Retro Renovation

Remodeling, decor and home improvement for mid century and vintage homes

We help you remodel and decorate your home in mid-century and vintage style. Renovate your kitchen... or your bathroom... tour a time capsule... and share in a like-minded community passionate about their old houses. Read More.
  • Home
  • Be Safe!
  • Kitchen Help
  • Bathroom Help
  • Other Rooms
  • Decorate
  • Exterior
  • Culture
  • Pam’s Kitchen
follow retro renovation on facebook

  • Home » Mid Century Culture » Olsonite glitter toilet seat

    Olsonite glitter toilet seat

    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email Newsletter

    Posted by: pam kueber • July 15, 2016

    glitter-toilet-seatI’m obsessed with vintage glitter decor. Obsessed with vintage toilets. Obsessed with woddities. Obsessed with folks who find motherlodes of New Old Stock in old hardware store warehouses. So here’s where all my Age-of-Aquarius planets align: In a gold-glitter-embedded NOS Olsonite toilet seat (affiliate link) made by the Swedish Crucible Steel Company*, Plastics Division, Detroit, Mich. It’s from one of our favorite ebay sellers, nomoredrama4me, who keeps pulling stuff out of that insanely wonderful attic warehouse treasure trove of hers in Kansas City.

    *Super duper interestingly: Swedish Crucible Steel Company is credited with the invention of the all-plastic toilet seat. Nels Olson was the owner of the company, hence the new product was called Olsonite. More fascinating info to share at cocktail parties with all your friends who already think you are nuts for your retro fascinations.

    toilet-seat-glitter-embed

    Midcentury American industrial designers LOVED glitter:

    • glitter laminate40 historic designs of glitter laminate — from Formica, Textolite, Wilsonart and more
    • Glitter vinyl floor tile — we found a source (alas, I was told be a reader this is being discontinued so get it while you can)
    • Ceiling glitter — where to buy it — and my very pressing questions
    • Ruth Richmond for Weiser acrylic doorknobs — what we’re lusting after now


    olsonite boxolsonitetoilet-hardware

    Links for more information:

    • To see all the New Old Stock from nomoredrama4me, click here (affiliate link) … and once there, take a look at “Sold Items” to see what got away…
    • See our other stories about products we’ve spotlighted from nomoredrama4me’s stockpile.

    Related stories

    1. dollhouse-interior-Marx Rare 1962 Marx metal dollhouse — with a fallout bomb shelter
    2. vintage hot water heater Monel — rare and wonderful vintage kitchen sink and counter top material
    3. retro Crane kitchenette Can you guess what this cabinet holds?
    4. vintage Hall-Mack Vintage Hall-Mack Extendo-bar towel bar woddity spotted at the NOS hardware store

    Ad

    ​
    Comments 18
    Be-Safe-graphic2.3

    Comments

    1. Jay says

      July 15, 2016 at 1:44 pm

      Just getting around to seeing today’s post. The picture of the carton is hilarious. Isn’t the Church t-seat company slogan “Best Seat In The House”? Shame the glitter finishes are not popular these days, it provided a certain neutrality with pizazz.

      Reply
      • Mary Elizabeth says

        July 18, 2016 at 10:30 am

        Yes, I remember that “Best Seat in the House” slogan in old magazine ads from the 1950s. When I was 7-10 years old and reading the newspaper, I thought puns were the greatest humor going. Still like them, in fact!

        Reply
    2. lynda says

      July 15, 2016 at 6:23 pm

      I will stick with a Toto Washlet seat! Glitter seat so fun to look at.

      Reply
    3. tammyCA says

      July 16, 2016 at 1:10 am

      I’m obsessed with vintage glittered items, too..what a great seat & boohoo sold already. All the best fun stuff was made back then & from all those U.S. companies that ended in ite. ????

      Reply
    4. Joe Felice says

      July 17, 2016 at 1:00 pm

      Glitter was en vogue. Ceilings and counter tops, but now toilet sets. Who knew? I’ve heard of lots of “-ites,” but never Olsonite. I notice the mounting holes are different than on today’s toilets. So the seat would probably not fit on newer toilets.

      Reply
    5. Heidi E. says

      July 27, 2016 at 11:28 pm

      I may be slightly tangential here, but it occurred to me while reading this set of instructions to turn laminate countertops into faux granite, which I doubt many people reading this site would want to do, that actually you could very easily subvert these instructions to turn a boring countertop into a fair facsimile of the much desired and no longer available glitter laminate. Just do the opposite of what the blogger says about only using fine micro glitter, and put it over a solid background instead of sponge painting granite texture! I’m seriously considering making a Galaxy theme because I think my astronomy nerd side may be even stronger than my history nerd side…

      https://everythingsbetterwithsparkles.wordpress.com/tag/envirotex-lite/

      Reply
    « Older Comments
    Note: All comments are moderated, generally within 24 hours. By using this website you are agreeing to the site's Terms of Use, which include commenting policies. Before participating, read them here in full.

     

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    • Midcentury-Marketplace-Ads3
    • BE SAFE / RENOVATE SAFE!
      Get informed and be aware about the environmental & safety hazards in old homes, materials and products. #1 RULE: Consult with your own properly licensed professionals. More info: See our Be Safe/Renovate page... EPA asbestos website ... EPA lead website ... U.S.F.A. – fire safety, etc.
    website-bottom-banner-pam-kateFINAL

    Important Reader Information

    • Terms of Use: By using this website you are agreeing to the site's terms of use. Read them here in full.
    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclosures: How I make money
    • Contact

    Copyright 2019 © Retro Renovation®, all rights reserved. Please do not use any materials without prior permission.