Reader Pam — who claims to be blogger Pam’s bizarro-twin — has just completed her fourth kitchen renovation using vintage steel kitchen cabinets. And in this — her latest remodel — the story is even better because — stick with us: She (1) purchased vintage St. Charles kitchen cabinets that we featured for sale from a fantastic time capsule house… (2) moved them into her ‘new’ kitchen, which had failing 1970s cabinets that she wanted to replace… and (3) topped off the entire confection with vintage capsule mosaic tile from that mega stash we featured on ebay earlier this year. Golly, this Pam is a force of nature. Read on for more her story, more pics her latest kitchen epic, and a peek at kitchens past.
Pam writes:
Hi Pam,
I have to say I may just be your biggest fan! I am obsessed with metal kitchens, everything retro & reuse! I also love dumpster diving & I am cheap, LOL! Feel free to use any of my pictures and/or my story! I would be delighted : ) I have been following your blog for years. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen the Seinfeld in bizarro world, but I’ve kinda always thought of you as my bizarro twin with the same name, LOL!
We (recently) bought a Nashville time capsule rancher from 1950….
Everything in it is original except the kitchen, which was updated in 1973 with cheap quality masonite cabinets. We never dreamed that the estate would sell it to us at a price we could afford. We put a note with a note with our offer about how I wanted to save the house. It turned out that he sister and niece of the previous owner hated the thought of their sister’s/aunt’s beloved house getting knocked down. They were so thrilled we wanted to save the house — vs. knockdown/build mansion — that they accepted without counter!
It has great features like bamboo walls, and FANTASTIC light fixtures, wall papers, and bathrooms — my favorite one is the pink & black tiled one!.
(To replace the kitchen), I went to Columbia, TN and purchased a HUGE set of MINT St. Charles with recessed lighting, locking liquor cabinet, built in flour, sugar, tea, and coffee canisters, breadboxes, cabinette, and many more bells & whistles — yes, the same cabinets from the gorgeous gray and turquoise 1956 dream kitchen that Pam featured a while back. The seller had the most beautiful mansion from the 1800s. I am so thankful she wanted to restore her house to its original state, so that I could do the same! She was also planning on selling that beautiful aqua stove (which I would have gotten if we didn’t have gas). I tried to convince my sister to buy it. She also had a great “King” woddity — the combined sink, stove top, fridge, which I’m unsure if she is going to sell!
Yes, those are the tiles from ebay! In fact, I also bought some cobblestone tiles from him as well! They will go in the laundry room.
I actually bought three different sets of tile from Mark on Ebay:1) the kitchen backsplash2) The multicolored cobblestone (brown, pink, white-gray, maybe just a hint of aqua): Those tiles are going to go on my laundry room backsplash. This is the laundry room that my husband is currently building! The countertops in the laundry room will be the gorgeous turquoise Formica counters from the house that we bought the St. Charles kitchen cabinets!!! We will also be using the remaining upper cabinets leftover from the kitchen in the laundry as well.3) The “aquamarine” large cobblestone tiles (more of a seafoam green/gray in actuality): These will be the entire wall behind the retro double-bathroom vanity that we are putting in the master bath! My husband found it for me at Habitat Restore & put a pine top on it (long before we bought our current house & I decided to use it as sink vanity)!
That crazy light fixture thing is the original chandelier from 1950! I don’t have the heart to remove it, and I think it is so funky & cool. A real conversation piece : )
Pam’s first metal kitchen:
Pam is a longtime fan of old fashioned steel kitchen cabinets. Here first steel kitchen is shown above. She explains:
It is the Kelvinator aqua cabinets that remind me of Pam K’s. We did that kitchen about 11 years ago.
Pam’s second metal kitchen:
When she moved across the country, she found similar steel kitchen cabinets for her next house. Reader Pam calls these “Federal” brand, but blogger Pam thinks she means “Republic”? Reader Pam says,
I found these authentic 1950’s metal cabinets on Craigslist for $600 in Knoxville. Wayne painted them with glossy white car paint and clear coat. LOVE them!!!
