$800 retro remodel for a 1980s kitchen

Mr. & Mrs. Vegebrarian channeling American Gothic.

Reader Vegebrarian and her husband had to move into their 1980s split level home in a hurry, when their previous home was on a city block that had been acquired for demolition. But, being forced to move didn’t put a damper on Vegebrarian’s cheery disposition. Making the best of their situation, they decided to makeover their 1980s “blank palette” kitchen to reflect their mid century tastes and inject their happy, fun sense of humor through the use of bright colors and kitschy wall art. They accomplished their mini renovation with some good old fashioned elbow grease and a mere $800 — including tools. Wow, what a difference some color makes. 

Vegebrarian’s kitchen before. She says: “The before shots were taken not long after we moved in, which is why the counters are littered with various items. The photo was take of someone in the kitchen, who had to be cropped out, which is why they are such a strange size.”

Vegebrarian writes:

My husband and I had to find a house in a hurry after the block we lived on was acquired for demolition. Many of the mid-century houses in the city where I live (near Omaha) are tiny, slab houses like my first home, without any of the wonderful mid-century modern features Retro Renovation readers love.  I wanted to stay in the city, so we ended up in a split-level built in the early 80s. It sits on a sunny corner lot and has cathedral ceilings in the kitchen, living and dining rooms.

Mr. Vegebrarian and I knew going in that the kitchen was going to get a makeover and that we wanted to do the work ourselves using eco-friendly alternatives where possible, looking at linoleum, bamboo, and recycled paper counter tops first. And by “do the work ourselves,” I mean my dear husband did most of the work. I am crafty, but I don’t mix well with power tools!

The dining room, which shares walls with the kitchen, is green, which left two beige walls. Ever enchanted by my grandmothers’ kitchens, one of which had day-glo daisy wall paper, I knew beige was not an option! In the end, we went with orange for the remaining walls. I wanted to give the kitchen a 50s feel since time constraints had not allowed us to keep shopping until a mcm-styled house came on the market.

Ultimately, my husband and I decided linoleum had everything we wanted for the counter tops, including a price within our budget. I was inspired by Dave and Frances’ story on Retro Renovation as well. Hubs and I ordered a giant roll of blue-gray Marmoleum and adhesive from a local store called Kelly’s Carpet.

After looking at a lot of photos of mid-century kitchens, I knew metal edging would achieve the look I was going for. A smooth, aluminum trim was purchased from Eagle Mouldings. The biggest challenge was the “peninsula” with its rounded corners. We called my brother, a tool and die maker, to see if he could shape the aluminum in one of his machines. He came over to investigate, and discovered our particular trim was easy to mold around the curves using his own weight. Afterward, my brother cut all the pieces to spec and hubs snapped them in with a bit of glue for added staying power.

The floor in the kitchen/dining area is medium brown laminate, which we will eventually replace. With green and orange walls, white cabinets and gray counters, it took a while to find the right backsplash tile. I only knew I wanted glass tile. One day I spotted an ad for Modwalls (on Retro Renovation, actually!) and decided to take a look. Their Brio Blend #9 was perfect — a blend of all our colors with pops of red and turquoise. I couldn’t order it fast enough. Since we only wanted the back splash to go about six inches up the wall, we got the job done with fewer sheets of tile. We used a low odor, VOC-free grout sealer called Safecoat to finish the tile.

I am a hoarder lover of wall art, but decided to rein it in a bit in the kitchen. I put up my collection of smiling chalkware fruit, a framed portrait of Cookie Monster, & a few small knick knacks. I smile every time I walk into our retro modern kitchen; all of the colors play nicely together – I think I would shrivel up or dissolve on contact with a beige and granite kitchen!

80’s chandelier that Vegebrarian wants to replace with a more mid century modern styled fixture.

The whole project came in under $800, including some tools we had to purchase, like router bits and tile cutters. I am really proud of my husband’s work. We learned a few lessons – you need a special roller to smooth down the Marmoleum for even glue distribution, and it is not the best idea to put up tile the night before you are expecting company. We are still shopping for lights to replace the very 1980s fixtures. I want a sputnik for the dining room, but have not decided on a replacement for the kitchen light as the sloped ceiling will require a pendant.

Kitchen materials sources:

• Paint colors are Thyme Leaf and Shocking Orange by Behr
• Countertops are Eternity gray Marmoleum by Forbo; ordered from Kelly’s Carpet in Omaha
• Aluminum t-stem trim is from Eagle Mouldings
• Zero VOC grout sealer, Safecoat by AFM
• Glass backsplash tile is Brio Blend #9 from Modwalls

What a cheery space, Vegebrarian — you and your husband did a fabulous job. I can’t imagine you could ever feel sad in a kitchen this colorful with a framed poster of Cookie Monster. Thanks so much for sharing your story, photos and resources with all of us here on the blog!