paint…I love the top of the line Pratt and Lambert for cabinets Take your time….kitchen cabinets are a ton of work!
Lindsay says
Orange!
Lindsay says
The walls, not the cabinets. They are fabulous. Orange is a rich color, but it will look clean and modern.
Joe says
I had earlier posted my comments at 1:44pm today. I hope you don’t mind me returning with more thoughts about this kitchen/dining area. First of all, the homeowners should go online and check out the line of step-on kitchen trash cans from OXO – I have the 13-gallon size and it’s white enamel with black and chrome trim and would blend right into that ’76 kitchen. Second, I’ve been online this evening looking for new pleated cellular shades for my house and a thought occurred to me about this ’76 house. What really strikes me is that this house has the feel of a minimalist art gallery. The kitchen and dining room windows are large rectangles with a narrow wood edging that looks an awful lot like a picture frame, sooooooo – why not consider purchasing pleated cellular shades from Levolor or Bali in one of their “patterned” styles? You could pick a nice color that pleases you. Make sure you get the “inside mount” option. When the shades are up, the outdoors are framed living art. When the shades are down, you’ll have something that looks like a 1970’s framed fabric wall art that was all the rage back then. Think about it! I swear, if you asked me yesterday if I would be commenting about someone’s kitchen online, I’d have laughed at you. There’s just something about this site that gets me going.
pam kueber says
🙂
Joe says
Pam, is this a good time to mention about my “work in progress”? It’s my parents circa 1910 Sears Craftsman bungalow that underwent remodeling over the past 50 years (most good, some bad – which I am correcting). I suspect you’ll enjoy the kitchen when I have it fully up to what I envision for it. It has knotty pine halfway up the walls from the 50’s; several white enamel metal wall cabinets from the 60’s; fieldstone “veneer” on 3 upper walls from the early 70’s; a coppertone & brushed stainless upper/lower oven gas range my mom bought in ’65; Wilsonart laminate countertops from the 80’s that people really do mistake for real marble; and lots of kitchen kitsch and vintage small appliances.
Gavin Hastings says
Don’t worry about re-posting Joe, I do it all the time!
Joe says
Gavin, I’ve noticed your frequest posts and re-posts. There’s nothing wrong with that, cause you ALWAYS have something interesting to share. Keep up the good work!
Jeanne says
If there was a “like” button, I would hit it here. I love reading your posts, Gavin. 🙂
Veronca says
THANKS EVERYONE!!! All of the comments were read over very carefully- gave me a lot to think about. As you know, this is my first time with any type of renovation and im excited to get started – im glad there is a forum like this for me to gather information and ideas from people with experience.
Soooooo, the astounding consensus is to leave the cabinets. I think you may have all swayed me but I really like Priscilla’s idea of leaving the white and painting over the black. I love the pull handles so those are definitely staying. I guess I wanted to get the painting started because we have our apartment for the rest of this month and thought it would be easier to do without any furniture. The “brassy” paint color Missouri Michael suggested really caught my eye and I loved the idea of a mod type wallpaper from Gavin Hastings. I also started looking for inspiration pieces like Carol B. suggested and found this:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/54758161/happybirds-screenprint-in-grey-and-olive?ref=sr_gallery_14&ga_search_query=mid+century+print&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_page=&order=&includes%5B0%5D=tags&includes%5B1%5D=title&filter%5B0%5D=handmade
thoughts?
My dream is to eventually put in cement counter tops and update the appliances but I know we will have years to do those major things…
Thanks again!!! I will definitely keep everyone posted on my progress… cant wait to see what Pam thinks!!!
Joe says
Looks like you’ve found yourself a pretty good inspiration piece. It reminds me of a pattern called “country festival” by CorningWare that was popular at the time your house was built. You’re really in tune to your new house’s vibes!
Retromodgirl says
I like those ideas, and the happybirds print is fantastic, go for it!!
priscilla says
Love the white cabinet and hardware. If you must pain, paint the black part of the cabinets a bright color and leave the white part alone.
Melanie Kozuch says
I agree the black and white seems a little cold or subdued for this home. Some nice clean blues and greys would be nice and coordinate well with the red floor. Check out the kitchen in the front of the “red plaid cookbook” copyrighted 70s. Better Homes and Gardens cookbook has pictures of a nice bright kitchen with clean blues and reds.
JKaye says
Oh, and I forgot to say that I think it looks like a really fantastic house, and I agree with others who point out that the kitchen really makes a statement as it is.