[Precautionary Pam K. pops in to remind: Remember, readers, there can be safety and environmental hazards in the surfaces, layers, materials and products in our homes. Be sure to get with your own properly licensed professionals to determine what you are working with so that you can make informed decisions how to handle, become familiar with and use recommended best practices, and also learn about the proper disposal of debris, etc. Read more: Be Safe / Renovate Safe]
Pam’s third steel kitchen:
My 3rd metal kitchen — a guest house that we renovated — was cobbled together from little bits and pieces I collected piece meal on Craigslist over the course of about a year. Those are almost all Youngstown but I snuck in a few no-names and put Youngstown handles on them.
My handy husband and I are both kind of camera shy but we have an adorable dog & a beautiful daughter! We also have 5 hens in our family : )
Regards,
Pam
The rest of Pam’s house is also an eclectic blend of retro fun. Her living room even has original bamboo wall paneling.
Above: A closeup of the vintage bamboo wall treatment — and a cool retro push button light switch.
Her living room also has original knotty pine built-in wall units.
Above: Pam’s diverse collection of dining room furniture all works together. Can you see that peek of pattern in the hallway?
That is original vintage wallpaper. Pam says the bottom of the wall was damaged and couldn’t be saved, so her husband covered the damaged portion with molding.
The Charlie Harper posters that she has hung in her hallway were purchased after seeing Pam’s story about the government stockpile of Charlie Harper posters for sale. Imagine that. She says:
Thanks so much for the poster link as well. We love the way the look in that ginormous hallway.
One thing is for sure, bizarro-twin-Pam loves her home — and it shows — nothing bizarro about this dream house! Thank you, Pam, for all the sharing!
RetroSandie says
Pam-tastick!!! It’s so wonderful what you have done with everything. The area your new home is in looks beautiful, too! Please show us more pix of all the projects when done!! 🙂
pam from Nashville says
Thank you RetroSandie! I’d love to share pics of the current projects when they are done. All of the fixtures in the new bath and laundry are from an 1950’s tear down from down the street, and the double vanity is from Habitat Restore, and the tile from that stash that Pam K featured!
Carol says
Pam, only you would love a pink and black bathroom! And only you could make it work!
~CMA
pam from nashville says
It will be fabulous! Ditched the harvest wallpaper and over the toilet cabinet. And forunately, the previous owners saved the original hanging Drexel Crane sink (in basement). Will hang a vintage black & white deco wallpaper, and time-appropriate vanity light I got off of CL! And thank you for the seet comment : )
Rita@thissortaoldlife says
Wow. Just, wow. I have cabinet envy. And bamboo wall envy.
Just another Pam says
And now we know where the kitchen goddess lives….each and every kitchen is a-freaking-mazing!
Sarah g says
Ah! I have the same clock that you havevin your kitchen! Teehee! And I LOVE those tiles!
Patti says
I grew up in a rather “grand” house that I know realize had metal cabinets. Many years later I visited the new owners who had made the house even grander circa 1990’s. But they had kept the metal cabinets! I thought that strange at the time, but now realize that perhaps they had a retro soul. LOVE your kitchens.
Angela says
Stunning work!
I like how flat you got your Harper posters to lay against the wall. How are they mounted? I have 2 I need to do something with.
Pam from Nashville says
Dry-mounted only. The gallery guy told me that they have a coating. I’d still like to frame them someday, but cost-prohibitive at the moment : )
Elaine says
I love how the Harper posters look in your long hallway. I couldn’t resist buying those posters when I first saw them in the early 90s I think at the GPO bookstore. I have them backed with foamcore in metal frame kits. They do need redoing, but their surfaces and colors have held up all this time very well.
Debra says
Kitchen ENVY!!! Pam you are amazing! What beautiful work you do & giving those beautiful MC metal cabinets, tile etc. a second life is fantastic. I always marvel at the condition that these can be found in~ lovingly taken care of by the original owners & then passed on to new owners who will preserve them. Thank you for sharing the beautiful photos of your home!
lynda says
Very impressive and lovely. What are the black and the white counters made from?
Pam from Nashville says
They are granite: the black “absolute granite”– looks just like soapstone, & I’m not sure what the white one is called! Thanks so much : )
pam from nashville says
I meant to say “absolute black” not absolute granite, LOL!
Chris says
WOW! Pam! I am so impressed! How do you do it all? AND you are a mom! Seriously, I can’t even keep up with the laundry!
Big applause to you for all this great work and for all the treasures you have saved!
🙂