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Remodel & decorate in Mid Century Style

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Home / Exterior / Fencing and Screens

Alesha restores the original 1961 exterior paint colors on her midcentury modern ranch house

Kate - Updated: October 1, 2020

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

Let’s hear it again for
Sherwin-Williams Holiday Turquoise!

midcentury paint jobThe #1 tool in any homeowner’s arsenal for adding curb appeal to the front of our homes: Paint. In this super happy transformation, Alesha shows what a dramatic change some Sherwin-Williams Holiday Turquoise paint made to the appearance of 1961 midcentury modern ranch house. Oh — and in her research phase, she learned that aqua was the original color of those yummy decorative concrete blocks, which enclose her front patio with (envy rages!) courtyard pool!  

1961 electric house
Alesha’s home before.

Alesha writes:

I’ve attached a picture of our newly painted exterior. It was a drab tan and white before — and is now back to pretty much the original color of aqua and white.

1961 electric house

We used Sherwin-Williams Suburban Modern color Holiday Turquoise. We hired a contractor for this project because we had a lot of rotten wood in the soffit and fascia that needed to be replaced in kind and some wood repair around windows.

[Love the decorative concrete blocks? See our story on more than a dozen companies that still make and sell them.]

1961 electric house

I attached a couple interior shots and one of our Gold Medallion Home plaque. It’s great fun working on this place and bringing it back to life! Now to get the courtyard pool operable… maybe next year!

1961 electric house

Alesha is working hard on getting the inside of her new home, but she did send us a few photos of the built-in charcoal grill in her family room to tempt our curiosity.

1961 electric houseOh, what fun these original innovative home features are to see still intact!

Thanks so much for sharing your before and after photos, Alesha, and keep us posted on your progress — we’d love to see more results of your TLC as work continues.

love the house youre in

CATEGORIES:
Decorating Resources Exterior Fencing and Screens Paint

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67 comments

Comments

  1. Lilly says

    August 7, 2015 at 4:30 pm

    Has Alesha tried out her indoor grill (or anyone who has one)? I have seen them in various homes and wondered if they drew air up the chimney enough to not smoke up the house?

    Would love to see a pic of the pool even if it is in disrepair. I have not seen a front yard pool in a MCM house before.

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:56 pm

      We have not tried to use the grill. My husband’s hobby is aquariums so I think we’ll slide one in that spot that way the space is still preserved. It’s hard to get a picture of the pool because a deck is over it now. I may be able to dig up some though from when it was previously listed. It’s 26’x14′ and probably 3′ deep on the shallow end slanting to 5′ deep.

  2. sherree says

    August 7, 2015 at 3:27 pm

    I love it! What a great job you did Alesha. I can’t wait until you show us more of the inside.

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:41 pm

      Thank you!

  3. HayleyK says

    August 7, 2015 at 3:26 pm

    Love holiday turquoise! It’s the color of my daughters’ room!

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:41 pm

      Thanks! An interior room would be beautiful in this!

  4. tammyCA says

    August 7, 2015 at 12:36 pm

    Ooh, my favorite color, too..looks so pretty! Drab is the majority of house colors here in the land of sunshine..ugh..so boring & so wrong! There are some here & there with mid century colors, like pink, mint, yellow, aqua but the more houses that are flipped or repainted the more there is a sea of greige stucco! And, believe me they strip off the original trims, shutters, all the character and load on more stucco so they look more like war bunkers & try to pass it off as “clean lines”..what a joke.

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:40 pm

      Thanks! That’s sad about the houses being flipped.

  5. BethC says

    August 7, 2015 at 11:40 am

    Love love love this! Our 1969 ranch apparently had turquoise front doors when it was built (they had been painted off white before we bought the house) and was a Gold Medallion home, although the medallion is no longer here. So many unique features in these homes – I look forward to seeing more photos as you keep working on it! Enjoy!

    • pam kueber says

      August 7, 2015 at 1:25 pm

      Watch ebay — the medallions come up fairly often!

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:38 pm

      Thanks! I gound a gold medallion home metal sign on eBay a couple weeks ago & an issue of Life magazine with a 30 page spread about the program in it.

      • pam kueber says

        August 8, 2015 at 9:17 am

        Wow, a 30-page spread! Can you tell me, which issue of Life was it?

        • Alesha says

          August 9, 2015 at 10:41 am

          Unfortunately it’s in the September 14, 1959 issue which has the seven astronauts on the front. This issue is wildly popular because of the TV show about the wives, which is fantastic BTW, so you will at a premium for it at this time. I actually bought mine off etsy because the eBay bidding was getting ridiculous.

  6. Amarissa Parker says

    August 7, 2015 at 10:41 am

    Completely in love. What a difference some color makes! So happy to see this home being brought back to its original glory.

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:38 pm

      Thank you!

  7. Roundhouse Sarah says

    August 7, 2015 at 9:50 am

    The Aqua looks great! My home was a gold medallion all electric home too!

    • pam kueber says

      August 7, 2015 at 10:00 am

      I have some Medallion Home pieces that I purchased on ebay. A doorbell even (ugh, somewhere)

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:37 pm

      Thanks! I gound a gold medallion home metal sign on eBay a couple weeks ago & an issue of Life magazine with a 30 page spread about the program in it.

  8. Brenda says

    August 7, 2015 at 9:43 am

    One word: YUMMY!!!!

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:34 pm

      Thanks! Great word!

  9. Carol says

    August 7, 2015 at 9:39 am

    That is such a beautiful “facelift” for your home Alesha. I love that you painted the chimney because it balances the exterior. I have always loved courtyards and this plan is brilliant. I can’t wait to see more in the future. I think you will soon see your neighbors inspired by the thoughtful care of your home.

    • pam kueber says

      August 7, 2015 at 10:01 am

      ooooh, I didn’t notice she painted the chimney. good one!

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:33 pm

      Thank you! Yes the chimney was rebuilt sometime before we purchased it due to water leaks, never re-painted.

  10. Janet in ME says

    August 7, 2015 at 8:26 am

    Way to go Alesha – my favorite color! And I love your grill! I will be happy to see more of your house later!

    • Alesha says

      August 7, 2015 at 7:31 pm

      Thanks! Will do!

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