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Retro Renovation

Remodel & decorate in Mid Century Style

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Home / What to Collect / happiness

Retro Renovation in the news: Supersize me!

pam kueber - Updated: May 4, 2021

Retro Renovation stopped publishing in 2021; these stories remain for historical information, as potential continued resources, and for archival purposes.

retro renovation in the detroit free pressNow and again there’s a newspaper story about the blog. I don’t post them all, because, well, I’m gonna get a big head. But, I had to show this one because, well, could that head-slash-photo get any bigger? What a hoot — that’s Sunday’s story in the Detroit Free Press — reader Jeanne sent me the photo of the front page of the real estate section, which certainly … calls attention to our cause.

Actually, this story — which you can read here online — originated in the Akron Beacon Journal and was published on April 7. Home editor Mary Beth Breckenridge did a fantastic writeup of our phone interview. Lordy, I recall being all strung out on coffee. Seriously, now that I work from home, if you get me on the phone, I talk your ear off. Luckily, she thought it was all quite fun — she is from Youngstown, Ohio, she told me — home of the #1 Youngstown steel kitchen cabinets, so she gets it, of course. I LOVE her story. It was published in Akron — but then, a few weeks later, the story was picked up and syndicated by McClatchy-Tribune. Now: The story has been appearing all over, including Seattle, Miami, Detroit (twice!), Kansas City, Toledo, Wisconsin and Utah.

Mary Beth Breckenridge’s story in the Akron Beacon-Journal also inspired this story about Retro Renovation in the Daily Mail online — England loves the Retro, too!

I usually do post stories like this on Facebook Fan Page when they appear. Lots of readers said this was their favorite line from this story:

She can hardly go to an estate sale without filling her car with midcentury furniture, accessories and other home elements. “I just get all like saving puppies about it,” she said.

But what I’m happiest made it into the story (in addition to getting “Whac-A-Mole” into a legitimate newspaper writeup) is this:

She also loves the community that has grown up around her blog, a group of midcentury-home fans who bond over sunburst mirrors and tension pole lamps. With so much cumulative knowledge, she said, it seems there’s always someone who can answer the questions posed by her readers.

And someone to ooh and aah over that electrified faucet.

xoxo, dear readers. Thank YOU for continuing to make this whole journey a BoOm PoW BLAST! Are we having fun yet?

CATEGORIES:
happiness What to Collect

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32 comments

Comments

  1. Jay says

    May 23, 2012 at 3:41 pm

    Your Mom’s comment is priceless! Really got a laugh from it. Congrats on the great article.

    • Just another Pam says

      May 23, 2012 at 10:59 pm

      Well done, Mom! And she didn’t even add….this time.

      Awesome Pam, you deserve it and a lot more!

  2. Annie B. says

    May 23, 2012 at 3:07 pm

    PAMAZING! You deserve all the best. Thanks for “extending” yourself on behalf of your faithful readers and the RR cause.

    I’m proud to be a part of the RR community you’ve created, Pam. Years ago, when my love of MCM first began to bloom (actually, go viral), I felt so much like a design-style onion in the current-trends petunia patch. RR changed all that for the infinite better, and I thank you.

  3. MOM says

    May 23, 2012 at 2:26 pm

    Nice to see your kid’s picture in the paper and they’re not wanted by the police.

    • pam kueber says

      May 23, 2012 at 2:32 pm

      Hi Mom. 🙂

    • Jane says

      May 23, 2012 at 5:05 pm

      ^ best reply post evah.

  4. Elaine says

    May 23, 2012 at 1:39 pm

    I get the Detroit Free Press. Turning the page all unsuspecting and THERE YOU WERE! Practically life size! Hubby came running to see what I was shrieking about. He still doesn’t quite get it, but he does love the ideas I get from reading your blog.

  5. Chris says

    May 23, 2012 at 1:07 pm

    Speaking of that “saving puppies” feeling… you’ll like this, Pam!

    I went to a party last night. Family of 5 plus dog moved into a smallish brick ranch. She was giving us a tour and got to the bathroom. Original with the beige-y pink tile on walls and floor.

    She said they were planning to gut it, but then a friend of hers yelled “NO! Haven’t you been to Savethepinkbathrooms.com?” She checked it out and decided that saving the pink bathroom is the right thing to do.

    Isn’t that great?

    • pam kueber says

      May 23, 2012 at 1:15 pm

      This makes me very, very, very happy. The paper doll idea, not so much. 😉

  6. Chris says

    May 23, 2012 at 1:03 pm

    OHMIGOSH! We should make you into a Pam Paper Doll — complete with vintage clothing and a variety of power tools to hold in your hand!

    🙂

  7. ChrisH says

    May 23, 2012 at 12:35 pm

    Well deserved publicity. Keep up the good work!

  8. Jeanne says

    May 23, 2012 at 12:34 pm

    You, your blog and your readers are awesome! I got so excited when I saw the giant picture in Sunday’s paper. 🙂

  9. TroySF says

    May 23, 2012 at 12:17 pm

    Rock on, Pam!

  10. Kate says

    May 23, 2012 at 12:11 pm

    Wow if there was a photo that large of me in the paper I wouldn’t need any coffee…the shock alone would wake me up. HA!

    Love the write up! Especially the line about puppies. You are too funny Pam.

    I went to college in Youngstown, OH…didn’t see any steel cabinets though… 🙁

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